The Sights and Sounds of Elreen Ando’s Olympic Quest
For the second time in her life, Elreen Ando immersed herself in the Olympic experience.
All around the Cebuano weightlifter were riveting scenes: stomps of frustration, shrieks of joy, and faces painted with rage as world-class athletes sought glory in Paris.
And then, there was the horde of spectators in live attendance—something that Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo didn’t deal with when she won the Philippines’ first Olympic gold three years ago. There’s a different vibe, of course, when you’re trying to repeatedly lift an immense object amid a sea of faces.
In this dramatic environment, Ando had her own story to tell. After an impressive Olympic debut in Tokyo—where she placed 7th in the women’s 64kg category—Ando found herself carrying unprecedented weight when she outperformed Diaz-Naranjo at the 2024 IWF World Cup. This feat meant that Ando, not Diaz-Naranjo, would be representing three stars and a sun in the Olympics.
As the spiritual successor of the country’s golden girl, Ando breathed the rarefied air of a repeat Olympic trip. The sights and sounds she beheld in her Paris sojourn were nothing short of cinematic.
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Shaky Starts, Strong Finishes
Nerves of steel, of course, are a prerequisite to weightlifting success on the highest level. Unfortunately for some competitors, the wrong type of nerves prevailed in their initial snatch attempts.
Mexico’s Janeth Gomez, the very first competitor to take the stage in the women’s 59kg category, seemed to have lost track of time and began her attempt with just a few seconds to go. Gomez’s attempt failed, as did the first try of Mathlynn Sasser (Marshall Islands). France’s Dora Tchakounte—who was, hands down, the crowd favorite in this one—was the first woman to successfully perform the snatch on her first try.
Elreen Ando, unfortunately, went the same way as Gomez and Sasser. On her first attempt at the snatch—with the weight pegged at 100kg—the 25-year-old managed to get the bar off the floor and above her head. However, she struggled to extend her knees to complete the lift.
Ando’s next two attempts yielded different results. Taking another crack at 100kg, the Cebuana grasped the bar, took her sweet time to get her bearings, and successfully performed the lift in one fluid motion. Ando pumped her fists in celebration, but there was no such delight in her third attempt when she failed to register a personal high score of 102kg.
While the Filipina couldn’t end on a high note in the snatch category, three athletes finished strongly and put the entire field on notice. China’s Lou Shifang, Canada’s Maude Charron, and Colombia’s Yenny Alvarez each had three successful attempts, and after the first half of the competition, this trio was leading the pack.
The Buck Stops at 130
As if mandated by weightlifting gods, the number 130 became a sacred number in the clean and jerk category.
The entire contest essentially came down to this: Competitors who lifted less than 130kg were nowhere near medal contention, while the handful of weightlifters who met this benchmark had a podium finish within arm’s reach.
This meant competitors like Italy’s Lucresia Magistris and Ukraine’s Kamila Konotop—who suffered an untimely thigh injury that hampered the majority of her lift attempts—had to kiss their medal hopes goodbye. Gomez, Sasser, and Tchakounte had no such luck, either; while Venezuela’s Anyelin Venegas came close by lifting 128kg.
In this field of 12 athletes, only five cleared 130kg. Charron achieved the feat en route to her silver medal finish, and Chinese Taipei’s Kuo Hsing-chun—one of the favorites in this competition—pulled it off to clinch the bronze medal. Nigeria’s Rafiatu Lawal managed 130kg as well, while Shifang—who took home the coveted gold on this event—set an Olympic record in the clean and jerk by lifting an astonishing 134kg.
As for Ando? She was a scene unto herself.
Her first go at clean and jerk resembled the opening moments of her snatch attempts: the bar above her head but her legs unable to properly stand. In her second clean and jerk try, Ando took even more time but eventually lost control as she hoisted the bar.
In a climactic moment straight out of a Filipino action flick, Ando brought her most confident self to her third and final attempt. With the weight of the world on her shoulders, Ando brought the 130kg bar to her collarbone, then emphatically executed the lift to seal the deal.
Dropping the bar on the floor, Elreen Ando cocked her head back, closed her eyes, and savored the moment as relief and fulfillment washed over her entire being.
At that moment, her senses must have been on overload: the roaring response of Filipinos in attendance, and murmurs from her opponents’ coaches as they plotted their next move, all while the bright aura of South Paris Arena 6 cast her in the spotlight.
There are, however, more sights and sounds for Elreen Ando to behold in her weightlifting odyssey. Her next stops include a gym, perhaps somewhere in Cebu, and an arena in Tinseltown.
“Mag-LA po ako,” a hopeful Ando told One Sports after the contest. “Saka kailangan ko pa rin talagang magsikap sa training. Kulang pa talaga ‘yung buhat ko [para] makamit natin ‘yung medal.”
