Campbell made history in Tokyo, where she won a silver medal in the 87+kg category, becoming the first British woman to win a medal in weightlifting at the Olympics. This monumental achievement set the stage for her continued success on the global stage.

Her selection for Paris 2024 comes after a series of impressive performances on both the World and European stage, including the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham where Campbell dominated the 87+kg category, winning gold with a total lift of 286kg, and a record-breaking clean & jerk of 162kg.

Team GB Chef de Mission, Mark England said, “I’m delighted to welcome Olympic silver medallist Emily back on to the team. I can think of few athletes who made such an impact at their first Games as Emily did in Tokyo. Not only did she become an Olympic medallist, but importantly she has used her platform to inspire countless young people, and particularly young girls, to try weightlifting and understand it can be a sport for everyone.”

Campbell said, “I’m beyond excited that I’ve been selected for my second Olympic Games. Paris is set to be a very special Games, and I cannot wait to get out there and put on a show.”

British Weightlifting Head of Performance, Stuart Martin said, We are delighted that Emily’s place at Paris 2024 has been confirmed. The qualification process has been competitive. Despite a few bumps in the road Emily has maintained her position as the top lifter in Europe for the last four years running, and is the only super heavyweight female athlete from Europe to qualify for Paris.

“We’re in the final stretch and Emily is training hard with both eyes on a repeat of her ground breaking performance in Tokyo. We’re excited and Emily and the team are putting the work in for a medal winning result.”

The Olympic weightlifting competition for Paris 2024 runs from 7 to 11 August, with Campbell set to compete in the 81+kg category on the final day of the Games.

With thanks to Team GB

Next year’s Championships will see athletes from the Home Nations compete in the crucial qualifier for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, following a summer of exciting Olympic and Paralympic events. These saw Emily Campbell become the first British woman to win an Olympic medal in the sport, and Paralympic athletes Louise Sugden, Micky Yule and Olivia Broome claim podium spots.

Sarah Davies, Emily Campbell and Olivia Broome have again recently seen success on the international stage. At the IWF World Championships, Sarah Davies secured a silver medal – the first for a GB athlete – whereas Emily Campbell secured silver for her clean and jerk and a bronze medal for her total. Olivia Broome stepped onto the podium twice at the World Para Powerlifting Championships, securing a junior gold medal and a silver medal in the Senior competition.

The 2022 Commonwealth Games offers the largest fully-integrated para-sport programme for any Commonwealth Games, making it a highly-sought after event for British athletes competing in the Championships to secure a place.

With athletes continuing to secure medals and the stakes especially high, the British Championships event promises to deliver. It will feature three different competitions:

• The British Weight Lifting Senior Championships
• The British Weight Lifting Masters Championships
• The British Weight Lifting Para Powerlifting Championships

In addition, there will be the opportunity for other Commonwealth countries to enter and qualify for Birmingham 2022.

Speaking ahead of the event, British Weight Lifting Chief Executive Officer Ashley Metcalfe commented: “We’re absolutely delighted to be able to welcome spectators back in this return to competition next January. It’s set to be an especially exciting event, not just for this reason, but because those attending will be able to cheer on superstar athletes they watched at the Olympics and Paralympics this summer.

“Derby Arena is the perfect venue for the Championships, with a big appetite for the sport in the local area, producing athletes like Emily Campbell who trains around the corner – we really hope the event will inspire the next generation as they come to watch local lifters compete for prestigious titles and medals.

“We’re really proud to be bringing together all the Home Nations across the three different competitions, and the stakes are especially high in view of the Commonwealth Games next July. I know the local crowd will be a fantastic support and boost for the athletes competing on home soil after an incredibly tough couple of years.”

The event is to be delivered by British Weight Lifting. With welfare of athletes, teams and the event workforce the top priority, organisers are monitoring Covid-19 regulations closely and ensuring that the event is run in line with government guidance to make it as safe and secure as possible.

Tickets are available at a reduced early bird price to purchase here. The event will also be live streamed – details to follow.

