Ahmedabad has been awarded the hosting rights to the World Weightlifting Championships 2029, marking the first time that the global showpiece will be held in India.
The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) confirmed Gujarat as the host on Sunday after its Executive Board meeting in Ningbo, the People’s Republic of China.
During the meeting, it was also decided that Moscow, Russia will host the 2030 edition of the World Weightlifting Championships.
Meanwhile, the 2028 World Youth Championships were allotted to Prishtina, Kosovo, and the 2028 World Junior Championships to Caracas, Venezuela.
Gujarat recently hosted a high-profile weightlifting competition, with Gandhinagar conducting the Asian Championships earlier this year.
The Commonwealth Games 2030 will also be held in Ahmedabad.
The World Weightlifting Championships, organised by the IWF, were first contested in 1891. The women’s World Championships were first held in 1987, while the first joint men’s and women’s edition was held in 1991.
The last edition was held in Forde, Norway, in 2025, while the upcoming edition is scheduled in Ningbo from October 27 to November 8.
Yerevan, Armenia, will host the 2027 edition of the World Weightlifting Championships, while Venezuela’s Caracas holds the hosting rights for the 2028 edition.
Indian weightlifters have won 18 medals – three golds, 10 silvers and five bronze – at World Weightlifting Championships to date.
Kunjarani Devi became the first Indian to win a medal at the World Weightlifting Championships, claiming silver in the women’s 44kg category in Manchester in 1989. Lalita Polley also made the podium at the same edition, securing bronze.
Karnam Malleswari won consecutive world titles in the women’s 54kg category in 1994 and 1995, while fellow Olympic medallist Mirabai Chanu became world champion in the 48kg category in 2017.
read more: https://www.olympics.com/en/news/world-weightlifting-championships-2029-host-ahmedabad-india
