Who Said Eko Yuli Was Over? This Is Proof That He Is Still The Mainstay Of The Red And White

Indonesian lifter, Eko Yuli Irawan. (Photo via Antara)

JAKARTA - Eko Yuli Irawan is no longer young. Currently, the mainstay lifter is entering the age of 33.

However, he proved himself to be the mainstay of the Red and White. Eko Yuli performed perfectly in the men's 67 kg class of the 2023 edition IWF Grand Prix 1 at the Pabexpo Exhibition Complex, Havana, Cuba.

The lifter from Lampung won three gold medals. Despite moving up from 61 kg previously, he proved himself to be the best in the snatch class (145 kg), clean and jerk (176 kg), and a total of (321 kg) in the event which was part of the qualifying for the XXXIII/2024 Paris Olympics, France.

As an athlete who has flying hours, Eko appears confident in the competition between Group A. In the snatch he started with a load of 137 kg.

At the experiment, Eko was out of competition. Closest competitor Francisco Antonio Mosquera Valencia was unable to catch up and failed on two attempts weighing 136 kg.

Eko also increased the load on the second try with 141 kg. Then lastly he was able to lift 145 kg, at the same time confirming the gold medal. Valencia returned home with silver with the best lift of 136 kg. Bronze was won by Italian lifter Sergio Massidda with 135 kg.

Then in the clean and jerk class, Eko Yuli appeared convincing to start at 170 kg. The competitor, Valencia tried to catch up with the first trial with a load of 175 kg but failed. He only succeeded in the second batch.

Eko also replied to the score in the second trial with 176 kg. The result is sufficient to ensure a gold medal. While Valencia had to settle for silver 1 kg adrift of Eko. Meanwhile, Massida won bronze in the 165 kg lift.

Thus Eko also ensured the total gold medal in the force with 321 kg. Valencia won silver with 311 kg, and Massidda went home bronze after posting 300 kg.

Meanwhile, another Indonesian lifter Mohammad Yasin in the 67 kg class, had to settle for fifth position for a snatch with 127 kg, fourth for a clean and jerk with 162 kg, and fourth for a total of 289 kg.

As for Eko, this result continued the slick record of the lifter who was born on July 24, 1989, after previously also contributed a gold medal for the Indonesian contingent at the XXXII/2023 SEA Games in Cambodia. At that time, Eko fell in the men's 61 kg class with a total lift of 303 kg.

Unlike the 2023 SEA Games, Eko Yuli dropped in 67 kg class at the 2023 IWF Grand Prix in Cuba. This is because in the 61 kg class there was Ricko Saputra who yesterday brought home two gold in the snatch (134 kg) and a total lift (295 kg), as well as silver in the clean and jerk (161 kg) class.

The Executive Board of the Indonesian Weightlifting Association (PB PABSI) has indeed set a strategy to participate in athletes at the 2023 IWF Grand Prix, considering that it is part of the qualifying event for the Paris Olympics.

Eko's position in the 61 kg class in the ranking to the 2024 Olympics is considered safe because he was in third place with 300 kg when he appeared at the 2022 World Championships. These results place Eko under two lifters from China Fabin Li with 314 kg and Chen's Lijun with 310 kg.

While Ricko was sixth overall with 298 kg when he appeared at the 2023 Asian Championships. At the Paris Olympics, each country can only send one athlete in each class.