MIYAKE YOSHINOBU

born 1939, Miyagi, Japan Japanese weight lifter who won three Olympic medals, including two golds, in the 1960s. Standing just 5 feet tall, Miyake was a lieutenant in Japan's National Self-Defense Force. His parents are said to have sold pigs from their farm to finance Miyake's first trip to the Olympics. Miyake competed as a bantamweight (less than 56 kg [123 pounds]) at the 1960 Olympics in Rome. American Charles Vinci won his second gold medal that year, outlifting Miyake, who took the silver, by 7.5 kg (16.5 pounds). Moving up to featherweight (60 kg [132 pounds]) for the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, Miyake earned his first gold medal, setting a world record in front of a home crowd. Lifting 397.5 kg (873 pounds), Miyake was 15 kg (33 pounds) better than silver medalist Isaac Berger of the United States. Miyake defended his featherweight title in Mexico City in 1968, lifting 392.5 kg (862 pounds). Among those he defeated was Miyake Yoshiyuki, his younger brother, who earned the bronze medal. Miyake won six world titles and set 25 world records during his career. He retired in 1972, after finishing in fourth place in the 1972 Olympics in Munich. He later ran a school for weight lifters in Japan.