The infamous doping disqualification stained Liu Chunhong’s career permanently. However, her fans are still interested in her whereabouts.
The Chinese powerlifter, Liu Chunhong, has competed in Asian Games, World Championships, and the Olympic Games.
Furthermore, she is one of the rare athletes to establish herself in weightlifting in a short time. However, her journey to weightlifting was spontaneous. Perhaps Asian genes had a significant role to play.
Therefore, we are shedding light on the long-lost weightlifting personality, Liu Chunhong, and her whereabouts. Because she has wholly shunned media, any bits of information about her is truly a blessing.
Regardless, let’s start with quick facts.
Liu Chunhong | Quick Facts
| Full Name | Liu Chunhong |
| Date of Birth | January 29, 1983 |
| Birth Place | Yantai, Shandong |
| Age | 41 Years Old |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Zodiac Sign | Aquarius |
| Height | 5 ft 3 in |
| Weight | 69 kg |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
| Father’s Name | N/A |
| Mother’s Name | N/A |
| Siblings | N/A |
| Marital Status | N/A |
| Boyfriend | N/A |
| Profession | Weightlifter |
| Active Years | 2002-2010 |
| Debut | 2002 |
| Coach | Ma Wenhui |
| Olympic Wins | Two gold medals; 2004 Athens & 2008 Beijing (disqualifies) |
| World Championship | 3 |
| Asian Games | 2 Gold Medals |
| Net Worth | $1-$5 million |
| Social Media | N/A |
| Merch | Dumbbell Set |
| Last Update | March 2024 |
Liu Chunhong | Early Life & Studies
The Chinese weightlifter, Liu Chunhong, was born on January 29, 1983, in a small town, Yantai Shandong.
Unfortunately, Chunhong is very private about revealing details of her parents. However, she’s candidly private.
Hailing from a famous city for apples and cherries, Chunhong’s parents had an apple farm. She grew up running around her family’s apple orchard, which she recalls as a natural paradise in her childhood.
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Furthermore, Chunhong grew up with her elder brother and his fellows. Hence her tomboyish childhood explained.
Since Liu grew up in Yantai, her favorite snack is apples. Besides apple, the powerlifter loves drawing comics. Likewise, she also enjoyed reading knight-and-outlaw stories and music.
Conclusively, Liu’s childhood was exciting. She loves her family but prefers to tuck them away from the spotlight.
Age, Height, and Weight
The Yantai native, Liu Chunhong, is a petite woman, standing tall at just 5 ft 3 inches.
The 41 years-old weightlifter, Liu, has a chubby build, as she had to prepare herself for the championships according to weight.
As mentioned earlier, Chunhong grew up as a tomboy. But it did not mean she never wanted to or wasn’t interested in.
She could not wear fancy dresses or grow ferociously luscious hair as a young woman. She was instructed to wear sports suits, keep her hair short and focus on training.
Imagine the Korean drama Weightiling Fairy, Kim Bok Joo since Liu is away from social media.
Regardless, Liu was blooming at her age, and so was her career.
Liu Chunhong | Career
Liu Chunhong debuted her professional career in 2002 with a massive victory. Since then, she has gained several titles as a powerlifter.
However, Chunhong’s career was glorious yet controversial. In fact, she started from judo.
Liu was initially drafted into an amateur athlete’s training school when she was just eleven years. Moreover, she spent five months in judo but hopped into weightlifting as she was ‘too short to be a judoka.”
Liu has always been motivated to win and make herself proud since her debut in 2002.
Broke Three World Records
Chunhong was enrolled in a local sports school where she got hooked to weightlifting. Moreover, her coach, Ma Wenhui, helped her reach her goals as a part of the Shandong Provincial Weightlifting Team.
The Chinese weightlifter, Liu debuted her career as a weightlifter in the 2002 Asian Games in Busan. She surprised the world after earning her first gold medal in the 69 kg category in her debut year.
Versed in several lifts like snatch, front & back squat, and clean & jerk, Chunhong established herself with a gold medal at the 2003 World Weightlifting Championships. She claimed the gold in the 69 kg category with ten new world records and junior world records.
Likewise, Chunhong’s quest for a gold medal continued at the 2004 World Championships in Vancouver in the same category.
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The Yantai native did it again in the 2005 World Championship in Doha. Liu claimed a gold medal in the 75 kg category.
