Diaz to keep lifting as Paris dream ends

Hidilyn Diaz, the first and only Olympic gold medallist from the Philippines, vowed on Thursday to continue in weightlifting just hours after failing to qualify for a fifth consecutive Games.

Diaz, 33, was beaten in the IWF World Cup 59kg class in Thailand late Wednesday by 25-year-old compatriot Elreen Ando, who secured a Paris weightlifting berth for the Philippines after finishing seventh with a total of 228kg.

Only one athlete per country can qualify in any weight division and Diaz, who won gold at Tokyo in the now-scrapped 55kg division, finished 11th on 222kg after failing with her final two clean-and-jerk attempts to match Ando’s total.