Mathlynn Langtor Sasser-Robert (born December 25, 1996) is a Marshallese-born American weightlifter who currently represents the Marshall Islands.

Mattie Sasser
Personal information
Full nameMathlynn Langtor Sasser-Robert
Nationality
Born (1996-12-25) December 25, 1996 (age 29)
Mili, Marshall Islands
Weight57.54 kg (126.9 lb)
Sport
SportWeightlifting
Event
–64 kg
Coached byDavid Ester

Career

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Sasser competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the women's 58 kg event, in which she placed eleventh.[1][2] She was the flag bearer for the Marshall Islands at the 2016 Parade of Nations.[3] As a dual citizen of both the Marshall Islands and the United States, she switched her sporting nationality in international competition and attempted to qualify for the United States team for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. She was injured during qualification, however, and required knee surgery. In 2023, she switched back to the Marshall Islands again to qualify for the 2024 games. She was coached by Casey Knuth and trained in Samoa before the games.[4]

Sasser went on to represent the Marshall Islands at the 2024 Summer Olympics.[5] She competed in her event on August 8, 2024, which was held in the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. She failed to lift her first and second attempts at the snatch at 94 kilograms, then successfully lifted the same weight on her last attempt. She successfully clean and jerked 110 kilograms for her first attempt, then lifted 115 kilograms for her second, ultimately failing her last attempt at 118 kilograms. She ended with a total of 209 kilograms, placing her tenth out of twelve competitors, the highest Olympic finish by a Marshallese athlete. The winner of the event was Luo Shifang with a total of 241 kilograms.[6] After her event, she commented her desire for more women in her country to pursue weightlifting. She also commented her concerns of the possible removal of weightlifting as an Olympic sport after the 2028 Summer Olympics.[7]

Major results

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Year Venue Weight Snatch (kg) Clean & Jerk (kg) Total Rank
1 2 3 Rank 1 2 3 Rank
Olympic Games
2016Rio de Janeiro, Brazil58 kg828487N/a110112112N/a19911
2024Paris, France59 kg949494N/a110115118N/a20910
World Championships
2015Houston, United States58 kg778082321001031062618329
2018Ashgabat, Turkmenistan64 kg9497100121201211251321813
2019Pattaya, Thailand64 kg961001039125126127
2023Riyadh, Saudi Arabia59 kg909494201121161162121020
Oceania Championships
2012Apia, Samoa58 kg5010550765707161217
2013Brisbane, Australia58 kg636770480858541474
2015Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea58 kg7275753rd place, bronze medalist(s)9597973rd place, bronze medalist(s)1723rd place, bronze medalist(s)
2016Suva, Fiji58 kg8285882nd place, silver medalist(s)1081131141st place, gold medalist(s)1991st place, gold medalist(s)
2017Gold Coast, Australia63 kg8690921st place, gold medalist(s)1131151181st place, gold medalist(s)2051st place, gold medalist(s)
2023Honiara, Solomon Islands59 kg9095971st place, gold medalist(s)1101151st place, gold medalist(s)2101st place, gold medalist(s)
2024Auckland, New Zealand59 kg9296981st place, gold medalist(s)1121121122nd place, silver medalist(s)2102nd place, silver medalist(s)
Pan American Games
2019Lima, Peru64 kg96100102N/a125128130N/a2322nd place, silver medalist(s)
Pan American Championships
2018Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic63 kg919598711512012472157
2019Guatemala City, Guatemala64 kg959810151231271291st place, gold medalist(s)2273rd place, bronze medalist(s)
2021Guayaquil, Ecuador64 kg979810151201251283rd place, bronze medalist(s)2235

References

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  1. "Mathlynn Sasser". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on August 20, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  2. "Women's 58kg - Standings". Rio 2016. Archived from the original on August 20, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  3. "Rio 2016 Olympic Ceremony - Flag Bearers" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  4. Oliver, Brian (June 12, 2023). "US weightlifters battle for Paris 2024 rankings while former team-mate Sasser shines". Inside the Games. Archived from the original on April 19, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2025.
  5. Manukuo, Matt. "Going for Gold: Team Pacific at the Paris Olympics". PMN | Pacific Media Network. Retrieved July 19, 2024.
  6. "Weightlifting Women's 59 kg" (PDF). Paris Organising Committee for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. August 8, 2024. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 17, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2025.
  7. Osifelo, Elizabeth (August 10, 2024). "Mathlynn Sasser Hopes to Inspire Future Generations in Weightlifting". Oceania National Olympic Committees. Pacnews. Archived from the original on December 6, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2025.
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