Russia was among nine nations - along with China, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Moldova and Turkey - banned last year by the IWF for having multiple positives in the re-testing of doping samples from the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games in Beijing and London respectively. 

The country, which had already been suspended from Rio 2016, missed last year's IWF World Championships in Anaheim.

It has now served its one-year suspension and returned to competition. 

Russia had gone five days without picking up a single medal at this year’s event but currently have two golds after Okulov won the men's 89 kilograms clean and jerk with 206kg for an unrivalled total of 372kg on Tuesday (November 6).

The 2015 world champion had earlier finished with an eighth-best 166kg in the snatch.

"This triumph is another outstanding achievement in your sports career and is the deserved award for your determination, performance efficiency and the uncompromising will to win," Putin said in a message addressed to the 24-year-old, as reported by Russian news service TASS.

Four weightlifters were among seven Russian athletes to have recently been given four-year bans for violating the country’s anti-doping rules.

The Russian Anti-Doping Agency, which was controversially reinstated by the World Anti-Doping Agency in September, said that Valeriy Temnik, Roman Rednikin, Sergey Oreshnikov and Fatima Umakhanova have all been handed the sanction, ruling them out of competing here. 

According to Russian media, Temnik and Umakhanova tested positive for banned substances, while Rednikin and Oreshnikov were sanctioned for failing to appear at doping tests.

In a recent interview with insidethegames, IWF President Tamás Aján was asked how big a risk he considered the awarding of the 2020 European Championships to Russia on the day its suspension ended, and whether he felt this indicated that Russia had completely sorted out its long-standing doping problems under its new organisers.

"The Russian Weightlifting Federation has made good progress in ensuring clean sport and has served its suspension," he said.

"The Russian Anti-Doping Agency has of course also been reinstated. 

"But we will continue to monitor the situation closely, as we will do all nations."