Italian Weightlifters Are Social Media Stars, but They Blew It at the 2024 Olympics
Whether you’re a fan of weightlifting (the sport), or you just like lifting weights (the hobby), you’ve probably seen Italian weightlifters on your Explore feed once or twice. Over the past few years, Team Italy’s strongest men and women have captured the hearts and minds of millions online. But at the 2024 Olympics, Europe’s most […]
Win or Lose, Weightlifters Love Doing Backflips When They Compete
When Colombian weightlifter Luis Javier Mosquera finished lifting at the 2024 Olympics, he celebrated his final clean & jerk with a backflip on stage. Mosquera didn’t win a medal in the Men’s 73KG weightlifting event in Paris on Aug. 8; he placed fifth and missed the podium for the first time (Mosquera won bronze in […]
Despite 3X Olympic Golds, Lasha Talakhadze’s 10-Year Goal of 500KG Total Is Out of Reach
The disciples who pray at the altar of Lasha Talakhadze speak of the 500-kilogram Total as though it might as well be the Rapture; the crowning and borderline-otherwordly achievement of the closest thing weightlifting has to a living deity. The premise behind the big 500 is simple enough that both diehard fans and starry-eyed newcomers […]
2024 Olympics: Top Weightlifting Moments & Stories You Missed
Want to catch up on everything that happened during weightlifting at the Olympics? We’ve got you covered. The Paris Games showcased the world’s best weightlifters between Aug. 7 and 11. Over the course of five days, we saw records set and broken, dreams achieved and, in some cases, shattered, and everything in-between. BarBend covered it […]
Lasha Talakhadze Speaks On Retirement After 3rd Weightlifting Gold at 2024 Olympics
On August 10, Georgia’s Lasha Talakhadze cemented his legacy as perhaps the greatest living weightlifter when he won a third consecutive gold medal in the Men’s +102KG weightlifting event at the 2024 Olympics. Talakhadze, 30, has maintained an undefeated record in weightlifting for the last 11 years and set the all-time world records in both […]
Loredana Toma’s Dream of Weightlifting Gold Died at Paris 2024
If you’re only a casual fan of weightlifting — or the 2024 Olympics was your first exposure to the sport — you probably have no idea what happened to Loredana Toma in Paris. But those who know, know. Romanian Toma, who is among the world’s most popular women’s weightlifters, “bombed out” during the Women’s 71KG […]
Team China Wins 5 of 6 Possible Weightlifting Golds at 2024 Olympics
At the 2024 Olympics, Team China did what they do best — win. The world’s most dominant weightlifting team of the 21st century bagged five out of six possible gold medals over the course of 10 events at the tail end of Paris 2024. No other nation won more than a single weightlifting gold at […]
Li Wenwen Dominates 2024 Olympics, Wins Weightlifting Gold for China
The world’s most dominant weightlifting team of the 21st century, Team China, sent six weightlifters to the 2024 Olympics. They will return home with five gold medals after Women’s +81KG weightlifter Li Wenwen won the gold in the final event of the Games on August 11. Li, 24, entered the competition with an exorbitant lead […]
Weightlifting Rule Leaves Super-Heavy Athletes Breathless at 2024 Olympics
On Aug. 10, the world’s strongest — and largest — weightlifters gathered in the South Paris Arena for the Men’s +102KG weightlifting event at the 2024 Olympics. Some competitors were seen breathless throughout the event as they scrambled to recuperate while battling with the barbell and each other for medals. A weightlifting rule involving the time allotted […]
Greatest Ever: Lasha Talakhadze Wins Weightlifting Gold at 2024 Olympics
During the Men’s +102KG weightlifting event at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Aug. 10, Lasha Talakhadze of Georgia claimed the gold medal. With this achievement, Talakhadze cemented himself as perhaps the greatest weightlifter to ever step on the platform. Talakhadze scored his third straight Olympic gold in Paris — his first came in Rio de […]