Section 4: Players & Officials
4.1 Weight Categories (2024 Olympic Programme)
The IWF periodically restructures weight categories. The 2024 Paris Olympic weight categories are:
- Men: 61 kg, 73 kg, 89 kg, 102 kg, +102 kg (5 categories)
- Women: 49 kg, 59 kg, 71 kg, 81 kg, +81 kg (5 categories)
Non-Olympic IWF World Championship categories include additional intermediate weight classes. Athletes weigh in 2 hours before their competition session. The weigh-in lasts 1 hour, and each athlete weighs in once on certified scales.
4.2 Session Structure
Athletes are divided into sessions (Group A, Group B, etc.) based on their entry total (sum of declared opening snatch + opening clean & jerk). Group A contains the strongest lifters and is the medal-deciding session. Each session typically includes 8–12 athletes and lasts approximately 2–3 hours.
4.3 Officials
- Three referees: Centre referee and two side referees. Each referee independently judges every lift, pressing a white button (good lift) or red button (no lift). A majority decision (2 of 3) determines the outcome. The "down" signal is given by the centre referee once the lift meets the criteria for completion.
- Jury: Panel of 3–5 senior officials who may overrule referee decisions if a clear and obvious error occurred. The jury reviews video replays and can reverse a good-lift decision to no-lift (or vice versa) within a limited time window.
- Technical controller: Manages the competition board, athlete order, timer, and weight changes.
- Loaders: IWF-certified loading crew (minimum 2 per side) who add and remove plates between attempts. Loading must be completed within 30 seconds.
- Timekeeper: Operates the competition clock (1-minute or 2-minute countdown).