News

2013 IF Forum

The 2013 IF Forum took place from 4-6 November in Lausanne, Switzerland. The forum was opened by Thomas Bach, IOC President, Marius Vizer, SportAccord President and H.H. Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, ANOC President. The programme focused on key areas within Event Management and Social Media. The IWF was represented by Attila Adamfi, Competition Director and Lilla Rozgonyi, In Charge of Communication. See more at:

LOPEZ BOBADILLA Christian Alberto passed away

The Guatemala Weightlifting Federation informs with deep sorrow of the tragic death of LOPEZ BOBADILLA Christian Alberto (GUA). The Bronze Medallist of the 2013 Pan-American Championships was suffering from respiratory problems. It is a tragic loss for the Weightlifting Family and the IWF wants to present its deepest condolences to the Guatemala Weightlifting Federation and to Mr. LOPEZ BOBADILLA’s

African Championships Casablanca

The African Weightlifting Championships came to end in Casablanca, Morocco. Held from 30 October until 3 November, 69 Men and 32 Women from 11 countries participated in the competition. Organized right after the 2013 IWF World Championships; Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Morocco, Seychelles, South Africa and Tunisia took part in the African Youth, Junior and Senior Championships. The organization was very successful, and the Moroccan Weightlifting Federation delivered a high quality competition. The WFA held its Executive Board Meeting during the

Happy Birthday to Nicu Vlad

Nicu Vlad, IWF 1st Vice President, Gold Medallist at the 1984 Olympic Games, several times World and European Champion celebrated its 50th Birthday on 1st November. The IWF wish to congratulate on this occasion. Happy

CGF Appoints Director of Sport

London 31 October 2013 – The Commonwealth Games Federation has appointed Matthew Curtain as its first-ever Director of Sport. Currently the Weightlifting Competition Manager at Glasgow 2014, Matthew has also held senior sports positions with a number of Organising Committees associated with previous Olympic and Commonwealth Games, including the highly successful 2012 summer Olympic Games in London and the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. He previously served as Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Weightlifting Federation and officiated as Technical Delegate for IPC Powerlifting at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games. His responsibilities will include managing all aspects of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games sports programmes and their development as well as maintaining positive relations with all International Sports Federations, future host cities and bidding cities. Anti-doping and the co-ordination of the activities of the CGF’s Athletes Commission and Sports Committee will also fall under Matthew’s areas of responsibility. Speaking today in Glasgow Matthew said: “I’m delighted to be taking up this new role within the CGF; it comes at a time when the Games movement is in a strong position with the Gold Coast following in 2018 and positive early interest already expressed by a number of countries for 2022. I look forward to contributing to the continued growth of the Games ensuring that the sports programme continues to be reflective of sport in the Commonwealth’’. Michael Hooper, Chief Executive of the Commonwealth Games Federation said: “Glasgow 2014 is going to be a huge milestone in the story of the Commonwealth Games and in Matthew; I believe we’ve found the right person to make a significant contribution to the Games position in world sport.” David Grevemberg, Chief Executive of Glasgow 2014 said: “I warmly welcome Matthew Curtain’s appointment as Director of Sport for the Commonwealth Games Federation. This new role presents great opportunities for the CGF, working in partnership with international sporting bodies, to drive forward the future vision and ambitions for the Commonwealth Games. I wish Matt well and we look forward to working with him and the CGF team in showcasing the Commonwealth Games movement in Glasgow and Scotland next year and delivering a great and memorable Games for athletes, spectators and the Commonwealth.” Source: Commonwealth Games

2013 IWF World Championships concluded in Wroclaw, Poland

The competition where 292 lifters competed for the Gold was a huge success. The Organizing Committee engaged the crowd during the competitions and with outstanding performances, the athletes put on the show at the competition venue. With sports presentation playing a key role, spectators enjoyed their time at the Centennial Hall. Two Olympic Champions from London 2012 were crowned World Champions: OM Yun Chol (PRK) in the Men’s 56kg and LYU Xiaojun (CHN) in the Men’s 77kg. Six World Records were broken: In the 69kg bodyweight category,GULIYEV Firidun (AZE) broke the Clean & Jerk Junior World Record of LIAO Hui (CHN) setting it to 194kg. Also in the 69kg, the first Senior World Record of the event was set by LIAO Hui (CHN) in the Clean & Jerk with 198kg, and still not enough he added a World Record of 358kg in the Total. In the 77kg category, LYU Xiaojun (CHN) took the lead and broke 2 World Records – 176kg in the Snatch and 380kg in the Total. The one and only World Record among Women was set by the Russian lifter KASHIRINA Tatiana in the Clean & Jerk with 190kg in the +75kg bodyweight category. The ELEIKO-IWF Press Commission’s Trophy of “Best Lifter” within Men went to LIAO Hui (CHN) while the “Best Women” Trophy was awarded to KASHIRINA Tatiana (RUS). The World Record Holder World Champions took over their Trophies at the Closing Ceremony of the event. Awards were presented by the Polish Organizing Committee according to the Sinclair points. With a Sinclair of 483.7667, LIAO Hui (CHN) took over the special award and with 348.2253 KASHIRINA Tatiana (RUS) received the Polish Trophy. According to the Team classification, the first 6 best performing Men and Women Team stood up on stage during the Closing Ceremony. Within the 168 participating Men lifters out of 49 countries, the Russian Team finished on the first place. The ranking follows as: People’s Republic of China, Islamic Republic of Iran, Poland, Kazakhstan, and Colombia. Among Women from the 124 participating lifters from 37 countries, Russia, People’s Republic of China, Mexico, Colombia, Poland and Ukraine got awarded. (For more details check out the RESULT BOOK) Altogether 25 athletes from 10 countries won the so highly coveted Gold Medals and according to the Medal Tally, People’s Republic of China won the most with 12 for Women and 8 for Men. We were delighted to witness impressive athletes, World Records, happy surprises, unfortunate defeats and a joyful atmosphere heated by a generous public, great fans and sport lovers. On behalf of the IWF we are thankful to the Polish Organizing Committee led by the President of the Polish Weightlifting Federation Szymon Kolecki for the perfectly organized 2013 IWF World Championships in Wroclaw,