News

Oceania Championships – date modification

The 2012 Oceania Championships - Continental Olympic Qualification Event & Commonwealth Championships has been postponed due to collision of the Olympic Qualification dates. The new date for the competition to be held in Apia, Samoa is 4 - 9 June. Coordinated with the IOC, the Timelines of the Qualification System was amended accordingly. You can find the updated 2012 London Olympic Games Weightlifting Qualification System on the IWF

European Weightlifting Federation Elections

The IWF aims to continue its work in strong and close cooperation with its Continental Federations. European countries highly contributes to the success of weightlifting sport at international level; therefore the European Weightlifting Federation elections will undoubtedly be in the center of attention in the upcoming period. The EWF elections will be held in April in Antalya, Turkey and we wish to inform our stakeholders about the list of candidates downloadable from the following link: [download id="31516"]. The IWF would like to wish a lot of success to all candidates, and truly hope that with the elections, the shared interests and efforts of both the IWF and EWF will lead to strengthen the efficiency of cooperation and unity within the Weightlifting

International Women’s Day

On the occasion of the International Women’s Day, it is important for the IWF to underline with pride the constantly growing role of Women weightlifting in international sport. Weightlifting for women celebrated the Premiere at the Games of the XXVII Olympiad held in Sydney with 85 athletes from 47 countries, and the number of participants grown ever since. In 1987, the same competition structure for both men and women has created an equal opportunity and gives endless potential to further increase the continuously growing interest for our sport. Women to participate in more and more competitions inspire young generation to seize opportunities given to them through equality. The IWF has always been devoted to adjust its rules and open weightlifting competitions to Women in different countries and cultures all around the world. We highly consider as future the great potential that Women can bring to weightlifting and the world of sport. Dr. Tamas

Deadline for the Preliminary Entry Forms to the Junior World Championships

The deadline for the Preliminary Entry Forms to the Junior World Championships and Pan American Olympic Qualification Event expired today. We invite all National Federations to send their Final Entry Forms to the Guatemalan Weightlifting Federation ([email protected]) and to the IWF Secretariat ([email protected]) before April

London 2012 Weightlifting team

Matthew Curtain, London 2012 Weightlifting Manager reports that the final staff member of his paid workforce has been recruited. Camélia Bouaziz joins LOCOG as the Weightlifting Administration Group Leader, having been employed previously at the 2011 World Championships Organising Committee and the French Weightlifting Federation prior to that. In addition to his existing personnel comprising of Margaret Lynes (Services Manager) and Keith Morgan (Technical Operations Manager), all Group Leaders will commence at LOCOG in April 2012. This follows the weeklong secondment of staff during the ‘London Prepares’ Weightlifting International Invitational (Test Event) in December 2011. ‘With a combination of Games knowledge, event experience, technical expertise, language skills and business acumen, I’m delighted to welcome everyone onboard for what will be a rewarding experience. Additionally, I’m pleased that every team member recruited already has an existing connection to Weightlifting and as such, a tangible opportunity now exists whereby a robust legacy piece for the sport in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland can be created’ said Mr. Curtain. The Weightlifting Group Leaders are as follows: Moira Lassen (Technical Officials Group Leader), Marta Vlad (Athlete Services Group Leader), Sam Hayer (Field of Play Group Leader), Can Osman (Training Site Group Leader), Diana Holden (Training Site Group Leader), Laura-Denise Ramsay-Overall (Sport Equipment Group Leader), Emily Godley (IF Services Group Leader), Elodie Sauvaigo (Sports Information Group Leader) and Camélia Bouaziz (Admin Group Leader). Staff profiles can be located here: [download

London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games to be opened by The Queen

The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has confirmed that Her Majesty The Queen, accompanied by His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, will open the Paralympic Games in the Olympic Stadium on 29 August. With the role of The Queen in the Olympic Opening Ceremony on 27 July already established, Her Majesty, accompanied by The Duke of Edinburgh, will now open both Games. 'Extraordinary pride' LOCOG Chair Seb Coe said: ‘The Paralympic Games will undoubtedly be a time of extraordinary pride for our nation, and it is fitting that Her Majesty will declare us underway.’ London 2012 will mark the first time The Queen has opened a Paralympic Games. In 1976, The Queen opened the Montreal Olympic Games and in 1956, The Duke of Edinburgh (on behalf of The Queen) opened the Melbourne Olympic Games. The 1984 Paralympic Games were officially opened by His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. These Games were held in both Europe and North America, with the Opening Ceremony in Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire – the birthplace of the Paralympic Games. International Paralympic Committee President Sir Philip Craven said: ‘I am delighted that Her Majesty The Queen will be opening the Paralympic Games, further underlining the significance and status of these Games not just to the Commonwealth but to the whole