The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, originally scheduled for July 24th through August 9th, were officially postponed on March 24th. There was a lot of speculation as to whether or not the Games would be ... Continue Reading
The Tokyo Olympics Have Officially Been Postponed Until 2021
When longstanding International Olympic Committee member Dick Pound revealed in an interview yesterday that the Tokyo Games were being postponed, there wasn’t much of a reason to question the truth of the ... Continue Reading
Canada Pulls Their Athletes From the Summer Olympic Games
While event after event is canceled as the coronavirus pandemic spreads worldwide, the “rising clamor” to cancel or postpone the Summer Olympics is reaching a fever pitch. Now, the Summer Olympics has ... Continue Reading
2020 Weightlifting Events Canceled or Postponed Due To Coronavirus (Updated)
The coronavirus pandemic is causing multiple Olympic weightlifting events to be canceled, postponed, or otherwise affected. We at BarBend decided it would be helpful to have a continuously updated ... Continue Reading
Olympic Torch Relay Continues With Adjustments as WHO Declares Pandemic
The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games have encountered a lot of difficult circumstances recently. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic (as declared by the World Health Organization) has compelled governments ... Continue Reading
Both the European and African Weightlifting Championships Have Been Postponed
The International Weightlifting Federation has announced that two significant events in the sport’s calendar have been postponed due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak: The European Weightlifting ... Continue Reading
Asian Weightlifting Championships Postponed; Olympics May Prohibit Spectators
Two developments in the coronavirus outbreak surfaced late this week. https://www.instagram.com/p/BwjTRf2gLKM/ The Asian Weightlifting Championships Postponed First up, the Asian Weightlifting ... Continue Reading
Heaviest Competition Snatch and Clean & Jerk in American History
Did you know one athlete has both the heaviest competition snatch and clean & jerk in American history? Shane Hamman is a multi-time Olympian who represented the United States in the 2000 Sydney and ... Continue Reading
Arnold Sports Festival Spectators Were Allowed, Then Prohibited Again In Confusing Series of Announcements
The circumstances and communication surrounding the four-day 2020 Arnold Sports Festival, which began today in Columbus, Ohio have caused significant confusion over the past couple of days. Here is a ... Continue Reading
Katherine Nye Will No Longer Compete At the Arnold Sports Festival
Team USA weightlifter Katherine Nye has announced her withdrawal from the American Open Series 1, also known as the Arnold Weightlifting Championships. The event is scheduled to take place at the ... Continue Reading
Long-Time IWF President Tamás Aján Resigns IOC Honorary Membership Amid Corruption Investigation
According to a press release shared on the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF)'s website, longstanding IWF President Dr. Tamás Aján is resigning his International Olympic Committee (IOC) honorary ... Continue Reading
The 2020 IWF Junior World Championships Have Been Cancelled Due to Coronavirus Concerns
Two weeks before it was scheduled to take place, the 2020 International Weightlifting Federation Junior World Weightlifting Championships have been cancelled, with the outbreak and global spread of the ... Continue Reading
How to Watch Weightlifting at the 2020 Arnold Sports Festival
The Arnold Sports Festival, also just called “The Arnold,” is arguably the biggest event on the strength sports calendar. The Arnold holds big time competitions for many strength sports, bringing ... Continue Reading
The Heaviest Women’s Snatch and Clean & Jerk Ever Made in Competition
In the world of weightlifting, all records are cool, but heaviest EVER is just so much fun to talk about. So who holds the marks for heaviest women's snatch and clean & jerk of all time? When ... Continue Reading
East Asian Weightlifting Championships Postponed Due to Coronavirus Concerns
Probably the strength sport most affected by the spread of the coronavirus is Olympic weightlifting. Given the highly regulated nature of the sport, the frequency of its competitions, the huge number of ... Continue Reading
Coronavirus Threatens Cancellation of 2020 Olympic Games
About two weeks ago, the head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Inspection Team, John Coates, said at a press conference in Tokyo, Japan after meetings with organizers of the 2020 Olympic Games, ... Continue Reading
Katherine Nye Voted the IWF’s Female Lifter of the Year
The votes are in, democracy works, and the International Weightlifting Federation has announced 2019's Lifters of the Year, as chosen by you, the fans. This was not decided in a musty room of fusty ... Continue Reading
Watch Weightlifter Katherine Nye Clean 150kg/330lb Off Blocks
Katherine Nye has been sensational the last several years and is all but confirmed to represent the United States at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan this summer. In the past year alone, the 21 ... Continue Reading
Despite Coronavirus Scare, IOC Says 2020 Olympic Games On Schedule
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) met with organizers of 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo for a series of meetings and press inquiries the past two days regarding the state of the Games with the looming ... Continue Reading
USA Weightlifter Alyssa Ritchey Diagnosed With Hashimoto’s Disease, May Withdraw From 2020 Olympics
Alyssa Ritchey is a Team USA weightlifter who competes in the -49kg weight class. She swept gold at the 2019 Pan American Championships where she set United States and Pan American records in both the ... Continue Reading
Harrison Maurus Wins Silver at Weightlifting World Cup
Harrison Maurus is an American weightlifter who currently competes in the -81kg weight class and is what one might call a big deal. Despite only being 19 years old, Maurus already owns multiple medals from ... Continue Reading
Jourdan Delacruz Sets Pan Am Records in Rome!
If you follow USA Weightlifting at all, the name Jourdan Delacruz is not unfamiliar to you. After all, she holds the American records for the snatch, clean & jerk, and total in the -55kg weight class ... Continue Reading
USA Weightlifting CEO Phil Andrews Shares Thoughts on IWF Allegations and ARD Documentary
ARD, the German broadcasting network, aired a documentary titled Secret Doping – the Lord of the Lifters on January 5th. The documentary alleged financial corruption and cover-up of ... Continue Reading
Vote for the 2019 IWF World Weightlifting Lifter of the Year
Award season is upon us! The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has released the nominees for both male and female weightlifter of the year. The winners will each receive ... Continue Reading