LOVELY DAY FOR WEIGHT OF GOLD

Sydney Morning Herald, Australia
March 21 2006

Gold for Deborah Lovely.

AUSTRALIA’S Deborah Lovely won a gold medal after a tight battle in
the women’s 75 kilogram weightlifting event at the Games last night.

It was Australia’s second weightlifting gold of the day, after Alex
Karapetyan earlier won the men’s 94 kilogram event.

Lovely was equal with Nauru’s Sheba Deireragea after the snatch,
but outlifted her by six kilograms in the clean-and-jerk to take
the title. Deireragea won silver and South Africa’s Babalwa Ndleleni
bronze.

Lovely won a silver medal in the same event at the Manchester Games
in 2002.

The woman who won gold on that occasion, India’s Pujari Shailaja,
had been favourite to defend her title here until she was disqualified
from competing after she recently tested positive to a banned drug.

Karapetyan’s 94 kilogram event was an Australian success. He took
gold and compatriot Simon Heffernan silver.

Karapetyan, defending the title he won in Manchester in 2002, was
far too strong for the rest of the field and his win was never in
serious doubt.

The former Armenian’s total of 350 kilograms was well ahead of
Heffernan’s 332 kilograms. Bronze medallist Thomas Yule, of Scotland,
lifted 326 kilograms.

It was Australia’s second weightlifting gold after Ben Turner won
the 69 kilograms event on Saturday night.

Heffernan delighted his home-town crowd with his exuberant
celebrations, including an air guitar solo.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress