History the WeightLifting
Yannis Psaltis (who came from Egypt) was the first Greek lifter to compete at a World Championships in 1961. Till 1989, it was only Christos Iakovou who won gold medal at the 1971 World Championships held in Lima, Peru, fixing 162.5kg in press with both hands (develope) in the 82,5kg category; and one year later in Munich he won the silver medal, fixing 170kg in press with both hands (develope). During the ‘90s Greek athletes reached higher positions in the world-ranking list, holding the 17th place just before the 70th World Championships, with 15 gold medals, 17 silver and 13 bronze. The most important distinction was achieved at the 1998 World Championships, in Lahti of Finland, where Greek weightlifters took first place, with 6 gold medals, 4 silver and 5 bronze, reaching the best total result of 566. Christos Iakovou was the leading athlete, who won the first medal for Greece, but lost the bronze at the 1972 Olympic Games, when he lifted 490kg in total against the Hungarian Horbat who managed to lift 495kg. As head coach of the national team, he led Greece to a succession of memorable triumphs (2nd place at the 1995 World Championships, 1st place at the 1998 World Championships) culminating in the Atlanta Olympics. It was the best gift in the one hundred years of modern Olympic Games for the country that gave birth to weightlifting. In Atlanta, Pyrros Dimas (83kg) and Akakios Kahiasvili (99kg) won the gold medal in their categories by lifting a total weight of 392.5kg (180kg snatch, 213kg clean and jerk) and 420kg (185kg snatch, 235kg clean and jerk) respectively. Valerios Leonidis won the silver medal in the category of 64 kg with 332.5kg in total (145 kg snatch, 187 kg clean and jerk), after an exhilarating performance against Turkish Naim Suleymanoglu. Leonidis also broke the world record by jerking at 187,5kg. Leonidas Sabanis (59kg) and Leonidas Kokkas (91kg) won the silver medal with a total of 305kg (137.5kg snatch, 167.5kg clean and jerk) and 390kg (175kg snatch, 215kg clean and jerk) respectively. Yorgos Tzelilis held the 4th place in the category of 64kg with 322kg in total (145kg snatch, 177.5kg clean and jerk), and Victor Mitrou in the category of 76kg with 357.5kg in total (162kg snatch, 195kg clean and jerk), while Paulos Saltsidis came up 7th in the category of +108kg, lifting the total weight of 420kg (185kg snatch, 235kg clean and jerk).
Christos Iakovou was born on April 12, in Istanbul. After being expatriated by the Turks in 1964, Iakovou arrived in Athens, where he joined Panathinaikos and became the Greek weightlifting champion in the category of 75kg with 295kg in total. In 1967, he broke the world junior record in press with both hands (75kg category), fixing 136.5kg. In 1968, he broke again the world record, fixing 139kg, in a weightlifting competition that was held in London by the International Federation. After the 1979 World Championships, held in Thessaloniki by the Hellenic Weightlifting Federation, Christos Iakovou left Athens with his wife, Eleni, and went to USA with the intention to stay permanently. There, he worked for a short while as trainer of the police weightlifting team in Miami. After a relatively short spell in USA, where he found the opportunity to show his entrepreneurial abilities, he decided to move back to Greece. And when Yannis Sgouros, ex president of the Hellenic Weightlifting Federation and current General Secretary of Sports, asked him to stay in Greece to undertake the difficult task of enhancing weightlifting, he did not think twice. “In my whole life I envied Soviet Union and Bulgaria for the teams they had created. My vision was to make such a team. I knew, it wasn’t an easy task; it could not happen overnight. However, the Greek team was willing to work hard. Our schedule, supported by the Hellenic Federation and Yannis Sgouros, was hard training twice a day or more. Our main goal was to excel in the 1996 Olympics”.
In the history of weightlifting, Levi Laurens from England was the first world champion in 1891. During the next 108 years a lot of great weightlifters emerged. These “giants” were lifting twice their body weight. Recently, the International Weightlifting Federation has proclaimed Naim Suleymanoglu as the all-time greatest weightlifter. Standing 1m47 tall the so-called “pocket Hercules” quickly attracted attention for his weightlifting ability. He set his first adult world record when he was only 15 years old. During the period between 1982, when he first participated in an International Weightlifting Competition in the category of 56kg, and 1996, the year of the Atlanta Olympics, where he won his last gold medal, he was considered to be unbeatable.
Naim Suleymanoglu won three gold medals: In 1988 in Seoul (60 kg), lifting 342.5kg (152.5+190), in 1992 in Barcelona (60 kg), lifting 320kg (142.5+177.5) and in 1996 in Atlanta (64kg), lifting 335kg (147.5+187.5). He was crowned world champion in snatch in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, in clean and jerk in 1985, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995 and in total in 1985, 1986, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994 and 1995. In 1983, he won silver medal in total and bronze in clean and jerk. One of the greatest athletes at the 1984, 1985 and 1986 World Championships, he collected 21 gold medals, 3 silver and 1 bronze at various European Championships. Naim Suleymanoglu was born in 1967 in Bulgaria of ethnic Turk parents. After his defection to Turkey in 1986 he faced a two-year ban from international competitions.
