Weightlifting

I

Introduction

Weightlifting, sport based on the lifting of a series of progressively heavier metal weights, which are generally encased in rubber. Participants engage in the sport for competitive or recreational purposes.

As a competitive sport, weightlifting is popular internationally, notably in the United States, the countries of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Germany, Romania, Poland, Finland, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, China, and Cuba. The sport of weightlifting is organized worldwide by the International Weightlifting Federation and in the United States by USA Weightlifting (USAW). Weightlifting is one of the sports in the Olympic Games.

II

Equipment

The chief item in weightlifting is the barbell, a steel rod to which plates (also called disks) of different weights may be attached by means of clamps called spin-lock collars. The plates are interchangeable.

III

Types of Lifts

Participants in weightlifting contests are usually tested in two types of lifts: the snatch and the clean and jerk. A third type, the press, was eliminated after the 1972 Summer Olympics.

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In executing the snatch the contestant grasps the barbell and in one continuous motion lifts it to a position of arm's length overhead. Both legs may be flexed or moved at any time during this lift, but they must be straightened and returned to the same plane to complete the lift.

The clean and jerk involves lifting the barbell to shoulder level in one motion and above the head in another, separate motion. Most competitors gain power for the final, upward thrust by bending and then suddenly straightening the knees, then moving the body under the barbell.

IV

Competition

Under USAW rules, junior and senior weightlifters compete in eight classes for men and seven classes for women. These classes are based on body weight and are designated by the maximum body weight allowed in each class. The men's classes are 56 kg (123.5 lb), 62 kg (136.7 lb), 69 kg (152.1 lb), 77 kg (169.8 lb), 85 kg (187.4 lb), 94 kg (207.2 lb), 105 kg (231.5 lb), and more than 105 kg (more than 231.5 lb). The women's classes are 48 kg (105.8 lb), 53 kg (116.8 lb), 58 kg (127.9 lb), 63 kg (138.9 lb), 69 kg (152.1 lb), 75 kg (165.3 lb), and more than 75 kg (more than 165.3 lb).

In Olympic and other championship competitions contestants perform both the snatch and the clean and jerk. The contestant lifting the greatest aggregate weight in the two events wins the competition. The weights are scored by adding together the heaviest lift (out of three attempts) of each of the two events. If two competitors in the same weight class lift the same weight—that is, in the case of a tie—the lighter of the two competitors is declared the winner of the competition.

Reviewed by: USA Weightlifting

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