The Athlete of the Week

Weightlifter Elena Andries

Florin Orban, 09.04.2019, 13:17

The European Senior Weightlifting Championships, which are underway in the Georgian town of Batumi, as of this past Sunday have been an opportunity for participants to amass points enabling them to qualify for the 2020 edition of the Tokyo Olympics, so the stakes are really high for the ongoing competition in Batumi.

A delegation made of 14 Romanian weightlifters traveled to Georgia. Ahead of the departure, the stated goal expressed by the president of the Romanian Weightlifting Federation Nucu Vlad was to win two, maybe three medals. However, the Romanian weightlifters’ excellent run went way above par, since in the debut day of the competition they won no less than five medals.

Three of those medals were gold. They were won by Elena Andries in the 49-kilogram category. The other two medals were bronze and were won by Cosmina Pana in the 45-kilogram category, the clean and jerk style, and Cristian Marian Luca in the 55-kilogram category, the snatch style. On Monday, Sorina Hulpan won bronze, in the 59-kilogram category, the clean and jerk style.

Thanks to her outstanding run in Batumi, Elena Andries has been designated the Athlete of the week on Radio Romania International.

We should also note that in Batumi, Andries compelled recognition in the snatch style, lifting 87 kilograms. Following her in descending order were Russia’s Kristina Sobol, with 85 kilograms and French Anais Michel, with 79 kilograms. In the clean and jerk style, Andries also emerged as winner, with 103 kilograms, failing a second attempt, set at 105 kilograms. Italy’s Giorgia Russo came in 2nd, also with 103 kilograms, while third-placed was Manon Lorentz, also from France, with 99 kilograms. Under the circumstances, Elena Andries came at the top of the table with an overall output of 190 kilograms, followed by Sobol, with 180 and Russo, with 178 kilograms.

Elena Ramona Andries was born in Galaţi, on September 21, 1994. At the 2012 European Championship in Turkey, Andries came in 4th. However, at the European Championships of 2013 Andries tested positive for Stanazolol and was suspended until 2015. Elena Andries then resumed participating in competitions and in 2017, at the European Championships in Split, she walked away with bronze in the snatch style and overall events. At the European Championships hosted by Romania in 2018, Andries won gold in the snatch and clean and jerk styles, as well as overall, so her excellent run in Georgia only confirms her status at European level, in the 49-kilogram category.