Poland condemns decision to give Russia 2030 weightlifting world championships

Poland’s Sport Minister Jakub Rutnicki has strongly condemned the decision to award Russia the 2030 World Weightlifting Championships.

A pictogram representing weightlifting.

Photo: Thadius856, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) announced on Sunday that the tournament will be held in Moscow.

It is the first time since 2022 that Russia has been given the right to host a major international event in an Olympic sport.

Writing on X, Rutnicki said the country should not host international events while its aggression against Ukraine continues.

"This is a decision that is hurtful to the victims of the war," he wrote.

"Sport cannot be used to legitimise the actions of an aggressor."

Stanowczo potępiamy decyzję o przyznaniu Rosji organizacji MŚ w podnoszeniu ciężarów. Dopóki trwa agresja na Ukrainę, Rosja nie powinna być gospodarzem międzynarodowych imprez. To decyzja krzywdząca dla ofiar wojny. Sport nie może służyć legitymizowaniu działań agresora.

— Kuba Rutnicki (@KubaRutnicki) October 26, 2026

Russia has not hosted a world championship in any Olympic sport, summer or winter, since the war began.

The 2030 event will also be the first weightlifting world championships in Moscow since 1983.

In late June, the IWF announced that athletes from Russia and Belarus in all age groups could compete in its events, with immediate effect.

(ał)

Source: IAR, PAP