The 29-year-old lifted 196kg in his second attempt to claim the gold medal, but missed out on a Paralympic record of 203kg with his final lift.

He said: 'I lost it a bit after the medal.'

Nigeria's Ifeanyi Nnajiofor won the silver medal with a lift of 188kg on his second attempt, while Yang Quanxi of China took the bronze with his opening lift of 185kg.

Moradi said: 'I was a bit stressed at the beginning because my Russian opponent lifted more than me. Thank god, with the help of my coach and all the things he said, I got back on track.'

He went on: 'Preparations were very tough, I recently got married and I have only seen my wife once in six months.

I dedicate this medal for my country, for the people who belived in me and my family.

Nader Moradi

'I dedicate this medal for my country for the people who belived in me and my family. I have worked for this medal for the last 12 years.'

Asked if he would compete at Rio 2016, he said: 'I am tired at the moment. I will rest for one to two years, then go to the world championships. I could have done better, I was aiming to beat my record, and I have lifted 204kg in training.'

The women's -56kg, men's -67.50kg and women's -60kg medal events will take place at ExCeL today.