Czech Youth Olympics team has its first medal - Romani community can be proud of the record-setting performance too

The first medal for the Czech team at the Buenos Aires 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games was won during the very first day of competition by weightlifter František Polák, who came in third in the Men’s 56 kg category. On his way to the bronze medal he broke three Czech junior records.

According to the website of the Czech Olympic team, Polák lifted 233 kg in two different events, breaking by 2 kg the existing record he created two months ago when he won the silver medal at the European Youth Weightlifting Championship. The new Czech records in this category are now 104 kg in snatch and 129 kg in clean and jerk.

“I went there mainly to compete, I did not have big expectations. I am overjoyed to have won a medal, my trainer and I went for the bronze with certainty,” the website of the Czech Olympic Committee quotes Polák as saying.

The 17-year-old was bested by Vietnamese weightlifter Ngo Son Dinh, who won gold with 262 kg, and the Thai weightlifter Natthawat Chomchuen, who took silver with 239 kg. “This is an unreal success for Czech weightlifting,” said Emil Brzóska, Polák’s trainer.

“Our aim is clear now. His first World Championship awaits him [in November] in the Men’s category, and he must begin competition now in order to qualify for the Olympic Games in Tokyo. That’s the dream for both of us,” Brzóska said.

According to the head of Czech weightlifting, Petr Krol, Polák is an exceptional talent. “If he keeps it up, I believe he will successfully follow in the footsteps of Jiří Orság,” Krol said, comparing the youth to the most successful Czech weightlifter of recent years.