Asian Weightlifting Junior Champion Vanessa Sarno remained unfazed by a recent elbow injury and a higher weight category in the 19th Asian Games.
“Okay naman ang elbow ko. Nagre-recover naman, at pabalik na ulit ako sa training,” said Sarno before the weightlifting team departed for China to compete in the Asiad.
The 19-year-old Sarno mentioned that she had ample time to recover after sustaining a left elbow injury during the IWF World Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, last week, which led to her withdrawal from the snatch event.
As a Southeast Asian Games, Asian, and world junior champion hailing from Tagbilaran, Bohol, Sarno won’t be competing in the shelved women’s 71-kg class. Instead, she will be moving up to 76 kgs.
“Hindi mahirap mag-adjust sa weight class dahil hindi naman siya catchweight,” she added. Sarno had an incomplete clean and jerk attempt during the Saudi meet due to a mistake in one of her preparations in the women’s 71kg division.
Prior to her participation in Saudi Arabia, Sarno swept all three gold medals at the World Juniors Championships in New Delhi, India.
Sarno also secured the women’s 71-kg gold in a record-breaking fashion during the 32nd Southeast Asian Games weightlifting competitions, earning her recognition as one of Olympic champion Hidilyn Diaz’s successors.
