Rio 2016: Armenian weightlifter dislocates elbow during Olympic final

Andranik Karapetyan suffered the sickening injury during the final for the men;s 77kg weightlifting competition

Armenian weightlifter Andranik Karapetyan suffered a shocking dislocated elbow during the men’s 77kg weightlifting final that ended his genuine hopes of winning a first Olympic medal.

20-year-old Karapetyan was one of the favourites for the competition after winning the 2016 European Weightlifting Championships as well as claiming bronze at the 2016 World Championships.

But when he attempted to lift 195kg [429lbs] in the clean and jerk competition, he suffered a horrifying extended elbow that caused his arm to bend the wrong way and crumble under the weight of the bar.

The sickening injury left his screaming in pain, with medics and trainers rushing to his aid before he walked off the stage cradling his injured arm and immediately going to hospital. His Armenian trainers were seen with their heads in their hands at the sight of the injury, with many fans in the Riocentro Pavilion unable to watch.

The injury was not only excrutiatingly painful for him, but also wrecked his chances of winning a medal in his Olympic debut after he finished second in the snatch competition to leave him in a strong position for the clean and jerk round.

Karapetyan was attempting to lift 195kg (Getty)

Karapetyan's arm bent the wrong way after his elbow joint dislocated (Getty)

Karapetyan suffered the dislocated elbow in the men's 77kg weightlifting final (Getty)

Karapetyan has been in second and was a genuine medal contender (Getty)

Karapetyan quickly walked of stage in agony (Getty)

Karapetyan's coach winced after witnessing the injury (Getty)

With Karapetyan was not able to continue, Kazakhstan’s Nijat Rahimov shattered the clean and jerk world record at 77kgs with a lift of 214kgs, giving him an overall total of 379kgs that left him tied with reigning champion Lyu Xiaojun of China. Rahimov, who served a two-year doping ban between 2013 and 2015, took gold on account that he weighed in the lighter of the two men.

Karapetyan’s injury horror comes after a string of serious injuries at the Rio Olympics.

French gymnast Samir Ait Said suffered a broken leg in the men’s vault during the team gymnastics event after landing awkwardly, causing him to snap both his tibia and fibula.

A number of cyclists were also injured during the men’s and women’s road races, with both Tour de France front-runners Ritchie Porte and Vincenzo Nibali suffering broken collarbones while Annemiek van Vleuten suffered three fractured vertebrae and heavy concussion following her frightening crash last weekend.