In all international competitions, superweightlifters who lifted an amazing amount of kilos, were at the center of attention. In 1951, John Davis from USA was the first superweightlifter to smash the world record of 180kg. He was born in 1921 and became world champion in the 82.5kg category in 1938, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950 and 1951. He won gold medals at the 1948 and 1952 Olympics, and broke 11 world records.
In 1954, Norbert Chemanski, broke the world record by lifting 190kg. Born in USA in 1924 he was the weightlifter with the longest career. In 1948, he won his first silver medal in London. Sixteen years later, in 1964, he won his last bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Meanwhile, he had won a gold medal at the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki (90kg) and a silver medal in 1960 in Rome. In 1951, 1953 and 1954, he became world champion. In his career he broke 17 world records.
In 1960, at the Olympic Games in Rome, Yuri Vlassov from Soviet Union was the first weightlifter who broke the world record of 200kg, by lifting a total of 537.5kg (180+155+202.5) in the category of +90kg. Born in 1935 the late writer and member of Russian Parliament won silver medal in the heavyweight category at the Tokyo Olympics in 1964 despite the fact that he lifted 570kg, 22.5kg more than those he had lifted at the Olympic Games in Rome. In 1959, 1961, 1962 and 1963, he became world champion. In his career he broke 31 world records.
In the ‘70s, Vasili Alexeev increased the world record by 25kg. Born in 1942 the giant from Ryazar, Russia was 1.86m tall and weighed 162kg. He won the gold medal at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, by lifting 640kg (235+175+230) and in 1976 in Montreal, by lifting 440kg (185+255). He became world champion in 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977 and broke 79 world records as a heavyweight.
Alexander Kurlovich continued the Russian tradition in the category of +110kg when he won olympic gold in Seoul (1988) and Barcelona (1992) by lifting 462.5kg (212.5+250) and 450kg (205+230) respectively. He also became world champion in the category of +108kg in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997 and in the category of +105kg in 1998.
Andrei Chemerkin left his mark in the heavyweight category when he won the gold medal in Atlanta (1996) by lifting 457.5kg (197.5+260). In 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, he became world champion in the category of +108kg and in 1998, 1999 in the category of +105kg.
Among the greatest weightlifters are the Japanese brothers Yusiyuki and Yoshinobu Miyake, who prevailed in the category of 60kg throughout the ‘60s. Mohamet Nasiri from Iran became world champion in 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1974; in 1968 he won the gold medal in the category of 56kg by lifting 367.5kg (112.5+105+150). American Charles Vintsi won the gold medal in the category of 56kg in 1956 by lifting 342.5kg (105+105+132.5) and in 1960 by lifting 345kg (105+107.5+132.5); he broke 5 world records. American Stanley Stanchick won the gold medal in London in 1948 by lifting 417.5kg (130+130+157.5) and in 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951 became world champion; he also broke 8 world records. Soviet Yurik Vardanian won the gold medal in Moscow in 1980 by lifting 400kg in the category of 82.5kg (177.5+222.5) and in 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985 became world champion; in his career he smashed 40 world records. Soviet Arkandi Vorobiov won gold medal in the category of 90kg in 1956 by lifting 462.5kg (147.5+137.5+177.5) and in 1960 in Rome by lifting 472.5kg (152.5+142.5+177.5). In 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1958, he became world champion; in his career he broke 21 world records. Soviet Leonid Zhabotinsky won the gold medal in Tokyo (1964) in the heavyweight category with his 432.5kg in total (132.5+135+165) and in 1964, 1965, 1968 became world champion, setting 19 new world records. Soviet David Rigert won the gold medal in Montreal (1976) in the 90kg category with his 382.5kg (170+212.5) and in 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978 became world champion, setting 63 new world records. Cuban Daniel Nunez won the gold medal in Moscow (1980) in the 56kg category with his 257kg (125+150); he became world champion in 1977, 1978, 1980 and 1981. Russian Yuri Zaharievich won the gold medal in Seoul (1988) in the 110kg category with his 455kg (210+245) and in 1982, 1985, 1986, 1987 became world champion. Other weightlifters worth mentioning are: De Chas (60kg) from Belgium, Alfred Nalad (67.5kg) from Estonia, Henry Gans (75kg), Edmond Decotignier (67.5kg), Charles Rigoulaud (82.5kg), Rose Francois (75kg) and Ernest Quentin (82.5kg) from France, Italians Filippo (82.5kg), Carlo Galiberti (75kg), Giuseppe Tonini (82.5kg) and Pierino Gabeti (60kg), Austrians Franz Antriz (60kg), Kurt Helbig (67.5kg), Robert Fine (67.5kg), Egyptians Said Noseir (82.5kg), Ahmed Mesvan (67.5kg), Said Tuni El Hantr (75kg), Mahmud Fagiad (60kg), Ibrahim Sams (67.5kg), Germans Joseph Strasmberger (82.5kg), Rudolf Ismair (75kg), Yaroslav Skolba (82.5kg) from Czech Republic, Polish Ireneous Palinski (82.5kg), Americans Antoni Terlacho (60kg), Joseph De Pietro (56kg), Carlo Kangasniemi from Finland (90kg), Hungarian Imre Feldi (56kg), Bulgarians Jordan Biskov (75kg), Anton Nikolov (90kg), Jordan Mitkov (75kg), Laif Jensen from Norway (82.5kg), Soviet Nikolai Kolesnikov (60kg) and many others.