Sport in Greece - Weightlifting

Weightlifting

Weightlifting has been the most successful individual sport for the Greeks, with the national team regularly winning gold medals at the Olympics and the rest international competitions. Greek weightlifters have won a total 15 medals at the Olympics with 6 of them being gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze medals. In the World Weightlifting Championships Greek weightlifting team has won a total 111 medals (70 in men and 41 in women) with 26 of them being gold. Greek weightlifters have set many world and Olympic records during the years which forced the sporting world to name the Greek weightlifting team of the mid-1990s, the "Dream Team" of the sport. Some of the greatest weightlifters in the history of the sport include Greek legends such as:

• Pyrros Dimas, a Greek weightlifter from Northern Epirus. A three-time Olympic champion, multiple World and European champion. He is considered worldwide one of the greatest athletes in the history of this sport.

• Kakhi Kakhiashvili, another all time great of this sport. He is one of only four weightlifters to have won three consecutive gold medals at Olympic Games.

• Viktor Mitrou, a retired male weightlifter from Greece. He became an Olympic medalist during the 2000 Summer Olympics when he claimed the silver medal in the men's – 77 kg class and

• The legendary Greek weightlifter Dimitrios Tofalos. He was a member of both Gymnastiki Etaireia Patron and Panachaikos Gymnastikos syllogos, that merged in 1923 to become Panachaiki Gymnastiki Enosi. Arguably the greatest weightlifter of the early 20th century, he won the gold medal in the 1906 Intercalated Games, setting a world record that lasted until 1914.