OLYMPICS /
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British woman competes with injury at Olympics
Xinhua
Updated: 2008-08-12 18:13
British lifter Michaela Breeze competed with her injury instead of anyone else at the Beijing Olympics in the Group B competition of the women's 63kg category on Tuesday.
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Michaela Breeze of Britain fails a lift in the women's 63 kg group B weightlifting event during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 12, 2008. [Agencies]
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She had been cheered up like a medal hopeful for her every attempt in clean and jerk, although she only finished seventh in Group B.
She succeeded in lifting 80kg and 85kg in the first two attempts in snatch and decided to give up the third attempt due to the back injury she suffered not long before coming to Beijing.
However, when the clean and jerk began, Breeze turned up again. When the commentator announced that "Here comes the Great Britain lifter Michaela Breeze!", the crowd cheered her with roars and loud applauds and they have done for the best lifters in the past three days.
"If I came out in the third attempt of snatch, I wouldn't (have the energy to) do it in the clean and jerk," she said.
She then made third successful attempts in clean and jerk of 80kg, 90kg and 100kg, despite of obvious agony that can be told from her expression. With every successful attempt, she received more applauds from the supportive spectators.
"The crowd kept me going. Chinese fans are very good," Breeze said.
She got hurt three weeks before the Games began but she still came to compete in Beijing as nobody else can replace her from her country in weightlifting.
"Mentally I'm strong, if not I wouldn't be here," she said.
