Hidilyn, Julius take sweet time

Hidilyn Diaz is set to leave for Malaysia next week to start her training for the 2021 World Weightlifting Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Weightlifting president Monico Puentevella yesterday said that the Olympic gold medalist decided to defer her flight to next week to process some papers that would be crucial for her stay in Malaysia until the world tourney from 7 to 17 December.

Right now, she is at Club Paradise Palawan for a much-needed breather together with her fiancé in Julius Naranjo, who also served as her conditioning coach in her buildup for the Tokyo Olympics last August.

“She’s now preparing her papers for Malaysia,” Puentevella told Daily Tribune in a telephone conversation.

“She has yet to leave because her travel papers and visa are still incomplete. I think they will leave for Malaysia next week to resume her training for the world championship.”

Puentevella said he is glad that Diaz and Naranjo are having a good time after a very grueling preparation for the Olympics.

After all, the next phase of their preparation would be tough as Diaz would be coming in with tremendous pressure for being the world’s best lifter in her division.

“They just got engaged so they’re enjoying their free time before going to Malaysia next week. Let’s see what happens,” said Puentevella, who is being credited for the rise of Diaz from being a wildcard bet in the Beijing Olympics in 2008 to becoming the first Filipino gold medalist in the Summer Games.

“It’s good that they are getting recharged before buckling down to work in Malaysia next week.”