However, in 2007’s World Championship in Chiang Mai, she won a silver medal in the snatch competition in the 69 kg category with 121 kg. Her records were 271 kgs at the event.
Besides making wonderous victories at World Championships, Liu also accumulated gold in Asian Games held in 2002 Busan and 2010 Guangzhou. She participated in the 69 kg category in both events.
Liu Chunhong’s Injury
Liu got injured after dominating the 69 kg category at the 2006 World Championships.
Although Liu was injured, her ambition to win never wavered. Instead, she settled down for the silver medal at the 2007 World Championship and prepared for the Olympic Games.
Olympic Victories and Breaking Records
Liu Chunhong’s signature start is winning at any game she enters. Hence, unsurprisingly, she won the gold medal in the 69 kg in the 2004 Summer Olympics, smashing three world records.
Likewise, Liu defended her winning title in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing in the 69 kg class. She further set new records in the snatch and clean & jerk with 286 kg set.
Chinese superwoman Liu’s snatched 128kg at Beijing Games, the first world record created by Chinese.
Furthermore, she became the first-ever woman to defend her Olympic title in weightlifting, tying with the world record holder Svetlana Podobedova in the 75 kg category.
Stripped Off of Her 2008 Olympic Titles in 2017
Liu, the game-changer at the Chinese women’s weightlifting scenario, was soon caught in controversy.
The former judo fighter was denounced from her title from the 2008 Olympic Games because of an anti-doping rule violation.
According to the International Olympic Committee, Liu’s samples from Beijing 2008 came positive for the prohibited substance, GHRP-2, metabolite, and sibutramine.
Hence, the IOC Disciplinary Commission decided to disqualify Liu from all the events she participated in at the 2008 Olympics. She was stripped of her title and was instructed to return the medal, medalist pin, and diploma obtained in the 69 kg weightlifting event.
Personal Life & Boyfriend
Liu Chunhong is highly private about her life. Therefore, her personal life and marital status are not public yet.
Although the Chinese weightlifting champion is silent about her life, Liu is a family person. She prioritized her family and was very excited to spend time with her family once she conquered the 2008 Olympics.
Furthermore, Liu owes her success to resilience. She revealed that she had an unyielding personality in her hometown.
Liu added that she couldn’t even lift 20kg in her initial days. However, her motto, ‘to never give up’ made her one of the best in Chinese weightlifting history.
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The Chinese lifter is guarding her relationships and is away from media scrutiny. Moreover, most Chinese celebrities keep their relationship away from the media.
Thus, let’s hope to hear more about Liu Chunhong’s boyfriend and get more insight into her personal life in the future.
Liu Chunhong has shown her supremacy in the women’s weightlifting scenario since her debut in 2004.
She reportedly spent hours lifting the bar a hundred times a day at the gym. Liu, who believed she had to work harder and progress alongside her competitors, is now very silent about her life after career-plaguing allegations.
Liu Chunhong’s Net Worth & Salary
As stated earlier, Liu Chunhong is a very private person. So, naturally, her current whereabouts and salary are not public.
Regardless, Liu Chunhong’s net worth must have seen a significant height at her prime.
The average salary of professional lifters ranges from $29,500 to $61,000. Furthermore, the Chinese powerlifters also earn a considerable sum from their medal.
The Olympic gold medalist reportedly earns $719,000, while bronze and silver medalists receive $252,000 and $180,000.
Hence, Liu Chunhong’s net worth is estimated at $1 million – $5 million.
A possibility is Liu grows her favorite snacks in her hometown in Yantai as she is away from the weightlifting world.
Social Media
As stated earlier, Liu Chunhong is secretive. Hence, she is not active on social media, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
Conclusively, her thoughts and current whereabouts are hidden. Hopefully, one day, Liu will come out to speak about her life after disqualification.
FAQs
Who won the Women’s weightlifting championships in 2021?
India’s weightlifter, Bindyarani Devi Sorokhaibam, won the gold medal in the clean and jerk category at the Championship 2021 held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
Who won the 2021 Tokyo Weighlifting Women’s Olympics?
Wang Zhouyu claimed the fold medal lifting a total weight of 270 kg at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Is Liu Chunhong retired?
There’s no answer to this question. However, she hasn’t appeared in any tournaments since her disqualification in 2017. Despite the career-damaging controversy, Liu Chunhong’s dominance in the Chinese weightlifting history prevails.
