Óscar Figueroa (weightlifter)

Oscar Albeiro Figueroa Mosquera (born 27 April 1983)[1] is a Colombian weightlifter, and Olympic Champion (gold-medalist) competing in the 62 kg category until 2018 and 67 kg starting in 2018 after the International Weightlifting Federation reorganized the categories.[2] He was born in the rural township of Zaragoza,[1] located in Cartago, Valle del Cauca, Colombia.[3]

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Figueroa and the second or maternal family name is Mosquera.

Óscar Figueroa
Oscar Figueroa with the silver medal won at the 2012 Olympics
Personal information
Full nameOscar Albeiro Figueroa Mosquera
NationalityColombian
Born (1983-04-27) 27 April 1983
Zaragoza, Colombia
EducationAdministration Studies
Alma materUniversity Santiago de Cali
Height1.61 m (5 ft 3 in)
Weight66.20 kg (145.9 lb)
Sport
Country Colombia
SportOlympic weightlifting
Event(s)–67 kg
Coached byJaiber Manjarres, Oswaldo Pinilla
Achievements and titles
World finals
Olympic finals
Personal best(s)
  • Total: 318 kg
Medal record
Representing  Colombia
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2016 Rio de Janeiro –62 kg
Silver medal – second place 2012 London –62 kg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place 2006 Santo Domingo –62 kg
Bronze medal – third place2013 Wrocław–62 kg
Bronze medal – third place2015 Houston–62 kg
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 2011 Gualadajara –62 kg
Gold medal – first place 2015 Toronto –62 kg
Pan American Championships
Gold medal – first place 2008 Callao – 62 kg
Central American and Caribbean Games
Silver medal – second place 2006 Cartagena – 62 kg

He initially retired from the sport after the 2016 Summer Olympics, but has returned to international competition[4] and has competed at the 2018 World Weightlifting Championships.[5] He formally announced his retirement again in November 2019.[6]

Career
Figueroa lifting an Olympic Record 177 kg at the 2012 Olympics

Olympics

At the 2004 Summer Olympics he ranked 5th in the snatch as well as the clean & jerk in the 56 kg category, lifting a total of 280 kg,[7] and finished 5th overall.

In the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics, Figueroa failed to make a lift in the snatch category, he was unable to lift the bar from the floor in all three attempts. After the competition, it was discovered that he had a c6/7 cervical hernia which weakened his right hand.[8][9] He left the Olympics without posting a result and had surgery to correct the hernia.[10]

In his return to the Olympics after his injury, he placed 3rd after the snatch portion of the competition with a lift of 140 kg. After failing to make his first two lifts in the clean & jerk portion, he successfully completed an Olympic Record lift of 177 kg. This gave him a total of 317 kg; bronze medalist Eko Yuli Irawan also had the same total, but Figueroa had a lighter body weight (61.76 kg vs 61.98 kg) and won the silver medal.[11][12]

Earlier in 2016 Figueroa had surgery to repair his chronic back pain caused by a lumbar hernia,[13] and returned to the Olympics hoping to win gold. On August 8, 2016, Figueroa finally won gold in the 62 kg division with a total of 318 kg. After attempting and failing to lift 179 kg to set a new Olympic Record, Figueroa took off his shoes and placed them on the platform, signaling his immediate retirement from the sport.[14] On November 26, 2019, Oscar Figueroa formally announced his retirement from weightlifting competitions in a press conference.[6][15]

World Championships

Figueroa participated in the men's -62 kg class at the 2006 World Weightlifting Championships and won the silver medal, finishing behind Qiu Le. He snatched 137 kg and jerked an additional 160 kg for a total of 297 kg, 11 kg behind winner Qiu.[16]

He ranked 4th in the 62 kg category at the 2007 World Weightlifting Championships.

