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Thai Olympian wins gold, East Timor breaks medal drought,
3 December 2005
Olympic and world weightlifting champion Pawina Thongsuk did
what she does best Saturday--win a gold medal.
East Timor, meanwhile, did what it has never done--pick up a
medal in a major international competition.
Francisca Barela of East Timor (Timor Leste) won a bronze medal
in a women's anyo division of arnis, a Filipino martial art that
emphasizes stick fighting, at the Southeast Asian Games.
It gave her fledgling country its first medal of any color in
any Games.
East Timor, a former Indonesian province, competed at the Sydney
Olympics in 2000--while still under United Nations administration--and
again at Athens in 2004 when the country marched under its own
flag. It did not win a medal in either Olympics.
The country also failed to win medals at the Asian Games in Busan,
South Korea, in 2002 and the Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam
in 2003.
Pawina marked her return to the 69-kilogram weightlifting class
with gold medal Saturday, her third international title in separate
weight classes.
She won gold in the 75-kilogram class at Athens and set world
records in the 63-kilogram class at last month's world championships
at Doha, Qatar.
On Saturday, Pawina cruised to the top of the podium at the Bacolod
Convention Center on the central island of Negros.
"I started in the 69 kg category, but I tried my luck at
75 kg in Athens," said Pawina, who Saturday broke the Southeast
Asian Games records in the snatch, clean and jerk and overall.
"At the world championships we tried another category, but
now I'm back to my original [weight class]."
Pawina lifted 142 kilograms in the clean and jerk, and 115 in
the snatch for a 257-kilogram total to best the previous Games
totals of 105, 137.5 and 242.5 kilograms respectively.
"I try to break records every time I compete, but I didn't
try for the world record this time," said Pawina through
an interpreter. "Maybe at the 2008 Beijing Olympics."
After the morning events, the Philippines had strengthened its
lead of the gold medal race, going over the 70 mark, ahead of
Thailand and Vietnam with 47 each.
Khunchai Nuchpum continued Thailand's dominance of Saturday's
weightlifting, claiming gold in the men's 94-kilogram class by
a whopping 36 kilograms.
Khunchai hoisted a total of 346 kilograms, ahead of silver medal
winner Alfonsito Aldante of the Philippines with 300 kilograms.
In baseball, the Philippines downed Myanmar 9-1 to slug its way
into a gold-medal matchup with Thailand, which beat Indonesia
12-4 in the other semifinal Saturday.
The Thai women continued their unbeaten steak in the indoor volleyball
with a 3-0 win over last-placed Singapore.
Thailand dominated Singapore 25-12, 25-13, 25-18 to top the standings
and is favorite for gold ahead of Monday's gold medal match against
second-placed Vietnam.
Thailand and Indonesia will meet in the men's gold medal match
Monday.
The Southeast Asian Games are held every two years and include
11 countries. More than 5,000 athletes are competing in the event
ending Monday.
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