News

New sponsorship deal signed by the IWF and Zhen-Ao Group China

The International Weightlifting Federation and Zhen-Ao Group China signed a Sponsorship Agreement yesterday in Budapest, Hungary. Among the 106 International Sports Organizations, weightlifting, strongly anchored in the Olympic Movement, displays a strong and reliable value for new partners. Zhen-Ao, a fast growing company in the health industry developing nucleic acid products, natural medicines with contemporary biological technology made a great success in China. Today, they have their presence secured in more than 20 countries worldwide. Negotiations between the two organizations started 1 year ago in Penang, Malaysia on the occasion of the 2011 IWF Junior World Championships, where the idea of cooperation emerged. Yesterday, a significant milestone was reached. The company established in 1996, has more than 60 products and started a strong strategic collaboration with the Chinese Olympic Committee in 2001. Zhen-Ao was the official health supplement supplier of the Chinese Olympic Team in preparation for the Beijing Olympic Games, and continues in this function for London 2012. Aware of the potential dangers engendered by nutritional supplements, upon request of the IWF, Zhen-Ao products have passed the relevant tests at the Center of Preventive Doping Research of the German Sport University Cologne. The contract was ratified by Mrs. Pan Xiao-Fei, Group President, Zhen-Ao China and Dr. Tamás Aján, IWF President. Mr. Guan Qing-Lei, Marketing President, Zhen-Ao China, Mr. Chun Fatt-Teck, Regional President, Zhen-Ao Malaysia, Mr. C.K. Tan, Chief Strategy Officer, Zhen-Ao Malaysia, Mr. Dato Ong Poh Eng, IWF Executive Board Member and other dignitaries were present during the official ceremony. Dr. Tamás Aján, IWF President said “Both Zhen-Ao and we are confident that our 2-years contract can be extended further subject to mutual satisfaction, professionalism and a well-functioning

IOC takes decisive action on ticketing allegations

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has moved quickly to deal with allegations that some National Olympic Committees (NOC) and Authorised Ticket Resellers (ATR) have broken rules relating to the sale of Olympic tickets. After claims that several NOCs and ATRs were reportedly willing to break the rules by offering to buy or sell tickets outside their territory, sell tickets at inflated prices, or sell tickets to unauthorized resellers, the IOC has ordered an immediate inquiry and referred the allegations to its independent Ethics Commission. On being informed of the allegations, the IOC immediately convened an extraordinary meeting of its Executive Board and determined a number of actions - the convening of the Ethics Commission and asking for any evidence of wrongdoing to be provided to the Commission without delay. The IOC takes these allegations very seriously and has immediately taken the first steps to investigate. Should any irregularities be proven, the organisation will deal with those involved in an appropriate manner. The NOCs are autonomous organisations, but if any of the cases are confirmed the IOC will not hesitate to impose the strongest sanctions. The IOC has also determined that it will take on board any recommendations coming out of the inquiry to improve the way that tickets are allocated and sold internationally in the

Five Weightlifters Selected to Team GB

With just 46 days to go until the start of the London 2012 Olympics, the British Olympic Association (BOA) has announced yesterday five weightlifters as officially selected to compete for Team GB at the Games. The five selected athletes – three men and two women – represent the largest contingent of weightlifters Team GB has taken to an Olympics Games since Barcelona 1996, when there were six British weightlifters. All five athletes will be competing at their first Olympic Games in London and will be aiming to produce their personal best during the competition which takes place at the ExCeL Arena in London Docklands from 28th July to 7th August. The weightlifters selected to Team GB today are: •Gareth Evans •Peter Kirkbride •Jack Oliver •Natasha Perdue •Zoe Smith Click here to read

The last Continental Olympic Qualification Event ended

The Oceania Championships – Continental Olympic Qualification Event & Commonwealth Championships in Apia, Samoa welcome the best Oceania athletes who done their utmost to grab a chance enable their country to participate in the London 2012 Olympic Games. 38 Women from 10 countries and 69 Men from 18 counties performed at their best to earn Olympic quotas. Within Women, the following countries obtained 1 Olympic Quota: SAM, PNG, FIJ, AUS. Within Men, the following countries obtained 1 Olympic Quota: AUS, KIR, FIJ, NZL, PNG. The successful weightlifting competition was the last event closing the festive period that celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Samoa’s Independence. Check out the Results of the Oceania Championships and the Result Book. As the last Olympic Qualification Event ended, you can consult the latest ranking for London 2012. The Results of the African, European and Asian Events are final; therefore the Qualification Summary was updated

IOC to live stream London 2012 in 64 territories on its YouTube channel

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced that it will live stream the London 2012 Olympic Games in 64 territories on the IOC’s channel on YouTube http://youtube.com/olympic. During the Olympic Games (27 July to 12 August), sports fans in these 64 territories across Asia and Africa will be able to enjoy live coverage of the events as well as highlight clips on this digital platform — free-of-charge. Viewers from these territories will be able to watch the streams on the IOC’s YouTube channel, accessible online or on Internet-enabled devices like smart/mobile phones and other YouTube-enabled devices. The live-streaming on the IOC’s YouTube channel will provide exclusive digital access to the London 2012 Olympic Games in territories where digital broadcast rights have not already been acquired by the IOC’s broadcast partners: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Brunei, Bhutan, Cambodia, East Timor, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. And in 42 Sub-Saharan African territories on a non-exclusive basis, including: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The IOC’s live streaming on its YouTube channel will consist of 11 different simultaneous high-definition broadcasts, all with English language commentary. There will be 10 live feeds from London 2012, running 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. (London time) (on some days, these will start earlier or finish later based on the competition schedule), plus a 24-hour broadcast of the Olympic News Channel, which includes summaries of the latest results, general reports on different events, and interviews with athletes. Fans will also be able to catch up on highlights and full events — all organised by the day, medal event or the sport. The IOC channel will also continue to feature historic content from past Olympic Games. In total, the IOC’s YouTube channel will offer over 2,200 hours hours of sporting event coverage from London 2012, including all the medals finals. Timo Lumme, Managing Director, IOC Television and Marketing, said: “We are delighted to be able to offer live online coverage of London 2012 to sports fans free of charge across these 64 markets. We first provided clips on our channel on YouTube during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games across the region, and since then have continued to provide footage of past Olympic Games across the world on our YouTube channel. Now we will also be able to offer live coverage during London 2012, complementing the excellent coverage provided by our broadcast partners across the world across all media

Institute lifters dominates first day of lifting

5 categories contested on the 1st day of the Oceania Senior Championships and all five categories were won by lifters training at the Oceania Weightlifting Institute in New Caledonia. The 48kg was won by Kathleen Hare from PNG, 53kg was won by Dika Toua also from PNG with a 182kg Total results. The 58 kg was won by Fijian Sportswoman of the year, Maria Liku, with a Total results of 188kg. In the men 56kg Manueli Tulo from FIJ take the gold with 237kg Total results while Manuel Minginfel from FSM won in 62kg with an impressive 280kg Total results. It is interesting to note that the winner in 62kg, Manuel Minginfel is the General Secretary of the FSM Weightlifting Federation and was elected as Executive Board Member of the OWF recently.