The International Weightlifting Federation (IFW) is a permanent non-profit organization that organizes the World Weightlifting Championships, a 3-day event for weightlifting tournaments.

It was first held in March 1891 in London, United Kingdom with only 7 athletes from the 6 countries mentioned. The competitors where champions from Hamburg, England, Vienna, Italy, Brussels and Berlin attending the three-day event. Edward Lawrence Levy from England won the very first World Weightlifting Championship.

The weightlifting tournaments held during the Summer Olympics from 1964 to 1984 are counted as World Weightlifting Championships of the corresponding year.

A separate championship was added for women Women’s in 1987 and combined event held for both men’s and women’s categories since 1991.

Currently the event has 15 weight categories – 8 for men and 7 for women. In the men’s categories, 56 kg is the lightest and +105 kg the heaviest while the women’s categories, 48 kg the lightest and +75 kg for the heaviest.

Overall, the most successful countries have been China, Soviet Union and Bulgaria.