The pain on her face at the end of the fifth lift (she forfeited the last clean & jerk attempt) was an indicator of the difficulties Dora Tchakounte encountered during the final of the women’s 59kg, at her second Olympic Games. A home edition, in front of a crowded South Paris Arena 6, with many screaming her name in what has become a trademark of these Games in the French capital: unconditional support of the French competitors on home soil. This “push” has proven successful so far, with the host of these Olympics ranking fourth in the overall medal table.
Dora Tchakounte (FRA)
However, for the first French weightlifter in action in Paris, this was clearly not enough. “My elbow didn’t want to help today…” confessed a smiling and much more relaxed Tchakounte to the journalists in the mixed zone. After snatching 98kg and failing a 100kg bar, the 29-year-old appeared serene in the clean & jerk session: the first lift at 115kg went without major problems, but arrived at the 118kg, the French star clearly suffered from the fragility of her right elbow.
In the end, Tchakounte finished in 213kg, curiously the same total that gave her a fourth place at the Tokyo Olympics, three years ago. “Visibly, the level now is quite higher…” she admitted after concluding in ninth in the French capital. “I was of course expecting to do better than in Tokyo. Not in terms of kilos, but fundamentally in terms of the final ranking”.
A painful final lift in Paris
With an international career spanning 14 years, she arrived in Paris with a qualifying total of 224kg (also her best), achieved at the 2024 IWF World Cup in Phuket. In Thailand, Tchakounte had snatched 101kg and lifted 123kg in the clean & jerk. It was the ninth best result of the selected athletes in this category. “Of course, it could have been better, but I am quite happy to be here. Despite the result, the Games remain a magical experience! And in the end, I didn’t make it worse than in Tokyo…”
In the biggest stage of her competitive career, having the Olympics at home and the public on her side, Tchakounte was delighted with this unprecedented situation: “It was really special to feel that enthusiasm from the stands. This clearly allowed me to remain motivated and able to do my only clean & jerk lift. The injury in the elbow did not come at the best moment, but I am not the first or the last one to have this problem in weightlifting. It’s the sport, we need to accept it”.
On the way to qualify for the Games: at the 2024 IWF World Cup
The French lifter has notably shone on a European level throughout her career, having amassed three medals at the continental showcase: the gold in 2022, and two silver linings in 2021 and 2024. Her best result at the IWF World Championships was a ninth place two years ago, in Bogota, Colombia.
After Paris, the top priority is clear: “Some holiday, enjoying some time with the family. From September, life continues, and more training sessions will come. I lived a dream here, from the first moment I arrived in the Village. It has been fantastic!”
By Pedro Adrega
IWF Communications
