Tamara Salazar has helped lift Ecuador to its strongest showing at an Olympic Games…

The 23-year-old Ecuadorian weightlifter claimed the silver medal in the women’s 87kg weightlifting competition at the 2020 Tokyo Games, raising her country’s medal count to three at this year’s Olympics.

Salazar finished second behind China’s Wang Zhouyu, who notched a total weight of 270 kg to Salazar’s 263 kg. The Dominican Republic’s Crismery Santana claimed the bronze with a total weight of 256 kg.

Salazar lifted a total of 263 kg (113 + 150) and Santana lifted 256 (116 + 140), a considerable distance from the 270 kg of Wang (120 + 150), champion of the 2018 and 2019 World Cups.

Salazar was solid in the test by not failing in any of the attempts in both modalities, being the only athlete in the competition to achieve it. And, she credits her mom for helping motivate her onto the medal stand.

“Before competing I received a video call from my mother, who told me ‘mija, you can’. She is my greatest motivation and now I am here, with an Olympic medal, still without believing it. I dreamed it so much, I always asked God to give me the necessary strength and now I live this reality,“ said the weightlifter.

So far, Ecuador has won two gold medals (Richard Carapaz and Neisi Dajomes) and one silver (Tamara Salazar).