Weightlifting > Inside This Sport

When weightlifting was contested at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, it featured two events -- a one-hand lift and a two-hand lift. At ensuing Olympics, weight categories were added, and often adjusted. The most significant re-working of the divisions came in 2000, when women's events were added. At the Beijing Games, as in Athens, there will be eight men's classes and seven women's classes, detailed as follows (pound conversions are approximate and unofficial):

Weight Divisions: Men

    * 56kg (123 lbs)
    * 62kg (137 lbs)
    * 69kg (152 lbs)
    * 77kg (170 lbs)
    * 85kg (187 lbs)
    * 94kg (207 lbs)
    * 105kg (231 lbs)
    * 105+kg (231+ lbs)*

Weight Divisions: Women

    * 48kg (106 lbs)
    * 53kg (117 lbs)
    * 58kg (128 lbs)
    * 63kg (139 lbs)
    * 69kg (152 lbs)
    * 75kg (165 lbs)
    * 75kg+ (165+ lbs)*

Medals will be awarded to the three top lifters, based on their greatest lifts in the snatch and clean & jerk disciplines. 

*While weightlifting categories no longer have names, athletes in these categories are commonly referred to as super heavyweights.