In a June 16th email sent out to members and post on their site, USA Weightlifting (USAW) announced the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) would cease offering a resident program for weightlifters as ... Continue Reading
It’s Official: IWF Suspends Ilya Ilyin, Other Olympic Champions
In the culmination of many rumors circulating over the past month — and a statement from IWF President Dr. Tamas Ajan while visiting Iran for the Fajr Cup — the International Weightlifting ... Continue Reading
Superheavyweight Lifter Mart Seim Has Crazy Hops
Mart Seim is a weightlifter on a role, and heading into August, he's in the conversation to be a medal contender at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The Estonian superheavyweight doesn't quite have world-elite ... Continue Reading
Remember When Lu Xiaojun Overhead Squatted 220kg?
Lu Xiaojun has mobility and movement patterns that make (other) Olympic champions jealous. And while he's certainly not invincible — a clean & jerk bombout at the 2015 World Weightlifting Championships ... Continue Reading
Poke Is Easy, Protein-Packed, and Perfect for Summertime Gains
Summertime is basically here, and that means lots of sunshine, cookouts, and beach bodies. After spending the winter and dreary spring indoors, we’re all itching for a change of scenery and diet. If you’re ... Continue Reading
Olympic Weightlifting Championships by Year and Country (Infographic)
Olympic weightlifting is at its core an individual sport, and what ultimately matter's is each person's singular performance on the platform. (It's just us against the weight, after all.) But while partner ... Continue Reading
The Heaviest Clean & Jerks Ever Filmed
The snatch is athleticism, precision, and timing personified, but the clean & jerk is where the championships are won. Taking the heaviest weight possible from the ground to overhead is one of the most ... Continue Reading
Report: Azerbaijani Weightlifters, Including World Champion Boyanka Kostova, Test Positive
Update: Along with Ilya Ilyin and other Olympic Champions from the London Olympics, Boyanka Kostova has been provisionally suspended from competition by the IWF. Kostova finishe 5th in London in the 58kg ... Continue Reading
Vladimir Sedov Takes to Instagram to Call Out Ilya Ilyin, Asks for Rio Consideration
On June 7th, Kazakhstani weightlifter and 2009 94kg World Champion Vladimir Sedov put on a bizarre display at his country's national championship, declaring Ilya Ilyin a fraud, tossing his tshirt into the ... Continue Reading
Current Pan American Championships Men’s Standings and Qualification Points
Final Update: After a hard-fought Pan Am Championships, the U.S. men have earned one Olympic spot. USA Weightlifting has confirmed that spot will go to Kendrick Farris. The 2016 Rio Games will be Farris' ... Continue Reading
Sara Sigmundsdottir Does “Grace” at 220 Pounds (Plus Other Very Heavy “Grace” Performances)
Sara Sigmundsdottir is a force to be reckoned with in CrossFit® competition — she's the reigning third fittest woman in the world — but her weightlifting prowess is also notable. In 2015, she represented ... Continue Reading
Fifty Years Later, Norb Schemansky Is Still the King of American Weightlifting
Last week, we highlighted some weightlifting techniques of yore. The split snatch, Continental clean, and clean & press were all used frequently back in the day, but have now gone by way of ... Continue Reading
Tia-Clair Toomey Named to Australian Olympic Team in Weightlifting
For years, fans, athletes, and critics alike have wondered aloud if top CrossFitters would ever catch up to the ranks of world-class weightlifters. Now, a reigning CrossFit Games runner-up has qualified ... Continue Reading
How to Watch the 2016 Pan American Championships (Live!)
Update: The live stream from Colombian TV below seems to have been discontinued (bummer). We'll be searching for another high-quality one in the meantime and will update this post if we find ... Continue Reading
Weightlifter Vladimir Sedov Goes Full Heel, Turns Kazakh Nationals into the WWE
In the latest reaction from the IWF doping allegations and rumors, Vladimir Sedov used his first (and only) attempt at Kazakh Nationals to make a big statement: He thinks Alexsandr Ivanov is the true 94kg ... Continue Reading
Weightlifting’s Pioneers Used Techniques You’ll Never See Today
Weightlifting has come a long way since its Olympic debut in 1896. A quick scroll on Instagram will show athletes from around the world trying to perfect just two movements, the snatch and clean & ... Continue Reading
Sarah Robles On Bombing Out, Staying Focused, and Preparing for Her 2nd Olympics
Over the past four years, few American weightlifters have been surrounded by as many controversial topics as Sarah Robles. Following a 7th place finish at the 2012 London Olympics in the +75kg category, ... Continue Reading
Behdad Salimi Returns to Competition, Goes 205/225 at Fajr Cup
There's been speculation around the weightlifting world whether 2012 Olympic Champion Behdad Salimi could return from knee surgery in time for the 2016 Rio Olympics. Salimi — who injured his knee on a ... Continue Reading
CJ Cummings Just Wants to Break Records and Take A Nap
Just a few days after 2016 Weightlifting Nationals, Mike Graber and I got 15 year old weightlifting phenom CJ Cummings on the phone and chatted about his life, his goals, and training. Just to note ... Continue Reading
Win a Pair of Custom Nike Romaleos from BarBend and StrengthToSpare!
BarBend and artist Josh Peters (@strengthtospare) are teaming up to give away a pair of customized Nike Romaleos to one lucky winner. And anyone age 18 and up can enter to win — for free! Entering to win ... Continue Reading
Mohamed Ihab Takes Weightlifting to a Whole New Level
Mohamed Ihab Youssef is certainly a weightlifter to watch closely heading into the Rio Olympics. The 25 year old Egyptian lifter placed second in the 69kg category at the 2014 World Weightlifting ... Continue Reading
BarBend and RVA Open Announce Media Partnership
BarBend and the RVA Open — one of the nation's premiere weightlifting competitions — are pleased to announce a new partnership that will bring top-level weightlifting to more fans than ever. And on July ... Continue Reading
Kianoush Rostami Sets New World Record in Clean & Jerk, Total
The oldest World Record in international weightlifting (among senior competitors) has finally fallen. At the Fajr Cup IWF Grand Prix in Iran, 85kg lifter Kianoush Rostami clean & jerked 220 kilograms — ... Continue Reading
5 Olympic Weightlifting Champions Test Positive from London & Beijing
Update: The IWF has released a statement regarding the positive tests from London and Beijing, reiterating that there were 20 total (10 from each iteration of the Games) and that these included some ... Continue Reading