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IWF confirms “excellent level” of preparation for the 2024 Olympics in Paris

With less than 80 days to go before the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, an IWF delegation was in the French capital to discuss the last preparation stages of the event with the organisers. The group included Matthew Curtain, IWF Executive Board member and Paris 2024 Technical Delegate, Achilleas Tsogas, IWF CEO, and Matyas Lencser, IWF Competition Manager. During the two-day visit, various aspect related with the staging of the Games were revised, namely the accommodation and transportation plan, the accreditation and ticketing procedure, and the sports presentation. The IWF delegation also had the opportunity to visit the venue of the competition, as well as the training facility (located in the Olympic Village). Achilleas Tsogas (IWF CEO, fifth from the left), Matthew Curtain (IWF EB member and Paris 2024 Technical Delegate, fourth from the right) and Matyas Lencser (IWF Competition Manager, second from the right) meeting the Paris 2024 Olympic Games organisers The inspection of the sports complex used for the weightlifting competition – Paris Expo Porte de Versailles (SP6) – deserved special attention from the IWF. All logistical details related to the necessary requirements for a weightlifting event were reviewed, with some small adjustments still to be done until the staging of the Games. “We are now in the last metres of a long race, but we are extremely happy with the level of athlete-centred co-operation from Paris 2024. I am sure that the end of the journey, during the Games in Paris, will also be outstanding,” underlined Mr Curtain. “Together with Moira [Lassen, the second IWF Technical Delegate to the Games, but unfortunately not available for this visit], we have always enjoyed very positive support from our French friends highlighting in particular Paris 2024 Sport Director Aurélie Merle, Weightlifting Manager Jacqueline White, and Michel Reynaud, President of the French Weightlifting Federation.   Our mutual expertise has led to this encouraging outcome, which will be crucial for our clean athletes and the Olympic programme,” Mr Curtain concluded. The weightlifting competition at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games will take place from August 7-11 and will be contested by 120 athletes (+ two lifters from the IOC Refugee Team) in 10 bodyweight categories (five for men and five for women). IWF Communications

Armenia’s Prime Minister meets with the IWF to discuss 2027 IWF Worlds in Yerevan

The IWF President Mohammed Jalood and the IWF General Secretary Antonio Urso met today in Yerevan with the Prime Minister of Armenia, Mr Nikol Pashinyan, to discuss the preparation of the IWF World Championships, to be staged in the country in 2027. It will be the first time that the IWF showcase will be held in Armenia, a decision taken by the IWF Executive Board last March 29 in Phuket (THA), with the occasion of the IWF World Cup. Yerevan was recently a very successful host of the 2023 European Championships, a competition that established new standards in terms of sports presentation, TV production, and spectators’ attendance. Based on this achievement, the Armenian bid for the 2027 IWF World Championships was enthusiastically welcomed by the IWF. IWF President and IWF General Secretary meeting Armenia's Prime Minister, Mr Nikol Pashinyan (third from the right) “The level of commitment by our friends in Armenia is amazing and the personal interest and involvement of the Prime Minister are a solid guarantee that we will have a great competition in Yerevan! Both at the government and national federation level, the support and professionalism are outstanding. I have no doubts that these Championships will be a milestone in our history and will inspire many young lifters in Armenia – already a very strong nation in weightlifting – to pursue their career. This is also the legacy that was emphasised by the Prime Minister,” considered the IWF President Mohammed Jalood after the meeting with Mr Pashinyan. Earlier in the day, the IWF delegation was present in a media conference, together with the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff, Mr Arayik Harutyunyan, the Armenian Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport, Ms Zhanna Andreasyan, and the General Secretary of the Armenian Weightlifting Federation, Mr Pashik Alaverdyan. From left to right: Mr Antonio Urso (IWF General Secretary), Mr Mohammed Jalood (IWF President), Mr Arayik Harutyunyan (Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff), Ms Zhanna Andreasyan (Armenian Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport) and Mr Pashik Alaverdyan (General Secretary of the Armenian Weightlifting Federation) It was a privileged occasion to brief the local media about the importance of the IWF showcase, and its positive impact in the country. Details were given on the organisation of the event and the general activities to be carried out until the start of the competition. “In terms of promotion and exposure, I am sure that everyone in Armenia is determined to spread out the message and to profile the IWF World Championships, in the words of the Prime Minister, ‘as the biggest sports event ever staged in Yerevan’. With three years to go, it is quite impressive to see already the level of interest and anticipation, so it won’t be difficult to guess the atmosphere that we will live closer and during the event!” declared the IWF General Secretary. After the official meetings, both Mr Jalood and Mr Urso had the opportunity to enjoy a guided visit to the historical capital of Armenia, Yerevan, one of the world’s most ancient inhabited cities.   IWF

