IWF120y/29 – 1977: China starts its pathway to excellence
Until the mid-1970s, the sport of weightlifting was dominated by lifters coming from the Soviet Union – they are still ranked second in the Olympic and World Championships medallists’ charts – but another powerhouse started to emerge at the highest level: China. We are in Stuttgart (Germany) in 1977, at the World Championships, and Chen Manlin (men’s 56kg category) will stay in the history books as the first Chinese lifter with a medal at the IWF showcase – in this case, two, the silver in the Clean & Jerk and the bronze in Total. A discreet debut of what would become an incredible supremacy until the present day. Two years later, at the 1979 Worlds in Thessaloniki (GRE), Wu Shude (photo) is the first-ever world gold winner (Snatch), the men’s 52kg. Wu is arguably the initial star of Chinese weightlifting, as he would also clinch the title at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, this time in the 56kg. Before that success, his teammate Zeng Guoqiang officially becomes the first Chinese Olympic champion in the Sport, lifting 105-130-235 in the men’s 52kg. The Asian delegation leaves California with a total of four titles out of the 10 on offer. In 1987, the IWF showcase is also contested by women and the inaugural edition in Daytona Beach (USA) is dominated by China (eight out of the nine gold at stake). For the record, the first-ever Chinese female world champion was Cai Jun (44kg category) with 70-75-145. These achievements lead to the organisation in 1995 of the first IWF World Championships in Guangzhou, where the host nation leads the medals chart, with seven overall titles. From 1977 to 2024, China won 1048 medals at the IWF World Championships (including 347 in Total only). At the Olympics, the Asian powerhouse also leads operations with 67 podium presences (43 gold, 16 silver, and eight bronze) – medals at the Games only comprise Total results.
