Cao Lei takes 75kg gold

Cao Lei is the Beijing Olympic champion and also national record holder. The lifter from Heilongjiang easily conquered 125 kilograms in the snatch part of the event.

In the clean and jerk, Cao wowed the spectators with a lift filled with drama. She tried 150 kilograms, and faced not only a test of strength but one of pressure, in front of a tense crowd. Cao met almost no challenge throughout the rest of the competition. She snatched 125 kilograms and lifted 150 kilograms in the jerk for a total of 275, seven kilos short of the winning result she lifted in the Beijing Olympics to win the gold.

This gold medal meant a lot to the winner from Heilongjiang.

Cao Lei said, "This was the last gold medal that she really wanted to win. The gold meant that she completed the weightlifting grand slam."

Cao's grand slam included the championships in the Olympic, Asian and National Games.

Other competitors came up short, Hunan's Xiang Yanmei lifted only 115kg in the snatch competition. Xiang tried 146 kg in the clean and jerk. she lifted it in dramatic style, but that it wasn't enough for her to win the gold medal.

The Hunan lifter tried an outrageous weight of 160 kilograms. In was an attempt that was maybe just for show, Xiang simply fell to the floor. She gave it a try in a competition that tested the weightlifters to reach new levels of strength and endurance at the National Games.