Record-breaking Albert Ian delos Santos earns Asian Games bronze

POWER. Weightlifter Albert Ian delos Santos in action for the Philippines in the 2026 Asian Games.

PSC-POC Media Pool

Filipino weightlifter Albert Ian delos Santos shatters his junior world and junior continental records on the way to an Asian Games bronze medal

MANILA, Philippines – Young weightlifter Albert Ian delos Santos has made a habit of breaking records.

And he did so again in the 2026 Asian Games on the way to the bronze medal in the men’s 70kg division at the Nagoya City Trade and Industry Center in Japan on Saturday, September 26.

The youngest in the final at 20 years old, the Zamboangueño showed he can hold his own against the best in the continent as he shattered his own junior world and junior Asian marks in clean and jerk (183kg) and total lift (324kg) to earn his place on the podium.

Delos Santos ran fourth after the snatch portion with a clearance of 141kg but overtook Uzbekistan’s Adkhamjon Ergashev for the bronze by eclipsing his previous junior world and junior continental records in clean and jerk (180kg) and total lift (321kg), which he established in the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships in August.

North Korea’s Ri Won Ju claimed the gold with hardly any resistance with 349kg, while Japan’s Masanori Miyamoto bagged the silver with 342kg.

Ergashev managed just 318kg and settled for fourth.

Delos Santos broke through for the Philippine weightlifting team after Rosegie Ramos and Elreen Ando fell short of medals.

Ramos finished fourth in the women’s 53kg class, while Ando placed fifth in the women’s 61kg division. – Rappler.com