China's Shi Zhiyong took gold in weighlifting's 62kg class, tying
the world record with 325 kg.
Countryman Le Maosheng took silver and Greek Leonidas Sampanis the bronze.
But there was disappointment for Britain's Kamran Panjavi who crashed out after injuring his back during his first lift.
The 29-year-old rushed into the attempt after a delay to remove an incorrect shirt, and hurt his back as he tried to beat the time-limit buzzer.
Sampanis' bronze was Greece's first medal of the Athens Games.
Shi laid the ground work for his victory in the snatch with
a massive lift of 152.5 kg then combined it with 172.5 kg in the clean and jerk to take the gold.
The big crowd inside the Nikaia hall had come to see just
one man, however, and 33-year-old Sampanis did not disappoint.
Performing at the edge of his ability, he took bronze with 312.5kg, losing out to Le (who had lifted the same weight) because the Greek's body weight was the greater -- by just 22 grams.
Panjavi failed to make the final stages after his injury - he had to be stretchered away after making a second attempt to raise the bar following his back strain.
Iranian-born Panjavi spent 10 months out with a back injury last year.
He returned last November to set a new British record of 250kg total at the World Senior Championship in Vancouver, and improved on that again at the European Championships.
Kamran emigrated to Britain in 1997 in the footsteps of his elder brother Kazem, who reached the Olympics for Iran in 1992, only to be disqualified for dropping the weight three times after injuring his shoulder.