Well aware of the lofty tag on her shoulders, weightlifting Southeast Asian Games’ medalist Vannesa Sarno is back in training to prepare for the Asian Youth Weightlifting Championship set in July in Uzbekistan.
“Back in training na po. Back to work para paghandaan ang susunod na laban,” Sarno, who is dubbed as the next darling of Philippine weightlifting after Olympic golden girl Hidilyn Diaz, told Manila Standard.
The 19-year-old lifter from Bohol became an instant star when she set a new SEA Games record in the snatch (104kg), clean and jerk (135kg) and total (239kg) in weightlifting women’s 71-kg category at the recent biennial meet in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Sarno claimed that her coaches have always reminded her about hard work and a positive mindset.
“Lagi po kaming handa pagdating ng competition. I try to focus lang po on what I can lift and do my best,” said Sarno.
She is well aware of the challenges ahead and has assured her team that she will continue to focus on her goal.
The Batang Pinoy discovery paid tribute to her coaches Nic Jaluag and Liza Danao in her long post on social media.
“Lagi niyo po pinapaalala sa akin kung bakit ako nandito, kung bakit ko sinimulan ‘to, lagi po kayo nandiyan para sa akin sa kahit ano man po mangyayare since day 1. Thank you so much po sa lahat lahat, ‘wag po kayong mag alala, hindi ko po makakalimutan ‘yung goal ko, goal po natin, aabutin po natin ‘yun,” vowed Sarno, who first tried weightlifting at the age of nine years old at a makeshift gym of Jaluag in Tagbilaran City.
She first tried doing the deadlift. From then on, she began training while studying.
In 2013, Sarno topped the 32-kg category in the 2013 Batang Pinoy National Finals in Bacolod City. That made her qualify for the national training pool.
