How two Venezuelan Olympians turned pain into podium finishes

SANTO DOMINGO — Venezuelan Olympic weightlifting silver medalist Julio Mayora hoisted 151 kilograms (330 pounds) to win two gold medals this weekend at the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo.

Not so long ago, he was using his superhuman strength to lift up concrete blocks to rescue victims from the double earthquakes that devastated his home country.

Mayora hails from La Guaira, the northern coastal Venezuelan state that was hit hardest by the June 24 double earthquakes, with respective magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale.

He dedicated his two gold medals to the victims of the earthquakes.

“In truth it broke my heart, to see so many friends buried under the rubble, and it’s something that I never thought I’d live through,” Mayora told AFP in an interview a day after his victories in the snatch and clean and jerk competitions.

The day after the earthquakes, Mayora flexed his skills to carry beams, concrete blocks and other debris from collapsed buildings.

“We were helping out, clearing the debris to help people. It was my turn to help, there are videos of me on social media helping all those people, saving lives,” he said.

He recalled seeing “people crying shouting, desperate” amid the crisis.

Not far from La Guaira is the capital Caracas, also hit by the earthquake, where fellow 

weightlifting Olympian Keydomar Vallenilla resides.

While he did not have firsthand experience of the immediate aftermath of the earthquakes, he suffered losses that weigh on him as well.

“We had a kid from our gym, where I trained, lose his life,” Vallenilla said.

“He seemed like he was going to be a future athlete in (weightlifting). He was going to be, I’m one hundred percent sure, a great athlete. A great guy.”