Ahmedabad will host the senior World Weightlifting Championships in 2029, the first time India will stage the sport’s top global event. The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) awarded the hosting rights at its Executive Board meeting in Ningbo, China, on Sunday, 25 October 2026, PTI reported via Rediff.
India won the vote ahead of rival bids from Russia and Venezuela, according to Hindustan Times. Russia did not leave empty handed, as Moscow was named host of the 2030 senior championships at the same meeting.
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Four World Weightlifting Championships awarded together
The IWF Executive Board decided the hosts for four world events covering 2028 to 2030 in one sitting. Apart from Ahmedabad in 2029 and Moscow in 2030, Prishtina in Kosovo will hold the 2028 World Youth Championships and Caracas in Venezuela will stage the World Junior Championships the same year, The Bridge reported. The federation said it awarded the four events together to firm up its international calendar for the coming years.
IWF General Secretary José Quiñones welcomed the result after the vote. “All the bids we received were excellent and we are sure that the Championships in your respective countries will be a huge success,†he said. He pointed out that three of the four host nations, Kosovo, Venezuela and India, will be organising an IWF world event for the first time, which he said showed the sport was growing worldwide.
A big day for Indian weightlifting
Indian Weightlifting Federation president Sahdev Yadav called it a landmark moment. “It’s a big day for Indian weightlifting as the IWF world championships will be coming to India for the first time and will be organised in Ahmedabad,†he told Hindustan Times. He added that the IWF Executive Board had “put faith in India†despite strong pitches from Russia and Venezuela.
The 2029 event will also be a qualifying competition for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, which Ahmedabad is set to host. “It will give our weightlifters a good opportunity to win berths for the 2030 CWG,†Yadav said. That means Indian lifters will be able to chase Commonwealth places on home soil, in the same city, a year before the Games.
Gujarat builds a weightlifting record
The award continues a run of international weightlifting events in Gujarat. Ahmedabad staged the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in 2025, and the Asian Senior Weightlifting Championships were held at the Mahatma Mandir Convention and Exhibition Centre in Gandhinagar from 11 to 17 May 2026, drawing athletes and officials from nearly 30 countries, IANS reported.
Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi announced the news on X. “Big news for India! Ahmedabad will host the 2029 IWF World Weightlifting Championships!†he wrote, adding that after the Commonwealth and Asian events, “the world’s best weightlifters are now coming to Gujarat.â€
The city is also central to India’s larger sporting plans. Besides the 2030 Commonwealth Games, Ahmedabad would be the host city if India wins the right to stage the 2036 Olympics, a race the country is still in, PTI noted.
Focus now shifts to Ningbo
The IWF meeting was held alongside the World Championships in Ningbo, which begin on Tuesday and are the first qualification event for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. India has sent a seven member team, led by Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Mirabai Chanu, Hindustan Times reported.
Mirabai, the 2017 world champion in the 48kg class and a world silver medallist in 2022 and 2025, recently won silver at the Asian Games in the 49kg class. She now competes at 53kg because the restructured Olympic programme for LA 2028 makes 53kg the lightest women’s category. Gyaneshwari Yadav, the 2026 Commonwealth Games silver medallist, is entered in the same class.
The federation chief admitted the calendar has been demanding. “It has been a hectic season for us and Mirabai has just competed at the Asian Games,†he said, adding that Gyaneshwari “is also a good prospect.†Mirabai’s silver was India’s only weightlifting medal at the Asian Games, The Bridge reported, so Ningbo is an early chance for the rest of the squad to start collecting the ranking points that decide Olympic places.
“Since this is the first qualifying event for the LA 2028 Olympics we need to participate for ranking points,†Sahdev Yadav said. “We are hoping to win at least four Olympic berths for LA Games.â€
Why the 2029 event matters
India has a proud weightlifting history, from the Olympic bronze of Karnam Malleswari in 2000 to Mirabai’s silver in Tokyo. Hosting the senior World Championships will give Indian lifters a chance to compete against the world’s best in front of a home crowd, and gives Ahmedabad another major test of its venues and logistics ahead of the Commonwealth Games and its Olympic ambitions. The exact venue and dates for 2029 have not yet been announced.
Read more on Bharat Stories about Karnam Malleswari, India’s first woman Olympic medallist, India’s bid for the 2036 Olympics, and the history, economy and tourism of Gujarat.
Featured image photo: Binyamin Mellish, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (a weightlifter during a barbell squat; not an Indian athlete or an IWF event).
FAQ
Which city will host the 2029 World Weightlifting Championships?
Ahmedabad in Gujarat. It will be the first senior IWF World Championships held in India.
Who will host the 2030 senior championships?
Moscow, Russia. The IWF also gave the 2028 World Youth Championships to Prishtina and the 2028 World Junior Championships to Caracas.
Will the 2029 event be a qualifier?
Yes. According to the Indian Weightlifting Federation, it will be a qualifying event for the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad.
Sources
- PTI via Rediff, 25 October 2026: IWF decision in Ningbo, Moscow 2030, Olympic bid context.
- Hindustan Times, 25 October 2026: rival bids, Sahdev Yadav quotes, CWG qualifier and Indian team in Ningbo.
- The Bridge, 25 October 2026: all four hosts and the IWF General Secretary’s statement.
- IANS, 25 October 2026: Harsh Sanghavi’s post and earlier events in Gujarat.