What is Olympic Weightlifting?

The sport of Olympic Weightlifting is composed of 2 main lifts, the Snatch and the Clean & Jerk.

In an official competition, each athlete is allowed 3 attempts in the Snatch and 3 attempts in the Clean & Jerk. The heaviest successful attempt from each the Snatch and Clean & Jerk is counted. This is your final total.

THE SNATCH

The snatch is the first of two lifts contested in the sport of weightlifting (also known as Olympic weightlifting) followed by the clean and jerk. The objective of the snatch is to lift the barbell from the ground to overhead in one continuous motion. 

In the snatch, the lifter lifts the bar as high as possible and pulls themselves under it in a squat position, receiving the bar overhead with the arms straight, decreasing the necessary height of the bar, therefore increasing the amount of weight that the lifter may successfully lift. The lifter finally straightens to a fully upright postition with the bar above his head and arms fully extended.

THE CLEAN & JERK

The clean and jerk is a composite of two weightlifting movements: the clean and the jerk. During the clean, the lifter moves the barbell from the floor to a racked position across the deltoids. During the jerk the lifter raises the barbell to a stationary position above the head, finishing with straight arms and legs, and the feet in the same plane as the torso and barbell.

To execute a clean, a lifter grabs the barbell just outside the legs using a hook grip. Once the barbell is above the knees, the lifter extends explosively, raising the bar as high as possible before quickly dropping into a squat and receiving it in a “racked" position in front of the neck and resting on the shoulders. To complete the clean, the lifter stands, often shifting the grip slightly wider and the feet slightly closer together in preparation for the jerk.

The jerk begins from the "front rack" position, which is the finishing position of the clean. The lifter dips a few inches by bending the knees, keeping the back vertical, and then explosively extends the knees, propelling the barbell upward off the shoulders, and then quickly dropping underneath the bar by pushing upward with the arms and splitting the legs into a lunge position, one forward and one back. The bar is received overhead on straight arms, and, once stable, the lifter recovers from the split position, bringing the feet back into the same plane as the rest of the body.