Folashade Oluwafeniayo joined Rasool Mohsin and Paul Kehinde in making history at the 9th Fazza 2018 World Para Powerlifting World Cup, as they set three world records in their respective categories. The sport’s first major event of the season closed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on 22 February.
Nigeria’s Oluwafeniayo became the final record-breaker of the competition when she set a new world record in the women’s up to 86kg.
The 32-year-old cleared the bar at 146kg, a 1kg increase from the mark she had set last year on her way to gold at the Mexico City 2017 World Championships. Oluwafeniayo even went for more but failed to lift 149.5kg in her third attempt. Jordan’s Rio 2016 silver medallist Tharwh Alhajaj finished second following a 117kg lift.
Oluwafeniayo’s compatriot, Paul Kehinde, broke his own world record of 220.5kg earlier in the competition. The reigning Paralympic and world champion in the men’s up to 65kg lifted 221kg in his second attempt to surpass the mark he set at the Mexico City 2017 World Championships.
He was followed by Algeria’s Mexico City 2017 bronze medallist Hocine Bettir (183kg), who will be the home crowd favourite for the 2018 African Championships in Algiers, from 27-29 July.
On the same day (19 February), Iraq’s two-time Paralympic silver medallist Mohsin progressed from 200kg to 210kg to 220kg in his three attempts in the men’s up to 72kg competition.
Despite having already sealed gold, the 30-year-old decided to go for more and set a new world record of 228kg in his fourth lift, improving 1kg from the mark he had set at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.
Turkmenistan’s Sergey Meladze ended second after clearing the bar at 185kg, while Thailand’s Thongsa Marasri (180kg) completed the podium.
Other Paralympic champions who emerged triumphant in Dubai included Ukraine’s Lidiia Soloviova in the women's up to 50kg, Nigeria’s Esther Oyema in the women's up to 55kg and Roland Ezuruike in the men's up to 54kg.
Mohammad Tarbash, Abdelkareem Khattab, Jamil Elshebli and Omar Sami Hamadeh Qarada took four golds for Jordan, helping the nation finish top of the medals table alongside Nigeria. Ukraine finished in third position after winning two golds and two silvers.
Hosts United Arab Emirates also enjoyed success as they claimed two golds and one bronze to finish fourth.
Complete results of the Fazza World Cup are available on World Para Powerlifting's website. https://www.paralympic.org/powerlifting/results
