Sri Lanka weightlifters performed well to set up 16 new records at the elite pool evaluation competition held in Polonnaruwa last week.
This elite pool is training with the focus on the next international tournament, the Asian Weight Lifting Championship scheduled to take place in April in Uzbekistan according to a senior official of the Weight Lifting Federation.
Weightlifters were allowed to have an excess of two kilograms to their body weight during this evaluation competition.
Dilanka Isuru of the Army competed in the 55kg weight category and set up a new National record of 251 kg (111 kg snatch method and 140 Clean and Jerk method) erasing his own record of 240kg which was set up in China in 2019.
Thilanka Palagasinghe representing the Polonnaruwa SC in the 67kg weight class set up a new record of 265 kgs. This was better than the previous record of 263 kgs set by Chintaka Lakmal. Thilanka lifted 119kgs in the snatch event and 146kgs in the Clean and Jerk class both of which were new records.
Former gold medallist at the Commonwealth Games Chinthana Vidanage also set a new record in the 81kg class with a lift of 171kgs in the Clean and Jerk method. This was better than his previous best of 160kgs set at the South Asian Games in 2019.
Indika Dissanayake the silver medallist at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast was able to erase the record set by Chintaka Goothal in the 81kgs weight category.
Dissanayake was happy with his performance of lifting 137kgs in the Snatch method with the aim of qualifying for the next Olympic Games. Shanaka Peters of the Navy, 102kgs and two women lifters in BC Priyanthi (Navy) 87kgs and Thrimalee Haputenna (78kgs) set up new Sri Lanka records which gave them valuable exposure to look ahead.