Weightlifter Nijat Rahimov of Kazakhstan broke the world record to win the gold medal of the men`s 77kg category while his compatriot Dmitriy Balandin created history by claiming the central Asian country`s first swimming medal at the ongoing Rio Olympics here.
Rahimo registered a total of 379kg on Wednesday, bettering the world record of the jerk by four kilos along the way with a successful attempt of 214kg, reports Xinhua.
Balandin meanwhile stunned several higher rated swimmers on his way to gold in the men`s 200m breaststroke category, his country`s first ever Olympic medal of any colour in swimming.
At the weightlifting arena, Rahimo held off a strong challenge from defending champion Lyu Xiaojun of China, who also registered a total lift of 379kg, but finished second due to bodyweight disadvantage.
Lyu however, broke the snatch world record as he lifted 177kg.
Ibrahim Ramadan Ibrahim Abdelbaki of Egypt claimed the bronze at 361kg.
Meanwhile, Xiang Yanmei of China shrugged off an unexpected neck injury to win the gold medal for China in the women`s 69kg Weightlifting category.
Xiang, winner at the world championships in 2013 and 2015, failed in her third attempt in the snatch competition on Wednesday when she put the 118kg barbell above her head but suddenly the barbell fell awkwardly on her head and down her neck and dropped to the floor.
“I saw little stars all of a sudden. I got hurt a little bit; I felt hurt when I knocked my head,” Xiang said.
Despite the thrill, the 24-year-old Xiang still took the lead and kept the momentum to jerk 145kg with a winning total of 261kg.
Zhazira Zhapparkul of Kazakhstan, who has stood below Xiang on the podium at the 2015 worlds, claimed the silver with a total of 259kg and the bronze went to Sara Ahmed of Egypt at 255kg.
Ahmed, 18, junior world champion in 2015, admitted that being a gold medalist at the 2014 Youth Olympic Games was a huge encouragement for her. She came to Rio Games for a medal.
