It was a rare international victory for athletes from an area of two million people, where world-class training facilities are scarce.
Palestinian Olympian Hamada Mohammed won the gold medal in the jerk during Group A training for men up to 102 kg! Check out… https://t.co/cnoH8wCU3i
– IWF (@iwfnet) 1652092108000
At an event in Athens, 20-year-old Hamada won gold in the 102kg category for the jerk. He won a bronze medal in the overall results based on the best twitch and twitch of the competitor.
Introducing the first podium of the day! The eighth day of the IWF Junior World Championships 2022 began with… https://t.co/q3awcCE5nw
– IWF (@iwfnet) 1652095984000
Hamada traveled to the United Arab Emirates in January to prepare for the competition, spending 40 days at a training camp in the Gulf state. He also trained together with several world champions at another camp in Russia.
He started his career at the age of 12, participating in local competitions in Gaza.
“I cried. We all did. This is Mohammad’s first world gold medal, the world gold medal for Palestine,” his father Khamees Hamada told Reuters in Gaza.
“This is an achievement for every Palestinian. I am proud of my son,” he said after watching the event with family, friends and local sports officials.
Last year, Hamada was the first Palestinian weightlifter to participate in the Olympics, finishing seventh in Tokyo.
“We have lived this victory for weeks and months and we are pleased that the training and preparation plan has borne fruit today,” said Assad Al-Majdalawi, vice president of the Palestinian Olympic Committee.
“This victory is a message to the whole world – the Palestinian people deserve a better life and deserve to be free,” Majdalawi told Reuters.