Weightlifting Olympic champion Suleymanoglu dies

Ankara (Turkey) Nov 18 (IANS) World and Olympic champion weightlifter Naim Suleymanoglu from Turkey died on Saturday at the age of 50 local media reported.

The Turkish champion underwent a liver transplant surgery last month after suffering with cirrhosis for a long time reports Xinhua news agency.

Suleymanoglu nicknamed Pocket Hercules due to his 1.47 metres (4 feet 10 inch) stature became a global star after setting six world records winning three Olympic gold medals and outlifting the winner of the weight class above him at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games.

In 2000 and 2004 he was elected to the International Weightlifting Federation Hall of Fame. He was awarded the Olympic Order the highest award of the Olympic movement in 2001.

The Bulgaria-born athlete is the only weightlifter in history to win gold medals in three Olympic Games.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered his condolences in his address at Justice and Development (AK) party s ordinary congress in his hometown Rize.

--IANS
sam/dg