Sa Jae-hyouk injures his arm on the men's 77-kg weightlifting competition at the ExCeL Arena during the London 2012 Olympic Games on Thursday.

Weightlifter Sa Jae-hyouk failed to defend his Olympic gold medal in the men's 77-kg class on Wednesday after he dislocated his right elbow.

Sa successfully raised 158 kg in his first snatch attempt, but disaster struck as he went for 162 kg on his second lift at London's ExCeL Arena. After raising the barbell above his head, Sa's right elbow buckled as he dropped the bar, leaving him writhing on the floor in agony before he was taken to hospital.

"I initially thought he fractured his arm, but he apparently dislocated his right elbow," said his coach Lee Hyeong-geun. "We will figure out how severe his injury is after a thorough medical examination."

In Beijing four years ago, Sa became the first male weightlifter from the country to win an Olympic gold medal since Jeon Byeong-gwan did so at Barcelona 1992.