News

IWF120y/52 – 2008: A ‘delayed’ but historical medal for Samoa

In 1983, the Samoan Olympic Committee was created, and the first athletes representing the nation in the Games travelled to Los Angeles in 1984. The following year, Ele Opeloge was born and would become the only Olympic Samoan medallist (all sports) so far in the history of her country. She is also the first and only Pacific islander (natives from the Oceania islands grouped in one of these three regions: Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia) with a weightlifting Olympic podium presence! But the story is not simple: at the Beijing 2008 rendezvous, Opeloge competed in the women’s +75kg and ranked fourth (119-150-269). Years later, following the re-analysis of samples from those Games, the silver and bronze medallist in Opeloge’s event were found positive for prohibited substances and their medals withdrawn. Upgrading into the Olympic hierarchy, the Samoan star ended up with the silver medal, a pride for a nation that has a solid tradition in weightlifting. If you type “Opeloge” in the IWF athletes' result database, you will find numerous lifters. In fact, Ele comes from a successful weightlifting family, where 10 out of the 12 siblings competed internationally in the sport – her brother Niusula (born in 1980) was a gold medallist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in the men’s 105kg, in the same day Ele triumphed in the women’s +75kg. Sister Mary (born in 1992) is a nine-time winner at the Oceania Championships (between 2008 and 2016). Ele is also a three-time winner at the Pacific Games and earned two gold medals at the Oceania Weightlifting Championships. She had a second Olympic participation in London 2012, finishing fifth. Ele is the aunt of Avatu Opeloge (her twin sister’s daughter), a silver medallist at the 2023 Pacific Games.

IWF120y/51 – 1964: Leonid Zhabotinsky, a reference of the 1960s

Before the emergence of China in the last decades, lifters from the Soviet Union were systematically at the top of the world weightlifting hierarchy at both the Olympic Games and World Championships. In the 1960s, one name is often cited: Leonid Zhabotinsky. Born in 1938, in what is today the territory of Ukraine, he made his first ‘appearance’ at the 1957 national championships, where he got a bronze medal. He then proceeded with his sportive career alongside his studies at the Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute, successfully qualifying for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. In the Japanese capital, he managed to beat his main rival and teammate Yury Vlasov, who had won in Rome four years earlier and was always better than Zhabotinsky at the previous world and European championships. Lifting 187.5-167.5-217.5-572.5 (the Clean & Jerk lift was a WR at the time), against a Total of 570kg for Vlasov, he gets his first Olympic title in the +90kg category. In Mexico City 1968, Zhabotinsky was the flagbearer of his delegation (he held the flag all the way through only with one hand, when most of the athletes needed the two hands) and revalidated the title with the same Total of 572.5 (200-170-202.5). Between the two Olympic wins, Zhabotinsky had been twice world champion, in 1965 and 1966. He finished his career in 1974, after setting 19 World Records along the way: his personal bests (and global marks by then) were 201.5 in Press, 185.5 in Snatch, 220 in C&J, and 590 in Total (with three lifts). After his retirement, he became a coach in the Soviet Army and deputy rector at the Moscow Institute of Business and Law. In 2004 (photo), he met Arnold Schwarzenegger (actor, politician, and famous bodybuilder), who always confessed that Zhabotinsky had been an idol in his youth. The Soviet/Ukrainian legend died in 2016, at the age of

IWF in mourning – Mrs Halina Pikula (POL)

The IWF learnt with great sadness about the loss of Mrs Halina Pikula, the General Secretary of the Polish Weightlifting Federation since 2013. Mrs Pikula was 71 and was pivotal in the successful implementation of Poland’s national body activities in recent years. Halina Pikuła’s dedication and contributions to weightlifting were invaluable. Her professionalism and passion helped shape the sport in her country and beyond, leaving a lasting legacy. She will be greatly missed. In this moment of grief, the IWF addresses its heartfelt condolences to her family, colleagues, and to the entire Polish weightlifting

