Leisure Kicks - The essencial sport and leisure guide

At a competitive level, there are two lifts: the ‘clean and jerk’ and the ‘snatch’. For the clean and jerk, the athlete lifts the weight from the floor from a position very similar to the deadlift, into a deep front squat position and then to standing with the bar rested across the shoulders/upper chest. They then ‘jerk’ the weight up over their head in a second movement. The snatch lift, however, is completed in one swift, continuous movement. The lifter takes the barbell with a wide grip in a deadlift like position and using predominantly the major muscles in the legs,  lifts the bar to a position over head (this is the same as the low position in an overhead squat), and then stands up. In both cases the athlete must show control over the bar before the referee gives the ‘down’ signal and they can bring the weight down to the platform.

Competitors are split into eight (or seven for women) weight categories according to their body weight; prizes are awarded for the heaviest weights lifted in the snatch, clean and jerk, and the two combined (this is known as an athlete’s ‘total’). Athletes are aiming to lift the heaviest weight they can to beat their opponents; each lifter can have a maximum of three attempts at each of the lifts (regardless of whether lifts are successful or not) and the judges will determine whether the lift is successful (according to the IWF rules). The weight categories create a fair recognition of power/strength in relation to body weight, so if two lifters in the same weight category lift the same amount of weight, the lifter with the lowest body weight will win. 

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The Guardian presents this expert guide to weightlifting