Tokyo Games gold medalist Maude Charron of Quebec will headline the Canadian weightlifting delegation at the Commonwealth Games this summer.
Posted yesterday at 7:29 p.m.
Five Olympians will be part of the team of 14 weightlifters who will defend the colors of Canada at the games in Birmingham, England.
These 14 athletes were selected according to their international ranking, the criterion being that they are among the top 10 Commonwealth athletes.
In addition to Charron, Olympic and Commonwealth champion, the group includes three other Quebecers in Rachel Leblanc-Bazinet and Tali Darsigny who won bronze at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, as well as Kristel Ngarlem.
On the men’s side, four Quebecers qualified: Youri Simard, Shad Darsigny, Nicolas Vachon and Pierre-Alexandre Bessette. Ontarian Boady Santavy, silver medalist at the 2021 World Championships and Commonwealth gold medalist in 2018 in Australia, will also be on the trip.
Charron had lifted a total of 236 kilograms in the snatch and clean and jerk to win gold in Tokyo at 64 kilograms. She became the second Canadian to win an Olympic weightlifting medal after Christine Girard.
The Canadian team managed to qualify women in each of the eight weight categories in Birmingham, while six male athletes will complete the delegation.
Canada Weightlifting is aiming for four to six medals, including three gold, in Birmingham. With five medals, including a gold, in 2018, Canada climbed to fifth place in the team standings.
Canadian athletes will attend a training camp in Sweden in June before the games begin. The weightlifting events are scheduled to take place from July 30 to August 4.