Iranian weightlifter Sohrab Moradi may not be a household name among Western fans of the sport, but he’s currently one of the world’s best 94kg lifters — and perhaps the frontrunner heading into the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. And he’s in fine form, too, as evidenced by his performance in a recent Iranian competition.
Moradi hits a crisp looking 234kg clean & jerk, which is 1kg above Ilya Ilyin‘s World Record lift from the 2012 Olympic Games (though due to his doping suspension, that record may be overturned). Moradi’s lift won’t count towards a World Record since it wasn’t performed in an IWF sanctioned competition, but it’s not ridiculous to think he may go for a similar mark in Rio.
Moradi had a commanding performance at the Fajr Cup last month, going 180 in the snatch and 220 in the clean & jerk to win — on only two attempts. That’s the same IWF-sanctioned competition where his countryman Kianoush Rostami broke the long standing 85kg clean & jerk world record with his 220kg lift.
As impressive a lift as the above is, Moradi has gone much heavier on video (in training, of course). Below is a compilation of a 200kg (!) snatch and 240kg (!) clean & jerk from training, both at around 96kg bodyweight. For reference, the snatch is 12kg over the standing 94kg World Record, currently held by Kakhi Kakhiashvili.
Though the Rio Olympics’ weightlifting events will be depleted of some fan favorites by doping suspensions, we’re excited to see what Moradi can do in the 94kg class.
