Weightlifting at the 1896 Summer Olympics
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At the 1896 Summer Olympics, two weighlifting events were contested. The top two places were won by the same two men in each event, though their order was reversed for the two events. The bronze medals were split by the two Greek weightlifters.
Two hands
Pos | Athlete | Weight |
1 | Viggo Jensen (DEN) | 110 kg |
2 | Launceston Elliot (GBR) | 110 kg |
3 | Missing image Greece_flag_1828.png Sotirios Versis (GRE) |
The two-handed lift was the first weightlifting event on 7 April. Ten athletes took part. The type of lift used was similar to the modern clean and jerk. Viggo Jensen of Denmark and Launceston Elliot of the United Kingdom both lifted 110 kilograms, and the tie was broken by a determination by Prince George that Jensen had performed the lift with better form than had Elliot. A protest by the British delegation resulted in each athlete being given further attempts to improve their scores. Neither did, and the results stood as originally declared with Jensen taking the gold medal. Jensen had, however, suffered from the extra lifts in that he experienced a slight injury in trying to lift more than he was able.
One hand
Pos | Athlete | Weight |
1 | Launceston Elliot (GBR) | 71 kg |
2 | Viggo Jensen (DEN) | 57.2 kg |
3 | Missing image Greece_flag_1828.png Alexandros Nikolopoulos (GRE) |
In the second weightlifting event, held soon after the first, only one hand was allowed in lifting the weights. The technique was similar to the modern snatch event. Jensen, injured from the first event, was able to lift only enough to earn a silver medal while Elliot far surpassed all of the other athletes in the field on his way to winning the United Kingdom's first gold medal of the Olympics.
Template:Olympic Games Weightlifting
de:Olympische Sommerspiele 1896/Gewichtheben et:Tõstmine 1896. aasta suveolümpiamängudel fr:Haltérophilie aux jeux Olympiques de 1896 it:Sollevamento pesi alle Olimpiadi 1896