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What is the Sport of Weightlifting?

Weight Lifting, sport based on the lifting of a series of progressively heavier metal weights. Participants engage in the sport for competitive or recreational purposes or as a form of muscle building. As a competitive sport, weight lifting is popular internationally, notably in the United States, the countries of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Germany, Romania, Poland, Finland, and Cuba. The sport of weight lifting is organized worldwide by the International Weightlifting Federation, and in the United States by the U.S. Weightlifting Federation. Weight lifting is also one of the sports in the Olympic Games.

Equipment The chief item in weight lifting is the barbell, a steel rod to which plates (also called disks) of different weights, usually made of iron, may be attached by means of clamps. The plates are interchangeable.

Types of Lifts

Participants in weight-lifting contests are usually tested in three types of lifts: the press, the snatch, and the clean and jerk. The press has two distinct phases. In the first phase the contestant grasps the rod (handle) of the barbell and raises it to shoulder level; in the second phase, with minimum back bend, the contestant raises the barbell overhead, extending both arms fully. The lifter must keep both feet on the same plane throughout the lift and during the second phase must hold both legs perfectly straight. 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 must be 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. It differs from the press in that the legs may be flexed or the feet may be moved to facilitate the lift; most competitors gain power for the final, upward thrust by bending and then suddenly straightening the knees, then lowering the body under the barbell.

Competition Weight lifters compete in nine classes, which are based on body weight. These classes, designated by the maximum body weight allowed in each class, are 54 kg/119 lb, 59 kg/130 lb, 64 kg/141 lb, 70 kg/154.25 lb, 76 kg/167.5 lb, 83 kg/182.5 lb, 91 kg/200.5 lb, 99 kg/218 lb, 108 kg/238 lb, and more than 108 kg/more than 238 lb (also known as the 108+/238+ class). In Olympic and other championship competitions, contestants often lift from 41 to 68 kg (90 to 150 lb) more than their body weight in the press and the snatch, and from 82 to 100 kg (180 to 220 lb) more than their body weight in the clean and jerk. The contestant lifting the greatest aggregate weight in the three events wins the competition. 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. In 1970 the press was eliminated in world and Olympic events. In the 1980s weight lifters from the USSR dominated international competition in the 108+/238+ class, reaching and exceeding 210 kg (462 lb) for the snatch, 265 kg (583 lb) for the clean and jerk, and 465 kg (1023 lb) for the total in these two lifts. Contests also comprising one-handed lifts were recognized in international competition until 1956.