London: Maiya Maneza won Kazakhstan's second weightlifting gold medal in London on Tuesday and set an Olympic record in the women's 63-kilogram category.
The 26-year-old Maneza was second after lifting 110 kilograms in the snatch but secured the gold medal by taking 135 kilograms in her first clean and jerk for a total weight of 245 kilograms, beating the previous Olympic record by three kilos.
She went for the world record in her final two lifts but couldn't do it.
World champion Svetlana Tsarukaeva of Russia got the silver medal while Christine Girard of Canada took bronze, her country's first Olympic medal in women's weightlifting.
The expected duel between Maneza and Tsarukaeva — the top lifters in the weight class — fizzled in the snatch when the Russian only managed to outlift Maneza by two kilograms.
That margin was bound to be too thin heading into the clean and jerk, where Maneza is the stronger of the two.
Tsarukaeva seemed to focus on shoring up the silver as she picked only 125 kilos for her first clean and jerk. She held on to second place despite failing subsequent attempts at 130 kilos, finishing with a total weight of 237 kilos.
Zulfiya Chinshanlo won the women's 53-kilogram class on Sunday to win Kazakhstan's first weightlifting gold at the London Olympics.
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