Carlos Caballero (born 15 February 1927) is a Colombian former weightlifter who competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics and in the 1960 Summer Olympics. [1]
Although he did not begin weightlifting until age 24, Caballero went on to win 12 national championships, two South American championships and two Central American and Caribbean Championships, competing in the middleweight class. He was selected for three Olympics: 1956, 1960 and 1964, though he was unable to compete at the last one due to insufficient funding. He continued his career until 1970 and subsequently was a coach. [2]
Caballero has the distinction of being the first Colombian weightlifter at the Olympics. He was awarded a lifetime achievement medal by Acord Atlántico in 2019. [3]
Venezuela competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia, and in the equestrian events held in Stockholm, Sweden. Twenty-two competitors, all men, were selected by the Venezuelan Olympic Committee to take part in sixteen events across five sports. The delegation featured no female competitors, for the second time, and won no medals. While most of the Venezuelan athletes did not advance past the qualifying rounds of their sports, there were some good placings in the shooting, with Germán Briceño and Carlos Monteverde finishing in the top 10 of their events.
Isaac "Ike" Berger was an American weightlifter, in the featherweight division, who competed for the United States at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and won one gold and two silver medals. He held eight world records, and won the United States national title eight times. In the highest level international competition, he was world featherweight (60 kg) champion in 1958 and 1961, and was the runner-up for that title in 1957, 1959, and 1963.
Oscar Albeiro Figueroa Mosquera is a retired Colombian weightlifter, and a gold medallist competing in the 62 kg category until 2018 and 67 kg starting in 2018 after the International Weightlifting Federation reorganized the categories. He was born in the rural township of Zaragoza, located in Cartago, Valle del Cauca, Colombia.
Sports in Colombia includes professional sports leagues, as well as amateur leagues for numerous sports. Football, cycling, and roller skating are the most popular sports in Colombia. The Government of Colombia sponsors numerous individuals and teams nationally and internationally through the Ministry of Sports to enable sportspeople to represent Colombia in competition. The achievements of professional sportspeople are a source of national pride for Colombians.
Colombia first formally participated at the Olympic Games in 1932, and has sent athletes to compete in all but one edition of the Summer Olympic Games since then, missing only the 1952 Games. Colombian athletes have won a total of 38 Olympic medals in eight different sports, with weightlifting and cycling as the most successful ones. Colombia is the third most successful South American country at the Olympic Games, after Brazil and Argentina respectively. The Colombian Olympic Committee was created in 1936 and recognised by the International Olympic Committee in 1948.
James Edward "Jim" Bradford was an American heavyweight weightlifter. He competed at two Olympics and four world championships and won silver medals on all occasions.
Ihor Mykhaylovych Rybak was a Ukrainian weightlifter. He competed for the Soviet Union twice, at the 1956 Summer Olympics and 1956 European Championships. On both occasions he won ahead of Ravil Khabutdinov. Due to the severe competition within the Soviet Union, Rybak never won a national title, and by 1960 was left out of the national team. In retirement he worked in sports medicine.
Colombia competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The country sent 68 athletes to compete in 15 sports, making this Colombia's largest ever delegation to the Olympics.
Adhemar Ferreira da Silva was a Brazilian triple jumper. He won two Olympic gold medals and set four world records, the last being 16.56 metres in 1955 Pan American Games. In his early career he also competed in the long jump, placing fourth at the 1951 Pan American Games. He broke world records in triple jump on five occasions during his illustrious career. To date, he remains the only track and field athlete from South America to have won two Olympic gold medals.
Juan Carlos Fernández Garzón is a male weightlifter from Colombia. He won a silver medal for his native South American country at the 1995 Pan American Games. He also competed at the 1996 Summer Olympics, finishing in 8th place in the men's flyweight division.
Rodney Adolphus Wilkes was a weightlifter from Trinidad and Tobago. Nicknamed "The Mighty Midget" he remained relatively unknown outside of local competition until he won the gold medal at the 1946 Central American and Caribbean Games in Barranquilla, Colombia. His performance included record lifts of 205 pounds (93 kg) in the press, 210 pounds (95 kg) in the snatch and 275 pounds (125 kg) in the clean and jerk.
Loreto "Bonnie" Dilema Carbonell was a Filipino basketball player who competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics.
Alberto Pigaiani was an Italian heavyweight weightlifter. He competed at the 1956 and 1960 Summer Olympics and finished in third and seventh place, respectively. Between 1956 and 1960 he won four medals at the world and European championships.
Carlos Andres Berna Gonzalez is a Colombian weightlifter. He competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the Men's 56 kg, finishing 8th. He also competed at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Carlos Hernán Andica is a Colombian weightlifter. Andica was initially trained by Alfonso Gallego. Andica won a silver medal for the 85 kg class at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, with a total of 362 kilograms.
Chen Lijun is a Chinese weightlifter, Olympic Champion, five time World Champion and two time Asian Champion competing in the 62 kg division until 2018 and 67 kg starting in 2018 after the International Weightlifting Federation reorganized the categories.
Colombia competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 5 to 21 August 2016. This was the nation's nineteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics. The Colombian Olympic Committee sent the nation's largest ever delegation to the Games, with 147 athletes, 74 men and 73 women, competing across 23 sports.
Francisco Antonio Mosquera Valencia is a Colombian weightlifter, former World Champion, three-time Pan American Champion and Pan American Games Champion competing in the 62 kg category until 2018 and 61 kg starting in 2018 after the International Weightlifting Federation reorganized the categories.
José Ney López Benalcázar is a Colombian retired weightlifter. He competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics and the 1960 Summer Olympics.
Carlos Seigelshifer was an Argentine weightlifter. He competed in the men's middle heavyweight event at the 1956 Summer Olympics.