Lifters Mora and Jamali included in the 2024 Olympic Refugee Team

Two lifters - Ramiro Mora and Yekta Jamali - will be part of the Olympic Refugee Team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, a group that comprises 36 athletes representing 12 sports. The announcement was made today by the IOC President Thomas Bach in Lausanne (SUI): “We welcome all of you with open arms. You are an enrichment to our Olympic Community, and to our societies”. "With your participation in the Olympic Games, you will demonstrate the human potential of resilience and excellence. This will send a message of hope to the more than 100 million displaced people around the world," continued the IOC President. Ramiro Mora receiving the good news from the IOC Both lifters now selected for the Games in Paris had the opportunity to compete recently, as part of the IWF Refugee Team, at the IWF World Cup in Phuket, Thailand.  Mora, originally from Cuba and based in Great Britain, was born on September 29, 1997 and ranked 18th in the men’s 102kg, after lifting 162-197-359. Jamali, living in Germany and of Iranian origin, turned 20 years old on March 31 and placed 19th in Thailand in the women’s 81kg category (100-125-225). Yekta Jamali Both athletes were part of a long list of 74 IOC Scholarship holders, with a real possibility to represent the Olympic Refugee Team at the 2024 Olympics. This is the third edition of the Games with a Refugee representation, after successful previous experiences in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020ne. “From the creation of the concept in 2015 until now, we unfortunately saw the number of refugees in the world grow from around 60 million to over 110 million. That is why these athletes must be represented and the programme was even reinforced for Paris 2024,” explained Mr Bach. From the athletes’ side, Jamali had spoken in Phuket about her challenging conditions, when arriving in Germany: “I have no family in Germany, and when I got there I could not train for about six months. But I have friends there who have been so kind and helpful. I am in Frankfurt, and I feel happy now. I hope to get a German passport.” Mora reflects on the importance of this initiative: “Being part of the Olympic Refugee Team is not just an opportunity to compete; it’s a platform to inspire and represent hope for refugees all over the world”. The IWF President Mohammed Jalood also received the IOC news with enormous joy: “The IWF is very happy to learn that two lifters – Ramiro Mora and Yekta Jamali – will be part of the IOC Refugee Team competing at the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games. After the creation in 2023 of the first-ever IWF Refugee programme, this decision underlines the good work our International Federation is doing in welcoming and including those athletes in our activities. It also showcases the intense work and effort from Ramiro and Yekta – they were both present in our recent IWF World Cup in Phuket (THA) –, who fully deserve their recognition from the IOC”.  “The Refugee Team project is aimed at giving a second opportunity to athletes overcoming extremely challenging situations and bringing them back to the Sport they love. I wish Ramiro and Yekta the best of luck in Paris and I thank them for representing in such a noble way the sport of weightlifting!” concluded Mr Jalood. At the IWF level, the first Refugee Team was created in 2023 and comprised seven lifters. This year, the group had six athletes, including the two that were finally selected by the IOC.  IWF Executive Board member Florian Sperl, responsible for the project in our International Federation, was also thrilled with the announcement: “Having 12 sports represented in the team, and weightlifting being one of them with two athletes, this shows the value we have in the Olympic movement. As was said by the IOC, their selection was based on two main criteria, the official refugee status (recognised by the UN), and their sports performances. This last point is very important, as it demonstrates the effort these two lifters put into becoming Olympians despite the difficulties. Congratulations to Ramiro and Yekta and all the best for Paris!” IWF

IWF President honoured by the University of Ningbo (CHN)

The IWF President Mohammed Jalood was appointed as Visiting Professor of the Sports Science Faculty of the University of Ningbo (CHN), in a ceremony held on April 28, 2024. That was the highlight of an IWF delegation visit to China, who had the opportunity to be in Fuzhou and Ningbo (host of the 2026 IWF World Championships). On this occasion, Mr Jalood was accompanied by the IWF General Secretary Antonio Urso and the IWF CEO Achilleas Tsogas. “I am very honoured to receive this prestigious distinction from the University of Ningbo. I share it with the entire weightlifting family, working very hard for the development of our beautiful Sport on the five continents. China is a great powerhouse in weightlifting and Ningbo will surely be an excellent host of our World Championships in 2026!” declared the IWF President after receiving his tribute. IWF President Mohammed Jalood receiving his distinction The first two days of the visit were spent in Fuzhou, where the Chinese National Championships took place – the IWF delegation was invited to attend four A Sessions of the event and also visit the outstanding Majiang Weightlifting Training Centre, a world-class facility for the preparation of Chinese and international lifters. On April 27, the group joined Ningbo, chosen in early December 2023 as the host city of the 2026 IWF World Championships. Ningbo is located in the northeast province of Zhejiang, not far from the cities of Shanghai and Hangzhou. It has a population of over nine million citizens and has acquired recent successful experience in staging sports international events. The competition venue of the Championships will be the Ningbo Olympic Sports Centre, a facility constructed in 2019 and with a 10,000-seat capacity. Moreover, all the proposed hotels to host the participants in the competition will be within a 30-minute distance by car from the venue. In Ningbo, the IWF delegation formally signed the Hosting Agreement for the 2026 World Championships, visited the venue and proposed hotels for the staging of the IWF showcase, and was invited for a lecture on the development of weightlifting and the importance for a city hosting top-level international weightlifting events, at the University of Ningbo. It was also the occasion to pay a fair tribute to the IWF President for his leading role in the progress of the Sport and its increased value within the Olympic movement. “We had a very fruitful meeting with the organisers and excellent conditions will be provided to all participants in our showcase. I sincerely thank all Chinese authorities for their commitment and enthusiasm in the staging of the 2026 IWF World Championships, as well as for their devotion to weightlifting,” concluded Mr Jalood.   IWF

