Weightlifting Meets: Placing and Tiebreakers

A lifter’s place (i.e., 1st place, 2nd place, etc.) at a weightlifting meet is determined by the total, i.e., the sum of the lifter’s heaviest successful snatch and the lifter’s heaviest successful clean-and-jerk. Since two lifters can have the same total, let’s look at the IWF (International Weightlifting Federation) rules for determining place and - specifically - breaking any ties that may occur. Let’s look at the rules in order of application (the official IWF phrasing is given in bold) using our sample lifters Bob and Joe.

Rule #1: Best result - highest first: if identical, then:
This one is pretty simple - if Bob’s total is 170 kg and Joe’s total is 165 kg, then Bob wins because his total is higher. If they both total 170 kg, then we move on to Rule #2 . . .

Rule #2: Best Clean & Jerk result – lowest first; if identical, then:
Bob and Joe both total 170 kg in keeping with the example above. Bob’s best clean-and-jerk is 90 kg while Joe’s best clean-and-jerk is 100 kg. Bob’s clean-and-jerk is lower than Joe’s, so Bob wins.

This logic can seem a bit strange at first, and we’ll address it after going through the rest of the rules. However, if their best clean-and-jerks are both 90 kg, then we move on to Rule #3 . . .

Rule #3: Best Clean & Jerk result’s attempt number – least number of attempt first; if identical, then:
As stated above, Bob and Joe’s best clean-and-jerks are both 90 kg. Bob hit 90 kg on his 2nd attempt while Joe hit 90 kg on his 3rd attempt. Bob’s attempt number is lower than Joe’s (i.e., 2 is lower than 3), so Bob wins.

Again, if the logic seems strange, don’t worry - we’ll get to it in a moment. On the other hand, if they both clean-and-jerked 90 kg (i.e., their best) on their 2nd attempt, then we move on to Rule #4 . . .

Rule #4: Previous attempt(s) – least number of attempt first; if identical, then:
Now, it gets slightly more complicated. Again, in our example, Bob and Joe both clean-and-jerked 90 kg (i.e., their best) on their 2nd attempt. Bob attempted 85 kg on his first attempt while Joe opened at 86 kg. Since 85 is less than 86, Bob wins.

If they both hit 90 kg for their best clean-and-jerk on their second attempts, and they both opened at 85 kg, then we move on to Rule #5 . . .

Rule #5: Lot number – lowest first.
Last time - we promise. Bob and Joe both clean-and-jerk 90 kg (i.e., their best) on their 2nd attempt, and they both opened at 85 kg. Bob’s lot number is 15 while Joe’s lot number is 23. Bob’s lot number is lower than Joe’s, so Bob wins.

These rules can seem pretty convoluted, but if you’re actually watching the meet, it’s pretty simple. Rule #1 is fairly obvious - whoever lifts the most wins. After that, when it comes to the tiebreaker rules (i.e., Rules #2-5), the basic idea is that whoever hits that 170 kg total first - in time - wins. For example, if Bob establishes his 170 kg total at 1:30 p.m., and Joe establishes his 170 kg total at 1:40 p.m., Bob wins since he got to 170 kg earlier in the day than Joe did. Seriously - that’s it.

In the example for Rule #2, Bob’s total is cemented in place when he hits 90 kg for his last successful lift. That means his total is 170 kg before Joe ever steps on the platform to attempt 100 kg. In other words, Bob is rewarded for having staked his claim to 170 kg first - Joe could have gone for 101 kg to total 171 kg, but he instead went for the tie at 170 kg, and since Bob got there first, he wins.

All of the other rules that follow are simply worded to guarantee that this same concept applies in all situations, which can require some serious thought when considering how the order of lifting is determined in weightlifting (for more on that, read this article).

So simply remember this - in the case of a tie, if you hit the total first, you win.