Failure to Report Whereabouts

On April 12, 2019, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) reported that Figueroa was not allowed to participate in multiple weightlifting events. This was due to Figueroa failing to report his whereabouts in a timely manner so the IWF could perform surprise doping tests as required by international anti-doping regulations. It was noted this failure-to-report did not mean Figueroa was involved in any doping cases opened by the IWF.[17] When interviewed, Figueroa reported he failed to send them due to human error. He also reported that while he was prevented from participating in the 2020 Pan American Championship, he was not impeded from other competition that could help qualify him for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.[18]

Major results
Year Venue Weight Snatch (kg) Clean & Jerk (kg) Total Rank
1 2 3 Rank 1 2 3 Rank
Representing  Colombia
Olympic Games
2004Greece Athens, Greece56 kg120.0125.0127.55145.0150.0155.05280.05
2008China Beijing, China62 kg128128128———————
2012United Kingdom London, Great Britain62 kg137140142317717717713172nd place, silver medalist(s)
2016Brazil Rio de Janeiro, Brazil62 kg137142145117217617913181st place, gold medalist(s)
World Championships
2006Dominican Republic Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic62 kg1321371412nd place, silver medalist(s)16016416452972nd place, silver medalist(s)
2007Thailand Chiang Mai, Thailand62 kg135140140616016016582954
2009South Korea Goyang, South Korea62 kg135139141416516516853074
2011France Paris, France62 kg135138140617017017543084
2013Poland Wroclaw, Poland62 kg1351391413rd place, bronze medalist(s)1751771831st place, gold medalist(s)3163rd place, bronze medalist(s)
2014Kazakhstan Almaty, Kazakhstan62 kg135135135———————
2015United States Houston, United States62 kg1351401403rd place, bronze medalist(s)1751801803rd place, bronze medalist(s)3153rd place, bronze medalist(s)
2018Turkmenistan Ashgabat, Turkmenistan67 kg14014514581761781813rd place, bronze medalist(s)3185
2019Thailand Pattaya, Thailand67 kg13714014017176181181531310
Pan American Games
2011Mexico Guadalajara, Mexico62 kg132135137116517117513121st place, gold medalist(s)
2015Canada Toronto, Canada62 kg1301301352170175—13101st place, gold medalist(s)

References
  1. "Oscar FIGUEROA". Olympic Channel. Archived from the original on 11 August 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  2. "PDF listing of 2018 Group A world championship entrants in 67 kg" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  3. "OSCAR ALBEYRO FIGUEROA MOSQUERA" (PDF) (in Spanish). Comité Olímpico Colombiano. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 January 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2008.
  4. IWF.net (12 May 2018). "Who will be dominant in Santo Domingo?". Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  5. CaracolTV (5 October 2018). "¿En qué andan por estos días los medallistas olímpicos Óscar Figueroa y Leidy Solís?". Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  6. "Óscar Figueroa anunció su retiro como profesional (Video)". Facebook (in Spanish). 26 November 2019. Archived from the original on 7 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  7. "FIGUEROA Oa". International Weightlifting Federation. Archived from the original on 27 May 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2008.
  8. "China extended its perfect record". The Associated Press. 11 August 2008. Archived from the original on 19 September 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
  9. Olympic Channel. "The Oscar Figueroa Story". Archived from the original on 9 August 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  10. BarBend (21 April 2017). "Oscar Figueroa". Archived from the original on 19 December 2018. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  11. "62kg men results - Weightlifting - London 2012 Olympics". www.olympic.org. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  12. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Weightlifting at the 2012 London Summer Games: Men's Featherweight". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
  13. Yahoo. "Colombian weightlifter Figueroa strikes Olympic gold, retires". Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  14. "Weightlifting recap: Oscar Figueroa wins gold, retires". Archived from the original on 10 August 2016. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  15. "Óscar Figueroa anunció su retiro". El Espectador (in Spanish). 26 November 2019. Archived from the original on 7 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  16. 75th MEN'S and 18th WOMEN'S WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS -62 KG MEN Archived 2008-12-02 at the Wayback Machine, iwf.net
  17. "Suspenden a campeón colombiano de halterofilia por eludir control antidopaje". Agencia EFE (in Spanish). 12 April 2019. Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  18. Castellanos, Carolina (12 April 2019). "A mí no me suspendieron, fue un llamado de atención: Óscar Figueroa". Antena 2 (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 7 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
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