Chinese weightlifter Zhou Lulu set a clean and jerk world record of 192 kilograms to win gold in the women’s +75kg category at the Asian Games on Friday. Zhou added 2kg to Russian Tatiana Kashirna’s previous mark set last year in Poland. The London Olympics champion also hoisted 142kg in the snatch component to record an overall lift of 334kg, and said she was training towards going out on a high at the Rio Games in four years time. “Participating in the Olympic Games is the dream of every athlete and I’ll also take part in the next Rio 2016 Olympic Games,” she added. “I will challenge there again to break my world record.” Zhou did not think she would be competing when the Tokyo Summer Games come around in 2020. “The 2016 Rio Olympics will be my last. Considering my age and body, that seems to be the appropriate decision right now.” Meanwhile, Olympic superheavyweight champion Behdad Salimi confirmed his status as the world’s strongest man Friday but came up short of beating his own weightlifting world record at the Asian Games. Iran’s Salimi failed at a new snatch mark of 215kg, 1kg above his record set in 2011, with his last lift on the way to a crushing victory. He had claimed before leaving Tehran last week that he had achieved 215kg in training and he would do it again in Incheon. But he was never in control of the bar and it dropped to groans from a huge contingent of Iranians in the crowd. “I wanted to break my own record tonight, but I’m very happy to win gold,” Salimi said after adding a second Asian Games title to the 2011 world championship and 2012 Olympic gold medal. Sun shines again In the pool it was another successful day for Chinese star Sun Yang, who reminded the world he still has no equal in long distance swimming. The Chinese sensation successfully defended his 1,500 metres freestyle title at the Incheon Games, coming home well ahead of his rivals, though in truth he had no competition. Swimming well within himself, Sun won gold in a time of 14 minutes 49.75 seconds, well outside the world record of 14:31.02 he set at the 2012 London Olympics.
