Archive from

IWF Announces Composition of Independent Disciplinary and Ethics Commission

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) today announced the independent and highly-qualified members of its Disciplinary and Ethics Commission, marking the latest significant step in the federation’s ongoing process of governance reform. The Commission comprises five independent members, from five continents. The members are: Chair: Dr. Despina Mavromati – Greece and Switzerland Attorney-at-law and arbitrator (Greece and Switzerland) UEFA Appeals Body Member and former Managing Counsel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Vice Chair: Andrew Minogue – Australia CEO of Pacific Games Council Significant experience working within multi-sport Games Secretary: Prof. Dr. Dr. Moni Wekesa - Kenya Member of the World Athletics Disciplinary Tribunal Highly experienced lawyer and sports medicine specialist Member: Yoshihiro Takatori - Japan International Arbitrator (F.C.I.Arb.), Mediator, Attorney-at-law (Japan and New York) Executive Director of Japan Association of Arbitrators, Co-Convener of C.I.Arb., Japan Chapter Member: Beatriz Merino - Peru First female Prime Minister of Peru and Latin America Former Senator and Congresswoman, Head of Peru IRS & Customs, National Ombudsman President of the largest private university in Peru; and former Executive of Procter & Gamble Co. Peru and Latin America The Chair, Vice Chair and Secretary were selected by the Commission members themselves, who are also working on the final version of the terms of reference and working procedures. IWF Interim President Dr. Michael Irani said: “The IWF Disciplinary and Ethics Commission has a critical role to play in ensuring that the IWF upholds the highest ethical standards and that any misconduct is thoroughly investigated.” “We are grateful to have such highly-qualified independent members sit on the Commission. Together they have decades’ worth of experience that will be invaluable in guiding the IWF in the right direction. As we continue to accelerate the necessary governance reforms, the IWF family and our partners can have full confidence in the capability of this Commission to help safeguard

IWF TCRR for Coaches – Webinar

The Pan-American Weightlifting Federation is organizing an online seminar for coaches on the IWF Technical and Competition Rules & Regulation this Saturday at 4PM, Lima time. The online seminar will be held in English and Spanish and there will be simultaneous translation to Portuguese to reach a wider audience. The seminar will be delivered by experts such as, Joe Triolo (USA) President of the PAWF Technical Committee, Maritza Ortiz (DOM) Member of the PAWF Technical Committee and Italo Barattini (CHI) Member of the IWF Technical Committee. The event can be followed on Zoom and an additional stream will be available on the Pan-American Weightlifting Federation’s YouTube

IWF Online Youth World Cup

The IWF Online Youth World Cup organized by the Peruvian Weightlifting Federation will kick off in exactly one week from today. As we are nearing the start of the competition, the official Start Book has been uploaded to the IWF website including starting times and time zones which could be useful for both participants and spectators. According to the latest version of the Start Book, 62 countries with altogether 402 athletes will compete at the first ever youth weightlifting world online event between 11th and 18th November 2020. The number of athletes and countries participating at the event shows that this competition is holding huge importance for youth weightlifters during these difficult times especially as the IWF Youth World Championships have been cancelled due to the COVID-19

Pyrros Dimas: Using the Power of Sport to “LIFT PEACE UP”!

“I won my first Olympic gold medal in 1992 at the Barcelona Games. I was 20 years old. I discovered the Olympic universe. I was born and lived my early years in Albania, as a member of the Greek minority group. I was completely unaware of the power that sport can exert on youth, on society, and even on an entire country. At the time, Greece was engaged in a patient reconstruction process. It sought to regain confidence in its future and the accession to the European single market. Additionally, the capital city, Athens, was bidding to host the Olympic Summer Games. I believe that my Olympic victory helped my country, because it gave people hope that things could change, that their lives could be better. If an immigrant from Albania can win an Olympic medal, then Greece could be a member of and thrive within the European context. That’s how I interpret my reception when I came back from the Games; along with Voula Patoulidou, the other Greek gold medalist, we stepped into a packed Panathenaicon Stadium, where the first modern Olympic Games were held. The moment felt historic; looking back at it Ι was not wrong. The recognition that came with my success in the Olympics made me realize my social role. When little children are looking up to you as a role model it’s hard not to reconsider or at least think more about how you live your life, what you believe in, etc. I can confidently say that I have tried my best to assume this new role, with all the responsibilities that come with it. For years I had been touring Greece, talking to children at their schools about my life and career. Telling them how my minority status in Albania was excluding me from so much I wanted to do, how hard it was to live in Greece as someone who came from Albania in the beginning, and also all the great things that happened after that, I could see the eyes of some students shining with hope. I thought there is no better cause I could channel my energy into than the future. I did that even more after the end of my weightlifting career. Then things got a bit more complicated. My sport was going through a hard time in Greece, so I had to step up and lead it out of the crisis. In 2008 I became the President of the Greek Weightlifting Federation. I felt the same when I ran for Parliament in 2012, when Greece was deep in a financial crisis, which seemed not to be ending. I think that when the people you love are having a hard time it is your responsibility to show that you are there for them, if that is something you are able to do. Later on, I joined the Council of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF). More recently, I accepted the duties of Technical Director and Head Coach of the USA Weightlifting National team. Last December at the Peace and Sport International Forum, I took an additional step by becoming a Peace and Sport Champion for Peace. I brandished the white card to mark my commitment to the cause of peace through sport. I feel immense pride to see that even in the current crisis, so many people are taking pictures of themselves holding white cards and sharing them on social media in the framework of the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace celebrated on April 6th. Today, I am committed to give concrete orientation to my action. I want to strengthen the work of my foundation, the “International Sports Institute PYRROS DIMAS”, which was created in the hope of developing and promoting sport through activities with a social dimension. It implements projects using sport for education, especially in migrant communities and refugee camps in Greece and additionally supports weightlifting athletes. But I would like to go further. I would like to extend the Institute’s actions to an international level. In 2020, it is everyone’s responsibility to do their part in “lifting peace up”. Source: Peace and

Governance and Constitutional Reform Discussion- Pan-American Live Event

Tomorrow, on 31 October at 3PM, Lima time the Pan-American Weightlifting Federation will hold a Live Event on Zoom and their Facebook page for all American countries. The purpose of the event is to provide a platform for the American federations to discuss proposals related to the development of the new IWF constitution and statues. A panel of 3 will present the main points of the constitutional reform in both English and Spanish and next to the panel IWF Interim President, Dr. Michael Irani and IWF General Secretary, Mr. Mohammed Jalood will also be

First E-Learning Course for Coaches in Pan-America

From 26 September 2020 the Pan American Weightlifting Federation started an online coaching course series for its Coaches with frequent lessons. This E-Learning project consists of 5 modules in total. The series began with the first module which lasted for 29 days and finished recently. Altogether from 24 countries 97 coaches participated in the module. The majority of the participants could take part in the course free of charge thanks to a scholarships provided by the Pan American Federation. At this time the course consisted of 3 topics; Technique & Methodology, Physical Preparation and Planning & Training and ended with an exam. After the successful first module, the second will start soon. Source: Pan American Weightlifting