Park Hye-jeong

Park Hye-jong was born on March 12th, 2003, and she’s a South Korean weightlifter competing in the +87 kg weight class. Her lifting journey started in Ansan, during her first year at Seonbu Middle School. By 2019, she’s already shown her potential and was chosen for the South Korean youth national team. At the 2019 Asian Youth Athletics Championships in Pyongyang, she set new youth records with a 100 kg snatch, 145 kg clean and jerk, and a 255 kg total, and won the title by defeating athletes from Kazakhstan and Taipei. 

Park’s career took off in 2022 when she joined the junior national team. She won a gold medal at the Junior World Weightlifting Championships in Greece with a 120 kg snatch and a 161 kg clean and jerk. Her winning streak continued at the Asian Junior Championships in Uzbekistan, when she lifted 115 kg in the snatch and 155 kg in the clean and jerk, getting a total of 270 kg.

She transitioned to the senior national team and competed in the +87 kg category at the 2022 World Weightlifting Championships in Colombia, where she ranked 8th with a 119 kg snatch, 155 kg clean and jerk, and a 274 total. 

In 2023, she won a silver medal at the Asian Championships in South Korea, with a 127 kg snatch, 168 clean and jerk, and 295 kg total. Later that year, at the World Weightlifting Championships in Saudi Arabia, she won first place in the +87 kg category with a 123 kg snatch, 165 kg clean and jerk, and a 289 kg total. 

Park is quickly becoming one of the top competitors in the world thanks to her dedication and skill. She is the first Korean to win Asian gold in the women’s heaviest weight class since Jang Mi-ran in 2010.