Weightlifter Jang to refrain from record attempt at national competition

SEOUL, Oct. 9 (Yonhap) -- Fatigue and lack of training have led Beijing weightlifting gold medalist Jang Mi-ran to decide to drop her bid to set a new world record at an upcoming national athletic competition, her coach said Thursday.

Jang, 25, who won the women's super-heavyweight competition at the Beijing
Olympics in August, has appeared in numerous publicity events here and missed a
considerable amount of training since, coach Oh Seung-woo said.
She will compete in the National Sports Festival that starts on Friday in South
Korea's southwestern region with over 18,000 athletes, but refrain from an
aggressive attempt there, Oh said.
Jang set a trio of world records in the over-75-kilogram event at the Summer
Olympics, lifting a total of 326kg and beating her closest opponent by nearly
50kg.
"Jang aims to win her title, but she won't go for a new world record," Oh said,
estimating Jang is at 80-85 percent of her usual form.
"If she competes too aggressively now, she may be hurt and it could threaten her
athletic career," he said, adding Jang seeks to recover fully ahead of next
month's Asian championship.