An Olympic sport dating back to Ancient Greece, modern weight lifting has been part of the Olympic games since the 1896 Games in Athens. With a variety of competitions across various weight classes, the top weight lifters in the world compete every four years for supremacy. The weight classes range from 56 to 105 kilograms, and are judged as to the highest weight they are deemed to have clearly lifted. Over the years, a number of top lifters have graced the world stage, including:
Yoshinobu Miyake
One of the top Japanese weight lifters of all time, Miyake is considered among the top Olympic champions in history. He won a silver medal at his first Olympic Games in 1960, and then followed that appearance with a gold medal in both 1964 and 1968. The holder of over 2 dozen world records, Miyake is considered a catalyst for the growth of the sports in his native Japan and helped to innovate a number of leading techniques in the sport.
Naim Suleymanoglu
Hailing from Bulgaria, Naim began competing in weight lifting as a teenager, and emigrated to Turkey (his parents were of Turkish descent) to participate in the 1988 Olympic Games. At those Games, he won the gold medal in his division, setting a world record for his weight class. He broke his own record with golds in 1992 and 1996. Known as “Pocket Hercules”, Naim retired from competition in 2001 and was awarded a medal of honor from the International Olympic Committee.
