Malaysian Powerlifter Athlete Secures Second Gold Medal At World Championships

KUALA LUMPUR, July 16 (Bernama) -- Malaysian powerlifter athlete, Bonnie Bunyau Gustin continued his smashing form by springing a surprise against a few senior opponents, en route to clinching his second gold medal in the men’s up to 65kg at the 2019 World Para Powerlifting Championship in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan on Monday. The 19-year-old pint-sized Sarawakian who claimed his first gold medal in the men’s below 65kg a few days ago, lifted a 185kg in his first attempt, before progressing to 197kg and 207kg in his second and attempts to score his maiden senior title in the tournament held at Astana Congress Centre. The victory also saw Bonnie booked his ticket to the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics Games. “I am very happy. I never expected to win the gold here with such strong competitors in my category. “But I believe in myself, in my hard work and discipline that I follow in my training. This is my biggest win ever,” said Bonnie as quoted in the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) website https://www.paralympic.org/powerlifting. Hocine Bettir of Algeria and Iranian powerlifter Amir Jafari Arangeh settled for the silver and bronze after lifting 194kg and 193kg, respectively. Three-time Paralympic gold medallist Liu Lei of China finished fourth place after lifting a 190kg, while the Paralympic reigning champion, Paul Kehinde, who is the world record holder in the event, failed to score the podium finish following three invalid lifts. -- BERNAMA