European Weightlifting Championships facts for kids

The European Weightlifting Championships is a big sports event held every year. It is organized by the European Weightlifting Federation (EWF). This championship has been happening for a very long time, starting all the way back in 1896.

For a while, there was a separate competition just for women. This ran from 1988 to 1997. After 1997, the men's and women's championships joined together. Now, both events are held at the same time.

How Weightlifting Competitions Changed

Over the years, the rules for weightlifting competitions have changed. From 1896 to 1924, there were different kinds of combined events. Also, in the early years (1896-1907), lifters did not compete in different weight groups. Everyone competed together.

Different Lifts Over Time

From 1929 to 1992, the competition often included a "triathlon" or "duathlon" of lifts. A triathlon meant athletes performed three different lifts: the press, the snatch, and the clean & jerk. However, in 1933, there was a special rule with five different lifts.

After 1973, the "press" lift was removed. This made the competition a "duathlon," meaning only two main lifts were performed: the snatch and the clean & jerk. Since 1969, medals have also been given for individual lifts, not just the total weight lifted.

In 1993, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) introduced new weight categories. This meant athletes competed against others who were closer to their own body weight.

Past European Championships

The European Weightlifting Championships have been held in many different cities across Europe. Here is a list of where and when these exciting events took place:

No. M	No. W	Edition	Host Country	Host City	Events
1		1896	Netherlands	Rotterdam	1
2		1897	Austria	Vienna	1
3		1898	Netherlands	Amsterdam	1
4		1900	Netherlands	Rotterdam	1
5		1901	Netherlands	Rotterdam	1
6		1902	Netherlands	The Hague	1
7		1903	Netherlands	Amsterdam	1
8		1904	Netherlands	Amsterdam	1
9		1905	Netherlands	The Hague	1
10		1906	Denmark	Copenhagen	1
11		1907	Austria	Vienna	2
12		1908	Sweden	Malmö	1
13		1909	Germany	Dresden	2
14		1910	Hungary	Budapest	4
15		1911	Germany	Leipzig	2
16		1912	Austria	Vienna	4
17		1913	Austria	Brno	4
18		1914	Austria	Vienna	5
19		1921	Germany	Offenbach	5
20		1924	Germany	Neunkirchen	7
21		1929	Austria	Vienna	5
22		1930	Germany	Munich	5
23		1931	Luxembourg	Luxembourg	5
24		1933	Germany	Essen	5
25		1934	Italy	Genoa	5
26		1935	France	Paris	5
27		1947	Finland	Helsinki	6
28		1948	United Kingdom	London	6
