What Is Olympic-Style Weightlifting All About?

The sport of Olympic-style "Weightlifting" is one of the world's most misunderstood and under-appreciated sports. Part of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, Weightlifting is the only Olympic sport in which heavy weights are used. It consists of two events: the Snatch and the Clean and Jerk. In competition, each competitor is permitted three attempts in each lift. The lifter's highest successful attempts in each lift are added together to arrive at the "Total" - the lifter with the highest total wins the competition. Weightlifting has separate competitions for men and women, 8 bodyweight classes for men (56 kg./123.25 lb. is the lightest weight class and above 105 kg./231.25 is the heaviest) and 7 for women (48 kg./105.75 lb. is the lightest weight class and above 75 kg./165.25 lb. is the heaviest). There are also age group competitions, so that teenagers and seniors citizens can compete against other athletes their own size, age and gender. And Weightlifting competitions take place in 160 countries throughout the world, making Weightlifting one of the world's most universal sports!

In the first event in Weightlifting competitions - the Snatch - a barbell is lifted from the floor overhead in one continuous motion. The best lifters in the world in the lighter weight classes can lift as much as 2.5 times their bodyweight in the Snatch. The best superheavyweight weightlifters in history have lifted nearly 500 lb./227.5 kg. in this lift.

In the second event in Weightlifting competitions - the Clean and Jerk (C&J) - a barbell is lifted from the floor to the shoulders in one continuous motion (the "clean"). Then it is lifted overhead with a combined effort of the legs and arms in a second continuous motion (the "jerk"). The best lifters in the world in the lighter weight classes can lift as much as 3 times their bodyweight in the C&J. The best superheavyweight lifters in history have lifted nearly 600 lb./272.5 kg. in this lift. Often referred to as the "King (or Queen) of the lifts", the C&J is the greatest single test of overall strength and power known.

Weightlifting is a sport in which the strongest and most powerful men and women in the world - bar none (as well as some of the world's fastest and most flexible men and women) compete. Many people who are unfamiliar with the sport are surprised to learn that Weightlifters don't necessarily have the biggest muscles in the world. In fact, some could easily be mistaken for well conditioned athletes who compete in other sports. Weightlifters simply have the strongest and most powerful muscles in the world, developed by hard and very specialized training that develops enormous strength without the "bulk" that bodybuilders, like Arnold Schwarzenegger, possess. Bodybuilders are dedicated athletes and many are quite strong, but they are not as strong as the best weightlifters and their muscles needn't be strong because they compete solely on the basis of the appearance of their muscles, not their strength (muscle size and strength are not highly correlated).

While Weightlifters compete partly to determine who is the strongest among them all, most weightlifters use the competitive venue to challenge themselves - to see how far each one of them can go in terms of developing their mental and physical strength. No one is born strong enough to become a Weightlifting champion, and many champions began their careers with very ordinary strength levels. The excitement and challenge of Weightlifting stem from seeing the tremendous improvements that one can make in ones' strength and technique (as flexibility, speed and coordination are very crucial factors in of weightlifting success, along with strength).

Because of its many weight classes, age divisions and levels of competition, there is a place for everyone in Weightlifting and the sport warmly welcomes its newcomers. Get started today by ordering The Weightlifting Encyclopedia and/or becoming familiar with the Organizations and Resources associated with the sport.