Qatar’s Fares Elbakh has won silver medal in the men's 94kg class weightlifting at the Asian Games today. Elbakh came second on 381kg and proved a fans' favourite as he was surrounded by a huge crowd of fans and posed for pictures with them after the medals ceremony.
"This is great. I love all my fans," he beamed. "I'm having a great time."
It was Qatar's first weightlifting medal of the Games and came after Iran's other great lifter in the competition, 85kg world record-holder Kianoush Rostami, failed three times to clean and jerk 220kg.
"I expected I could win a medal but didn't think it would be silver," Elbakh said.
Gold medalist Sohrab Moradi of Iran, silver medalist Fares Elbakh of Qatar and bronze Sarat Sumpradit of Thailand pose on the podium
Iran’s Sohrab Moradi broke weightlifting's longest standing world record on his way to gold in the men's 94kg class.
Moradi hoisted 189kg in the competition's opening discipline to better the snatch record set at 188kg in 1999 by Greece's Akakios Kakiasvilis.
Moradi now has a complete set of 94kg world records that will remain on the books forever.
After the Asian Games all the sport's weight classes will change ahead of the Olympic qualifying cycle beginning at November's World Championships.
Moradi already owned the marks for the clean and jerk (233kg) and total weight (417kg) in the men's light heavyweight division.
"I really wanted to break the world record as it was the only one I didn't have and this was my last chance," Moradi told AFP.
"I feel very happy to know that my name will always remain on all the 94kg world records."
The Iranian said he would now step up to the new 96kg class.
