Artiom Pipa finished first in group B at the World Weightlifting Championship held in Almaty, Kazakhstan. He lifted 337 kg (151 kg in snatch and 186 kg in clean and jerk) in the 77 kg class, IPN reports.

The 22-year-old athlete was followed by Bulgaria’s Demis Demirev with a total of 335 kg lifted. The two have yet slim chances of wining medals as the leaders of the 77 kg class are yet to enter the competition this evening.

Moldova’s hopes of winning a medal are connected with Anatol Ciricu, who medaled bronze at the 2012 London Olympics. He will compete first on November 14.

The Moldovan athletes who have competed so far are: Oleg Sirghi (14th place), Ion Tarna (9th), Ghenadie Dudoglo (18th) and Serghei Cechir, who withdrew from the competition.