29		1949	Netherlands	The Hague	6
30		1950	France	Paris	6
31		1951	Italy	Milan	7
32		1952	Finland	Helsinki	7
33		1953	Sweden	Stockholm	7
34		1954	Austria	Vienna	7
35		1955	West Germany	Munich	7
36		1956	Finland	Helsinki	7
37		1957	Poland	Katowice	7
38		1958	Sweden	Stockholm	7
39		1959	Poland	Warsaw	7
40		1960	Italy	Milan	7
41		1961	Austria	Vienna	7
42		1962	Hungary	Budapest	7
43		1963	Sweden	Stockholm	7
44		1964	Soviet Union	Moscow	7
45		1965	Bulgaria	Sofia	7
46		1966	East Germany	Berlin	7
47		1968	Soviet Union	Leningrad	7
48		1969	Poland	Warsaw	36
49		1970	Hungary	Szombathely	36
50		1971	Bulgaria	Sofia	36
51		1972	Romania	Constanţa	36
52		1973	Spain	Madrid	27
53		1974	Italy	Verona	27
54		1975	Soviet Union	Moscow	27
55		1976	East Germany	Berlin	27
56		1977	West Germany	Stuttgart	30
57		1978	Czechoslovakia	Havířov	30
58		1979	Bulgaria	Varna	30
59		1980	Yugoslavia	Belgrade	30
60		1981	France	Lille	30
61		1982	Yugoslavia	Ljubljana	30
62		1983	Soviet Union	Moscow	30
63		1984	Spain	Vitoria	30
64		1985	Poland	Katowice	30
65		1986	East Germany	Karl-Marx-Stadt	30
66		1987	France	Reims	30
67		1988	United Kingdom	Cardiff	30
–	1	1988	San Marino	City of San Marino	27
68		1989	Greece	Athens	30
–	2	1989	United Kingdom	Manchester	27
69		1990	Denmark	Ålborg	30
–	3	1990	Spain	Santa Cruz de Tenerife	27
70		1991	Poland	Władysławowo	30
–	4	1991	Bulgaria	Varna	27
71		1992	Hungary	Szekszárd	30
–	5	1992	Portugal	Loures	27
72		1993	Bulgaria	Sofia	30
–	6	1993	Spain	Valencia	27
73		1994	Czechoslovakia	Sokolov	30
–	7	1994	Italy	Rome	27
74		1995	Poland	Warsaw	30
–	8	1995	Israel	Beer Sheva	27
75		1996	Norway	Stavanger	30
–	9	1996	Czech Republic	Prague	27
76		1997	Croatia	Rijeka	30
–	10	1997	Spain	Sevilla	27
77	11	1998	Germany	Riesa	45
78	12	1999	Spain	A Coruña	45
79	13	2000	Bulgaria	Sofia	45
80	14	2001	Slovakia	Trenčín	45
81	15	2002	Turkey	Antalya	45
82	16	2003	Greece	Loutraki	45
83	17	2004	Ukraine	Kyiv	45
84	18	2005	Bulgaria	Sofia	45
85	19	2006	Poland	Władysławowo	45
86	20	2007	France	Strasbourg	45
87	21	2008	Italy	Lignano Sabbiadoro	45
88	22	2009	Romania	Bucharest	45
89	23	2010	Belarus	Minsk	45
90	24	2011	Russia	Kazan	45
91	25	2012	Turkey	Antalya	45
92	26	2013	Albania	Tirana	45
93	27	2014	Israel	Tel Aviv	45
94	28	2015	Georgia	Tbilisi	45
95	29	2016	Norway	Førde	45
96	30	2017	Croatia	Split	48
97	31	2018	Romania	Bucharest	48
98	32	2019	Georgia	Batumi	60
99	33	2021	Russia	Moscow	60
100	34	2022	Albania	Tirana	60
101	35	2023	Armenia	Yerevan	60
102	36	2024	Bulgaria	Sofia	60
103	37	2025	Moldova	Chișinău	60
104	38	2026	Georgia	Batumi	60

