North Korea's Song Guk-hyang sets 3 world records, wins gold in women's weightlifting

Song Guk-hyang, the dominant force in women's 69 kg weightlifting, swept all three world records she already held and claimed gold at the Asian Games on Sunday.

Representing North Korea — a powerhouse in women's weightlifting — Song lifted 121 kg in the snatch, 152 kg in the clean and jerk, and posted a total of 273 kg to win the women's 69 kg title at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, held at the Small and Medium Enterprise Promotion Hall in Nagoya, Japan.

In the snatch, Song opened with 110 kg and followed with 115 kg before successfully lifting 121 kg on her third attempt to set a world record. She was equally dominant in the clean and jerk, clearing 140 kg on her first attempt before hoisting 152 kg on her second to simultaneously set world records in the clean and jerk and the total.

Song had already established herself as the top lifter in the weight class on the world stage last year. At the 2025 World Championships in Førde, Norway, she won with a snatch of 120 kg, a clean and jerk of 150 kg and a total of 270 kg — world records in all three categories at the time. North Korea swept all five weight classes it entered at that competition.

Song pushed the clean and jerk world record further to 151 kg at the Asian Championships in May. At the Asian Games, she surpassed her previous world records by 1 kg each in the snatch and clean and jerk and by 3 kg in the total, again exceeding her own limits.

The margin over her rivals was staggering. Silver medalist Chen Wenhui of Taiwan finished with a total of 232 kg, a full 41 kg behind Song. Ingrid Grueso of Bahrain took bronze with a total of 229 kg.

Song's victory gave North Korea its sixth gold medal of the Games. The North Korean weightlifting team claimed gold with world records on two consecutive days, following Ri Won-ju's win in the men's 70 kg class on Saturday.

No South Korean athletes competed in the women's 69 kg event.