IWF120y/66 – 2016: Oscar Figueroa, the shiniest Colombian star

It is normally a feat associated with strong countries in the Olympic arena, those winning many dozens of medals in a single edition of the Games: to place two of their athletes on the podium within a difference of hours. At the Paris 2024 Olympics, Colombia won four medals (overall), but two of them came in a two-hour gap in the weightlifting competition, with Yeison Lopez earning silver in the men’s 89kg and Mari Sanchez finishing also second in the women’s 71kg, on August 9. These were the medals number 10 and 11 in Colombian Olympic weightlifting, a country that has collected podium presences without interruption since the Sydney 2000 edition. In Australia, Maria Isabel Urrutia (women’s 75kg) became the first-ever gold medallist for her country (all sports), an achievement that was followed by one bronze (Athens 2004 – Mabel Mosquera, women’s 63kg) and two silver linings (Beijing 2008 – Diego Salazar, men’s 62kg, and Leydi Solis, women’s 69kg). In London 2012, Oscar Figueroa started his route to becoming the most successful Colombian lifter so far – in the men’s 62kg, he earned a silver, but he would upgrade that result in Rio 2016, with the Olympic title. He is the only Colombian lifter with two Olympic medals, including one gold. His teammate Luis Javier Mosquera climbed also on the podium twice, but never on the highest march – bronze in Rio 2016 and silver in Tokyo 2020ne. The list of Olympic Colombian medallists is completed by the 2012 bronze of Ubaldina Valoyes, in the women’s 69kg. Weightlifting remains the most successful sport at Olympic level for Colombia, leading the medal chart with 11 medals (out of 38 if all sports are considered). At the IWF World Championships, Colombian lifters have also shone on many occasions, clinching 41 (only Total) and 127 (Snatch, C&J, and Total) medals so far.