Portia Vries of Western Province scored a bronze medal on the first day of the African Weightlifting Championships in the Strand, when she totalled 153kg for third place, competing in the 48kg division, also winning bronze with a fine effort of 90kg in the clean and jerk.
Vries came back from injury to deliver a fired-up performance which had the spectators on their feet, in a division won by 15-year-old Nigerian Chineye Fedelif, who succeeded with a smart 161kg total, with another Nigerian, 18-year-old Azike Onyeke, winning silver with a 158kg total.
Vries joins South Africa’s women’s team of Mariska Pretorius and Nicole Botha in the 53km division, Mona Pretorius and Zayanda Mjezu (58kg), Matshidiso Masiu (63kg) and Babalwa Ndleleni (75kg) at the continental Championships, which represents the final opportunity for South Africa’s top lifters to qualify for the Olympic Games in Beijing later this year.
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