DOMINIC EBENBICHLER/Reuters
Annie Moniqui is an Olympic rookie with a veteran's assignment.
The 22-year-old athlete from St-Hyacinthe, Que., will be competing Monday in the 58-kilogram class of women's weightlifting and her rivals will be seriously formidable. Leading the strong-armed field are Nastassia Novikava of Belarus along with Li Xueying and Deng Wei of China. Wei is a former world junior star while Novikava is the 2011 world champion and captured a bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics.
The 5-foot-2, 128-pound Moniqui won the 58-kg title at this year's Canadian weightlifting championships giving her a fourth national title. She has also competed at three world championships. Allan Maki