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Weightlifting mourns a legend: Naim Süleymanoğlu

Multiple World and Three Times Olympic Champion Naim Süleymanoğlu has died at the age of 50 after having been placed into intensive care at the Ataşehir Memorial in Istanbul, Turkish media said Saturday. The legendary weightlifter underwent a successful liver transplant early October. Süleymanoğlu was previously placed into intensive care on September 25 due to liver failure. The now 50-year-old athlete, nicknamed "Pocket Hercules" due to his short stature, became a global star after setting six world records, winning three Olympic gold medals and out lifting the winner of the weight class above him at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. He was the Best Weightlifter of the Century and received the Olympic Order in 2001. He was also member of the IWF Hall of Fame. The International Weightlifting Federation presents its condolences to Naim Süleymanoğlu’s Family and to the Turkish Weightlifting Federation. Source:

ORIS meeting for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

A 3 days meeting of the Weightlifting Working Group of Olympic Results and Information Services (ORIS) was held in its traditional location: Montreaux, SUI. The meeting was led by Nicolas Hurel, IOC Head of ORIS, and the IWF was represented by Attila Adamfi, Director General and Technical Delegate and Matyas Lencser, Competition Manager. Reiko Chinen, Weightlifting Sport Manager participated on behalf of Tokyo 2020, and members of the IOC ORIS team, ATOS and Omega were also present. The Working Group considered the implementation experiences from Rio 2016 and defined the technical requirements that will have to be delivered, including the processes, time limits and deliverable. The ORIS Weightlifting Document was updated in accordance with the latest IWF Rules and considers the possible upcoming changes in the Qualification system and bodyweight

Coaching Education Seminar in Bolivia

Bolivian Weightlifting Federation in the framework of IWF Development Program organized a Coaching Seminar between 2 and 4 November in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. The expert was María Isabel Urrutia (COL), Olympic Champion in Sydney and several times World Champion, currently the coach of the Colombian Junior National team. Totally 56 people including coaches and athletes attended the seminar in which the expert presented training planes and shared her own coaching experiences. At the end a Tournament was organized where the expert could make an evaluation on the development of the Bolivian

International Sports Federations prepare to lead the way on ‘Sustainability’ & give planet earth a sporting chance

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – Sir Ben Ainslie, four-time Olympic Gold Medallist & Team Principal, as well as Skipper of Britain’s America’s Cup Challenger, Land Rover BAR, led the way as an innovator of sustainability at this year’s 11th edition of the IF Forum which took place in Lausanne. The IWF was represented by Attila Adamfi, IWF Director General and Lilla Rozgonyi, Communications and Marketing Director. Given the significant and unstoppable changes being created by global warming as a result of environmental pollution and pollutants originating in human activity, speaker after speaker at this year’s IF Forum, many of whom represent international sports federations, shared case studies outlining the actions they are taking, and appealed to peers to take advantage of the unique opportunity in sport, to lead the way towards a sustainable agenda – the focus for this year’s conference programme. The politics of climate change are shifting. Saving planet earth is more than just a fad and international sports federations can have impact. Delegates heard how new voices and new strategies are taking the lead – and how sport can shift attitudes towards achieving global sustainability. Speakers reinforced the view that sport is in a unique position to raise awareness on many levels, engage fans and global citizens everywhere, as well as empower young volunteers and change-makers, with sustainable initiatives and show how innovations can be impactful. The urgency and poignancy of these messages were the subject of 24 presentations and case studies throughout the IF Forum, attended by 109 international sport federations and associate members, as well as 7 observer organisations. Hosted by SportAccord Convention, delegates were welcomed by Thomas Bach, President, International Olympic Committee, and Philippe Leuba, State Councillor Department of Economy and Sport, Canton of Vaud. Patrick Baumann, President of GAISF and SportAccord Convention gave the opening address. Summing up this year’s IF Forum President Baumann said: “I would like to thank the many expert speakers for making this year’s IF Forum on Sustainability so illuminating, bringing clarity and insight to important issues and highlighting ways in which we can help make a difference. “While we have a clear duty to preserve and promote sport for the next generation we have an even greater Duty of Care to our environment to ensure that the world we hold in trust is a great place to live and to play sport. “This has been a fascinating, rewarding and useful Forum and I am sure delegates will go back to their Federations inspired and full of new ideas.” The IF Forum conference programme was a collaboration between the IOC and the stakeholders GAISF, ASOIF, AIOWF, ARISF, AIMS, and Associate Members. Panel sessions were led by David Eades, Anchor and Journalist, BBC World who served as Master of Ceremonies for the IF Forum 2017. Official Partners included: JLT Specialty, Nielsen Sports, Reno Tahoe Winter Games Coalition; Legacy Partner Sport Event Denmark; and Host City Partners Lausanne and the Canton de Vaud. Source:

IWF meets with nine suspended Member Federations to support them begin process of anti-doping reform

The IWF President Dr. Tamas Ajan met with representatives of the nine suspended Member Federations (MFs) in Kazakhstan on Monday to discuss their anti-doping programmes and the changes they need to undergo to protect the integrity of sport within their countries. The IWF Executive Board took the decision to suspend the nine countries last month after it had been found they had had three or more anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs) during the retesting of samples taken during Beijing 2008 and London 2012. This forms part of the IWF’s commitment to protecting clean athletes and implementing robust anti-doping measures at both international and Member Federation level to address the incidence of doping in the sport. Where there have been historical problems with widespread doping, the IWF is putting in place measures to shield clean athletes and change cultures. During the meeting in Kazkhstan, IWF’s independent Anti-Doping Commission Chair, Dr. Patrick Schamasch, and IWF Legal Counsel outlined the number of conditions that the MFs must meet to trigger a cultural shift in their countries and ensure a level-playing field at national level. These criteria include, among many other things, implementing the IWF Rules in their countries and constructing their national level ‘shields’ to protect clean athletes. Further information was also given to the MFs about the Independent Monitoring Group, which is composed of independent anti-doping experts who will help each MF create a tailored action plan to address their issues. The Independent Monitoring Group will monitor the MF’s progress throughout the entire suspension

WORLD WEIGHTLIFTING No. 142 is online!

No.142 of WORLD WEIGHTLIFTING includes 2017 Anaheim WWC Preview, 2017 Junior World Championships Tokyo, Taipei 2017 Universiade, Continental Championships and a successful debut of weightlifting at AIMAG, Ashgabat. For more read our interview with Mohammed Jalood, IWF General Secretary and Karyn Marshall, first woman world champion of the USA. Check out the English