Team Rankings and Points

In weightlifting, countries also compete for a "team ranking." This means points are given to athletes based on how well they place in their individual events. These points are then added up for their country. The country with the most points wins the team title.

The way these points are given has changed many times throughout history. For example, in 1949, only the top three places earned points for their team. Later, more places (like the top six or even top fifteen) started earning points. This system helps show which countries have the strongest overall weightlifting programs.

Recent Team Performance

Here's a look at which countries have ranked in the top three for men's and women's teams in recent years:

Year	Host		Men				Women
			1	2	3		1	2	3
1998	Riesa, Germany		Bulgaria 549	Russia 530	Germany 458		Hungary 514	Russia 471	Bulgaria 467
1999	Seville, Spain		Turkey 682	Spain 608	Russia 524		Turkey 647	Greece 586	Spain 584
2000	Sofia, Bulgaria		Bulgaria 610	Turkey 525	Russia 464		Bulgaria 522	Russia 438	Ukraine 343
2001	Trenčín, Slovakia		Russia 538	Turkey 504	Poland 498		Russia 492	Hungary 483	Spain 400
2002	Antalya, Turkey		Bulgaria 599	Turkey 486	Russia 368		Turkey 522	Russia 496	Poland 466
2003	Loutraki, Greece		Turkey 598	Russia 553	Bulgaria 544		Turkey 521	Russia 501	Bulgaria 441
2004	Kyiv, Ukraine		Turkey 591	Bulgaria 442	Russia 416		Turkey 478	Poland 438	Bulgaria 436
2005	Sofia, Bulgaria		Bulgaria 519	Turkey 488	Russia 473		Russia 567	Poland 456	Bulgaria 451
2006	Władysławowo, Poland		Belarus 486	Poland 485	Bulgaria 435		Russia 483	Ukraine 434	Poland 386
2007	Strasbourg, France		Russia 546	Belarus 523	Turkey 506		Russia 486	Ukraine 459	Turkey 448
2008	Lignano, Italy		Russia 598	France 457	Azerbaijan 427		Ukraine 471	Russia 454	Turkey 449
2009	Bucharest, Romania		Russia	Turkey	Azerbaijan		Russia	Turkey	Ukraine
2010	Minsk, Belarus		Turkey 538	Armenia 496	Poland 460		Russia 498	Turkey 497	Poland 416
2011	Kazan, Russia		Turkey 470	Poland 467	Moldova 431		Russia 559	Turkey 517	Poland 413
2012	Antalya, Turkey		Moldova 500	Russia 482	Turkey 473		Russia 530	Turkey 441	Poland 417
2013	Tirana, Albania		Russia 638	Bulgaria 507	Albania 355		Poland 469	France 311	Italy 310
2014	Tel Aviv, Israel		Russia 524	Bulgaria 535	Poland 491		Russia 539	Ukraine 443	Poland 443
2015	Tbilisi, Georgia		Russia 478	Armenia 421	Turkey 416		Ukraine 478	Russia 421	Turkey 416
2016	Førde, Norway		Russia 524	Armenia 503	Turkey 501		Armenia 449	Ukraine 435	Turkey 399
2017	Split, Croatia		Russia 501	Turkey 462	Poland 399		Russia 588	Ukraine 492	Spain 464
2018	Bucharest, Romania		Georgia 575	Romania 528	Poland 451		Romania 512	Poland 429	Italy 412
2019	Batumi, Georgia		Georgia 636	Belarus 634	Armenia 596		Russia 736	Turkey 575	Romania 480
2021	Moscow, Russia		Bulgaria 685	Armenia 620	Georgia 612		Russia 699	Turkey 616	Ukraine 600
2022	Tirana, Albania		Bulgaria 746	Armenia 667	Georgia 647		Turkey 690	Ukraine 686	Great Britain 381
2023	Yerevan, Armenia		Armenia 762	Georgia 695	Turkey 587		Turkey 650	Ukraine 647	Armenia 554
2024	Sofia, Bulgaria		Bulgaria 696	Armenia 669	Turkey 628		Ukraine 654	Turkey 535	Romania 485

All-Time Medal Count

This table shows which countries have won the most medals in the European Weightlifting Championships. The ranking is based on "Big" medals, which means medals won for the total weight lifted in a competition.

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Soviet Union	202	89	34	325
2	Bulgaria	191	142	101	434
3	Russia	90	86	51	227
4	Turkey	76	49	60	185
5	Poland	50	78	100	228
6	Ukraine	43	42	43	128
7	Armenia	42	49	41	132
8	Romania	37	46	47	130
9	France	36	53	46	135
10	Germany	35	54	40	129
11	Hungary	30	61	64	155
12	Belarus	25	19	29	73
13	Italy	23	37	36	96
14	Great Britain	22	23	22	67
15	Georgia	18	31	13	62
16	Greece	18	24	27	69
17	Austria	13	16	31	60
18	Latvia	13	5	12	30
19	Spain	11	30	34	75
20	Albania	9	13	13	35
21	East Germany	7	24	52	83
22	Moldova	7	11	21	39
23	Azerbaijan	7	5	7	19
24	Finland	6	14	25	45
25	Sweden	6	9	15	30
26	Unified Team	6	3	3	12
27	Norway	5	3	3	11
28	West Germany	4	8	8	20
29	Denmark	4	4	1	9
30	Egypt	4	0	2	6
31	Belgium	3	6	9	18
32	Czechoslovakia	2	15	32	49
–	Individual Neutral Athletes	2	2	3	7
33	Croatia	2	1	1	4
34	Netherlands	2	0	0	2
35	Lithuania	1	4	4	9
36	Portugal	1	3	2	6
37	Slovakia	1	2	4	7
38	Czech Republic	1	2	2	5
39	Luxembourg	1	1	0	2
40	Switzerland	1	0	5	6
41	Iceland	1	0	0	1
42	Israel	0	2	4	6
43	Estonia	0	2	1	3
44	Cyprus	0	1	2	3
45	Serbia	0	0	3	3
46	Ireland	0	0	1	1
Totals (46 entries)		1,058	1,069	1,054	3,181

More About Weightlifting

• List of European Weightlifting Championships medalists
• European Junior & U23 Weightlifting Championships

See also

In Spanish: Campeonato Europeo de Halterofilia para niños