Tashkent, Uzbekistan, November 4, 2022: The International Weightlifting Federation has targeted all coaches to have an anti-doping license after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games according to a senior official in the sport, Colin Irija, the instructor at the OCA Stage 2 Development Programme in Tashkent.
Ireland’s Irija made this revelation at the anti-doping seminar organised by the Olympic Council of Asia for weightlifting coaches and referees on Friday, November 4.
“The International Weightlifting Federation hopes that all coaches will have an anti-doping license soon. The world governing body for weightlifting has zero tolerance when it comes to doping and they want to educate the coaches,” said Irija, a member of the European weightlifting coaching and research commission.
The IWF Executive Board which will meet on the side-lines of the World Championships in December in Bogota, Colombia, is expected to approve the proposal put forward to licence all coaches in anti-doping.
“At the moment we are carrying out a pilot programme for coach licensing in Europe. A proposal will be then put forward to the IWF Executive Board that after the Paris Olympics, it becomes mandatory for all coaches to have an anti-doping license,” Irija said.
Earlier the Director of the Central Asia Regional Anti-Doping Organisation, Venera Abdulla, who conducted the anti-doping seminar online, told all participants that weightlifting was considered as a high-risk sport for doping incidents. Citing WADA figures, she said weightlifting was among the highest category with 13 per cent cases.
The inclusion of the anti-doping seminar in the OCA Development Programme was lauded by all participants. Weightlifting is one of five sports in the programme for coaches and referees from 12 NOCs in Central and South Asia. The others are boxing, judo, swimming and wrestling.
“As it is, this is a fantastic project organised by the Olympic Council of Asia. And to have an anti-doping segment included is a massive bonus. All credit to the organisers,” Irija added.