Don Opeloge (born 13 May 1999) is a Samoan weightlifter. He won the gold medal in the men's 96kg event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham, England.
Career
Opeloge comes from a weightlifting family. His uncle Niusila and his aunty Ele both won gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, in New Delhi.
At the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, he finished in 9th place in the men's 85kg event. He won the silver medal in the men's 85kg event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games held in Gold Coast, Australia.
In 2019, Opeloge won the gold medal in the men's 89kg event at the Junior World Weightlifting Championships held in Suva, Fiji. A month later, he represented Samoa at the 2019 Pacific Games and he won the gold medal in the men's 89kg event. The 2019 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships were also held at the same time and his total result also gave him the gold medal in this event. He qualified for the 2020 Olympic games, but was unable to attend due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In December 2022, he was named by the Samoa Observer as one of its people of the year.
At the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships in September 2023, he set a new commonwealth record and qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.
In August 2024, Opeloge competed in the men's 102kg event at the 2024 Summer Olympics held in Paris, France. He failed three attempts to lift 170kg in the Snatch and he did not compete in the Clean & Jerk.
Major results Year Venue Weight Snatch (kg) Clean & Jerk (kg) Total Rank 1 2 3 Rank 1 2 3 Rank Summer Olympics2024 Paris, France 102 kg 170170170———— World Championships 2018 Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 89 kg 142 147 147 24 180 185 190 19 327 22 2019 Pattaya, Thailand 96 kg 151 156 156 31 190 200 205 13 351 21 2023 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 102 kg 166 171 175 12 208 215 220 6 386 8IWF World Cup2019 Tianjin, China 96 kg 155 155 155 6 195 202 202 4 357 62024 Phuket, Thailand 102 kg 170 170 170 15 215 215 221 391 6Oceania Championships2017 Gold Coast, Australia 85 kg 1401461501731801863322018 Mont-Dore, New Caledonia 85 kg 1371451451801851853252019 Apia, Samoa 89 kg 1451511571851851933382021 Various, Oceania 96 kg 1591591652002112113592024 Auckland, New Zealand 102 kg 170175180210215220390Pacific Games2019 Apia, Samoa 89 kg 1451511571851851933382023 Honiara, Solomon Islands 102 kg 165173173205214220379
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