News

The European Masters Championships postponed

As a consequence of the COVID-19 spread, the European Masters Committee and the Dutch organizers had to decide to postpone the 2020 European Masters Championships in Den Helder from 16 -23 May to a new date,  28 November - 5 December 2020. BASED ON THIS POSTPONEMENT AND IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF ALL ATHLETES AND THE ORGANISER THE EUROPEAN MASTERS COMMITTEE MADE THE FOLLOWING DECISIONS The registration will close on 30 March 2020 as scheduled. All registrations received are accepted and as stated no refunds! An additional registration period will now be added from 15th Aug. to 15th Sept. 2020. All the entry fees should have been collected by you prior to giving the access code and total fees must be sent to the European Masters account as scheduled. The EUROPEAN MASTERS QUALIFYING PERIOD WILL BE EXTENDED UNTIL 15 SEPTEMBER

The South American Championships postponed

Because of the global spread of the Coronavirus and travel restrictions implemented by many countries around the World, the Columbian Weightlifting Federation has decided to postpone the South American, Ibero-American & OPEN Senior Championships, that was due to be held 18-23 in Cali, COL. The new date of the competition will be announced as soon as

Oceania Championships and Commonwealth Championships postponed

Because of the global spread of the Coronavirus and travel restrictions implemented by many countries around the World, the Oceania Weightlifting Federation Executive Board and the Nauru Organizing Committee has decided to postpone the Oceania Championships and Commonwealth Championships, that was due to be held 21-25 April in Nauru. The new date of the competition will be announced as soon as

IWF Sport Commission meeting

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) regards the safety and well-being of athletes, officials, spectators and the wider population as its number one priority when organising international sporting events. IWF has therefore been in close contact with all Local Organising Committees following the outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and has been diligent in following the most up to date advice from the World Health Organization (WHO).  This follows the postponement / cancellation of four (4) of the five planned Continental Championships in the last two weeks. Noting the impact, the postponement of these Championships will have on the Qualification System of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad Tokyo 2020, the IWF Sport Commission has met twice in the last 48 hours to urgently address the action needed to safeguard the integrity of this framework. In the presence of IWF President Dr. Tamas Ajan, IWF General Secretary Mohammed Jaloud and IWF Vice President Nicu Vlad, the Commission has reaffirmed the IWF’s no compromise anti-doping approach to protect the clean athlete but at the same time, to identify measures to modify elements of the system with the view to still providing a clear avenue to athlete qualification. Such recommendations will be presented to the Executive Board upon its meeting to be held on 17 – 18 March 2020. Moreover, the IWF Sport Commission also discussed the key principles to support the development of the Dakar 2022 Youth Olympic Games Qualification System. The IWF Sport Commission comprises of Matthew Curtain (Chair), Nicu Vlad (IWF Vice-President and Technical Committee Chair), Reiko Chinen (Tokyo 2020 Weightlifting Manager & IWF Technical Committee Secretary), Tom Goegebuer (IWF Athletes Commission Deputy Chair) and Attila Adamfi (IWF Director

Watch the Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony live!

Live Streaming Coverage Available Worldwide at olympicchannel.com and Olympic Channel Apps Signalling the start of the countdown toward the Olympic Summer Games, the Olympic Flame Lighting ceremony is a captivating and historic event which will start the Olympic Torch Relay on the road to Tokyo 2020. The Olympic Channel will present LIVE streaming coverage from Olympia, Greece on Thursday, 12 March starting at 11:15 a.m. local time (9:15 a.m. UTC) on olympicchannel.com and its apps for mobile and connected TV devices. Held in the home of the ancient Games in Greece, a torch at the ancient temple of Hera will be lit by the rays of the sun using a parabolic mirror to set off a domestic relay. The lighting ceremony will feature Xanthi Georgiou performing the role of the High Priestess who lights the flame inside a bowl capturing the rays of the sun. The first torchbearer will be Greek Olympic gold medallist in shooting Anna Korakaki. She will then pass the torch to Japanese Olympic gold medallist in the marathon Mizuki Noguchi who will carry the Olympic Flame to beyond the Pierre de Coubertin Grove. The torch will continue an eight-day journey through 37 cities in Greece before the flame handover ceremony on 19 March as it makes its way to Japan on 20 March. The Olympic Torch Relay in Japan will visit 47 prefectures in Japan over 121 days before arriving at the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games on 24 July. The Olympic Channel provides fans with a dedicated media platform to follow the stories behind the sports and athletes before, during and after the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Through inspirational stories, athlete interviews, breaking news, live events, original programming and exclusive behind-the-scenes content, the Olympic Channel provides comprehensive coverage of the road to Tokyo 2020.  The Olympic Channel is available worldwide at olympicchannel.com and its apps for mobile and connected TV

European Championships Postponed

The European Weightlifting Federation through the full support of the Executive Board, due to the spread of the Coronavirus on the continent, has decided to postpone the European Senior Championships scheduled in Moscow, Russia 04-12 April, together with the Electoral Congress. The Electoral Congress and the competition will be held in Moscow in June as follows: 10 June: EWF Committee Meetings & EWF Executive Board Meeting 11 June: EWF Electoral Congress 12 June: New EWF Executive Board Meeting 13-21 June: 2020 Competitions days