Olympic lifters elected at the head of Cook Islands and Samoa NOCs

Great news coming from Oceania, where two prominent Olympic lifters were elected to the presidency of their respective National Olympic Committees: in Cook Islands, Luisa Peters is the new NOC leader, while in Samoa Jerry Wallwork will be at the helm of the country’s Olympic body. Luisa Peters (COK) Luisa Peters is a member of the IWF Athletes Commission and is also sitting on the IWF Executive Board. She is Vice-President of the Oceania Weightlifting Federation and President of her nation’s Weightlifting Federation. As an active lifter, she represented the Cook Islands at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games, respectively in London (GBR) and Rio (BRA). She was also present in three editions of the Commonwealth Games. Jerry Wallwork (SAM) Jerry Wallwork, Oceania Weightlifting Federation Senior Vice-President, competed for Samoa at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, after winning a silver medal in 1991 at the Pacific Games. Mr Wallwork is the President of Samoa Weightlifting and also a successful coach at the international level. In this capacity, he led with success one of his athletes – Ele Opeloge – to a silver medal at the Beijing 2008 Olympics. The election of Luisa Peters and Jerry Wallwork confirms the high status of weightlifting in Oceania, where other officials of the Sport are also presiding over their National Committees: Marcus Stephen (Nauru), Ed Imo (American Samoa), Michael Bloomfield (Tonga) and Anthony Muller (Marshall Islands).   IWF

IWF120y/50 – 1976: Mixed feelings at the Montreal Games

From an organisational point of view, the 1976 Montreal Olympics were praised as a huge success, and in the case of Weightlifting they will be remembered as the first ones close to the present Games format. Still only accessible to men, and with nine bodyweight categories, they represented a considerable change since the 1928 edition, when three lifts (Press, Snatch, and Clean & Jerk) had to be performed during the weightlifting competition. In Canada, the Press movement was no longer on the programme after the IWF had decided to abolish it from its competitions, starting in 1973. With Snatch and Clean & Jerk firmly established on the programme (as is the case today), 173 lifters travelled to Montreal. 24 of them (13.9%) could not get a valid result in the Games, clearly an unsuccessful ratio for our Sport. Out of these 24 athletes, 16 bombed out either in the Snatch or C&J, but most dramatically eight were disqualified following the first-ever in-competition doping tests for the detection of anabolic steroids. In an event dominated by athletes from the Soviet Union (photo – Aleksandr Voronin, winner in the 52kg), two winners were namely stripped of their gold medals: Zbigniew Kaczmarek (POL, 67.5kg) and Valentin Christov (BUL, 110kg). They sadly remain in history as the first Olympic winners in our Sport to lose their title after having tested positive for prohibited substances. In all of the nine weightlifting bodyweight categories contested in Montreal, there was at least one lifter either bombing out or

IWF’s latest updates to the TCRR

The IWF recently published an updated version of the Technical Competition Rules and Regulations (TCRR), following the approval by the Executive Board of its latest modifications. These changes include: The new bodyweight categories, in place from June 1, 2025 as follows: For Men (Senior and Junior) – 60kg, 65kg, 71kg, 79kg, 88kg, 98kg, 110kg, +110kg For Women (Senior and Junior) – 48kg, 53kg, 58kg, 63kg, 69kg, 77kg, 86kg, +86kg For Men (Youth) – 56kg, 60kg, 65kg, 71kg, 79kg, 88kg, 98kg, +98kg For Women (Youth) – 44kg, 48kg, 53kg, 58kg, 63kg, 69kg, 77kg, +77kg The change in the bodyweight categories also dictates an update on the maximum possible entries per national federation at IWF events: from June 1, 2025 it will be of 16 men and 16 women for Preliminary Entries, 10 men (8+2 reserve) and 10 women (8+2 reserve) for Final Entries, and 8 men and 8 women for Competition (after Verification of Final Entries); New updated rules concerning the decisions of the Jury (3 or 5 members), in accordance with the use (or not) of the VPT technology (for more details: consult rule 7.5.7 of the TCRR); Adjustments in the barbell’s rim diameter: a new maximum of 8.5cm is allowed for men, and 8cm for women; New regulations concerning the weigh-in procedure, whereby 250grams are deducted from the lifter’s weight, provided he/she is wearing the competition costume (for more details: consult Regulation to 6.4 of the TCRR). The updated complete TCRR can be consulted here, along with the explanatory Annex, which is available