Hossein Rezazadeh Was My Example: Aleksei Lovchev
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – World Weightlifting Championships gold medal winner Aleksei Lovchev said the Iranian legendary lifter Hossein Rezazadeh has been his childhood role model.
Aleksei Lovchev broke the men’s over 105 kilogram clean and jerk and overall world records on the final day of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Championships.
Lovchev lifted 264kg in the clean and jerk, eclipsing the previous world record mark of 263kg set by Rezazadeh at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.
The Russian's two best lifts gave him a total of 475kg, which surpassed another world record held by Rezazadeh who amassed 472kg at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
“I had never tried that weight before - I’m overwhelmed,” said the 26-year-old.
“This shows that Russia is the strongest nation. I could never have done it without the support of my parents,” Lovchev told insidethegames.biz.
“My father is my coach and he introduced me to weightlifting. My mother passed away in 2012 and I dedicate this victory and the records to her,” the Russian added.
“When I was little I used to watch Rezazadeh on television, lifting enormous weights. He was an example to me and I never imagined I would one day take his records,” Lovchev said.