Phuket review: Rizki v Rahmat, red lights and PRK helped to make World Cup memorable – and unique

The IWF World Cup, which ended in Phuket, Thailand on Thursday, was an exciting, high-quality, well organised competition that will live long in the memory. It was also unique. Weightlifting at the Olympic Games in August will be very different from what we saw over 12 days at the World Cup, which rounded off the Paris 2024 qualifying programme. There are three good reasons why – no head-to-heads between team-mates, nowhere near as many red lights and bombouts, and the best team in Phuket cannot be there. An unforgettable contest between two Indonesians was the highlight in Thailand.  Rahmat Erwin had led the Olympic rankings for 482 days, setting world records along the way, only to be knocked out of Paris 2024 by team-mate Rizki Juniansyah in the last five minutes of qualifying. Rizki Juniansyah (INA) The long-time rankings leader Jiang Huihua from China, Olympic champion Hidilyn Diaz from the Philippines, Tokyo silver medallist Tamara Salazar from Ecuador and multiple European champion Samuel Gasparyan from Armenia were overtaken by a team-mate in similar, if less dramatic fashion. Those showdowns were a feature in Phuket because nations are limited to one athlete per weight category in Paris. This was the last chance for anyone to outperform a team-mate. PRK claimed eight victories and as many world records, seven of them by women. PRK has shown itself to be the world’s strongest weightlifting nation in the seven months since it returned to international competition after a long absence caused by the Covid pandemic. But it entered the Olympic qualifying programme too late for its athletes to be eligible for Paris. Chong Song Ri (PRK) The number of red lights and bombouts added to the World Cup drama. Athletes overstretched themselves in trying to move up the rankings, usually in the B Groups. That will not happen in Paris, where there will not even be any B Groups. After so many failures, the cut-off point between the 10th-placed lifter and those below barely changed throughout the weight categories. The biggest upward move was 3kg in the women’s 59kg, while the cut-off in two categories remained exactly as it was before the World Cup. Two athletes did make a spectacular jump from the B Group to qualify. Yu Dongju from Korea moved up eight places at 89kg and Davranbek Hasanbayev from Turkmenistan climbed from 26th to eighth at 102kg. Davranbek Hasanbayev (TKM) The individual stars in Phuket included world record breakers Rizki, China’s Liu Huanhua at 102kg, Hou Zhihui and PRK’s Ri Song Gum in the women’s 49kg, Karlos Nasar from Bulgaria at 89kg and Hampton Morris from the United States at 61kg - his country’s first senior world record holder in 55 years. Others who added to the spectacle without breaking world records included two Olympic champions, Li Wenwen from China and Neisi Dajomes from Ecuador, and the American Olivia Reeves, who stood on top of the women’s 71kg podium above athletes from China and PRK. Li Wenwen (CHN) China once more has to decide which athletes to leave at home, having qualified nine when the limit is six. The women did better than the men, whose national head coach Yu Jie told Xinhua, China’s state news agency, “The performance of the men's team was below expectations. “We did not perform at our level in training, and we need to strengthen our fighting spirit. It's a good thing that the problems were exposed in a major event and we could learn what could go wrong in the Olympic Games so that we can address them before the Games.” Those who will take five athletes to Paris include Egypt, Korea, the United States and Venezuela, all of whom deserve respect for taking so many when the athlete quota is the lowest this century at 120. The US and Venezuela will have to refuse women’s places after exceeding the limit of three. Kate Vibert, one of the unlucky ones who will not be selected despite being ranked in the top 10 of two weight categories in the extended lists (two or more per nation), said, “The respect for the US team throughout this quad has exponentially increased.” Hampton Morris (USA) Mike Gattone, USA Weightlifting’s head coach and performance director, agreed. “I’m super proud of our athletes,” he said. “Between 2017 and 2023 our team has won almost 700 medals at under-15, youth, junior and senior international competitions. “In that time we had breakthrough athletes like CJ Cummings and Mattie Rogers, then Kate and Olivia. Coaches and athletes have been able to watch them and see what’s possible.  “I also think the ITA has helped us. Thanks to the hard work of the IWF we are now a cleaner sport, and that has helped ‘non-traditional’ weightlifting countries to improve.” Karlos Nasar (BUL) Final rankings are now published on the IWF website. The full list of 120 for Paris, plus any Refugee Team members added by the IOC, will not be known until June. Deadlines regarding team nominations and reallocations, as well as the rankings, are on the website here: https://iwf.sport/paris-2024-olympic-games/ By Brian Oliver Photos by Giorgio

Phuket, Day 12: Photo Gallery

All photos by Giorgio Scala/Deepbluemedia [gallery size="large"