[TRUE] Will the number of weightlifting categories and weightlifting participants be reduced for the 2024 Paris Olympics?

Screenshot of the article.

The Claim and Our Verdict

• The claim: An article published Aug. 8, 2021, claims the number of weightlifting categories and weightlifting participants will be reduced for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
• Fact-checking:
  • The Olympic Charter was amended Aug. 8, 2021, allowing the International Olympic Committee (IOC) the right to remove a sport from the Olympic Games if its international governing body does not comply with the rules or acts in a manner likely to tarnish the reputation of the Olympic movement.
  • The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has received several warnings from the IOC for its long-term doping cases and governing issues, including financial corruption. Because the amended Olympic Charter took effect Aug. 8, 2021, the IOC can remove weightlifting from the Olympics if the IWF does not comply with the rules or tarnishes the reputation of the Olympic movement.
  • Weightlifting is still listed in the official program of 2024 Paris Olympics, but with fewer weightlifting categories and participants. The weight categories were reduced from 7 to 5 for men’s and women’s events, and the total number of participants was cut by 76.
  • As of the issuance of this report, it has been confirmed that the number of weightlifting categories and participants will be reduced for the 2024 Paris Olympics, but that decision has not yet officially been confirmed for future Olympic Games.
• Our ruling: Therefore, we rate the claim as TRUE.

News Brief

An article published Aug. 8, 2021, on Line Hub, claims that some sport events will be reduced or dropped, and categories will be merged for the Olympic Games to avoid increasing costs. For instance, in the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics, the weightlifting categories will be reduced from 7 to 5 for men’s and women’s events. Line Hub is a news platform run by the Japanese messaging service Line.

Fact-checking

According to a press release on the official website of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), amendments to the Olympic Charter were submitted Aug. 6, 2021, by the Executive Board of the IOC and were adopted Aug. 8, 2021.

The press release claims, “The IOC Session may remove or suspend any sport from the programme of the Olympic Games if, among other violations, the relevant International Federation governing such sport does not comply with the decisions of the IOC EB, or if the relevant IF acts in a manner likely to tarnish the reputation of the Olympic Movement.” Therefore, after the amendments were adopted Aug. 8, 2021, the IOC has the right to remove or suspend any sport from the Olympic Games, including weightlifting.

According to the IOC, weightlifting is still included in the official program of the 2024 Paris Olympics, yet the number of participants for men’s and women’s events were both reduced from 98 to 60, and weight categories were reduced from 7 to 5 for men’s and women’s events, compared with the official program of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

A comparison of weightlifting weight categories and participants for 2024 Paris Olympics (top) and 2020 Tokyo Olympics (bottom).

Furthermore, the IOC has issued several warnings to the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) for its long-term governing and anti-doping issues. According to a news article published by The New York Times, the IWF was widely accused of corruption and governing problems in the sports community. The article also claimed that weightlifting was at risk of being dropped for future Olympic Games. In practice, with the Olympic Charter amendments adopted, the IOC could remove the sport from the Olympic Games if the IWF does not comply with the rules or acts in a manner likely to tarnish the reputation of the Olympic movement.

Screenshot of the news article published by The New York Times.

In conclusion, though several news articles claim that weightlifting may be removed from the Olympic Games, as of the issuance of this report, weightlifting is still included in the 2024 Paris Olympics, but with fewer participants and weightlifting categories.