With thanks to British Weight Lifting via Conker Communications

Zoe Smith represented Team GB at London 2012, securing a top 10 finish in her home city two years after becoming the first female English Commonwealth medallist at the age of sixteen. In a glittering career so far, she has also been ever-present on the continental scene, racking up numerous European medals in places such as Tel-Aviv, Batumi and Førde over the past decade.

Training at the Europa Weightlifting Club, Smith won gold at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games and overcame injury to secure silver at the Gold Coast four years later. She is currently sixth in the Women’s 59kg world rankings which places her in a good position to be up there with the best in Tokyo.

Emily Campbell won three gold medals at the European Championships after a sensational display in Moscow earlier this year propelled her to the upper echelons of the weightlifting world. She became the first British weightlifter to take a European clean sweep since 1988 by setting Commonwealth records in the Clean & Jerk discipline and overall.

A meteoric rise for Campbell saw her win bronze at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, her first major international after switching sports from athletics. Since then, she has gone from strength-to-strength in the past 24 months by medalling at the British International Open, and the Tianjin World Cup before her recent European triumph. The Nottingham-based lifter trains at the  Atlas Workout Warehouse and qualified a comfortable fifth  in the Women’s 87kg+ world rankings and is expected to be a strong contender to challenge the very best in the world.

Sarah Davies has medalled at the Commonwealth Games, Commonwealth Championships, British International Open and most recently at the European Championships where a superb performance saw her clinch three silver medals. In the latter event Davies was second only to the world number one in her category. Originally from Preston, she showed early promise in her career by winning the European U23 title in 2015 and made a statement of intent by finishing sixth  at the World Championships in 2017.

Davies is currently ranked fifth in the women’s 64kg world rankings and has been training at Atlas alongside Campbell to be within striking distance of the Tokyo podium if things go her way on the day.

The athletes will be supported on their journey by Team GB Olympic Weightlifting Team Leader Stuart Martin, alongside the national coaching team which consists of Former Commonwealth Champion Andrew Callard of Europa and the experienced veteran Dave Sawyer of Atlas.

This is the largest British weight lifting team to secure their slots via the IWF qualification process since 1992 when six athletes were selected. It is also the biggest number of female British Olympic weightlifters to secure a place at the Olympics.

Mark England, Team GB Chef de Mission for Tokyo 2020, commented: “I am incredibly proud to be able to welcome Zoe, Emily and Sarah onto Team GB for the Tokyo Olympic Games.

“Today’s announcement is a significant moment for these athletes, their sport and for the British Olympic Association with this being the biggest group of female weightlifters to represent Team GB at an Olympic Games. We are anticipating that we’ll be taking more female than male athletes to Tokyo for the first time ever, and this group’s selection is another step towards achieving this historic goal.

“It is always special to have returning Olympians on the team alongside those making their Olympic debuts. Tokyo will be a fantastic experience that I have no doubt these athletes will relish.”

Stuart Martin, Team GB Olympic Weightlifting Team Leader for Tokyo 2020, said: “We are absolutely delighted that our leading women have earned qualification for Tokyo. The loss of UKS funding after Rio and a global pandemic have made it a difficult Olympic cycle for the team, but it is every weightlifter’s foremost ambition to compete and win a medal at the Olympic games. We have made it our mission to overcome every challenge thrown our way and ensure that one of the most talented generations of weightlifters in the UK has continued to strive towards their ultimate goal. I could not be prouder of this team’s persistence and resilience.

“We would also like to thank UK sport and the National Lottery for supporting us with the aspiration fund in 2019, without this funding the team would not have been able to attend critical qualification events and deliver the incredible feats they have done during the qualification period.”

Courtesy of Team GB

Webster, who completed his three-year Sports Performance course this summer, will make his Olympic debut in the men’s 94kg division after being crowned as British Champion in that weight category earlier this month.

The 22-year-old is one of only two weightlifters in the Team GB squad and will be joined in Rio by Rebekah Tiley, who will contest the women’s 69kg division.

“The Olympics is undoubtedly the biggest stage for the sport and to be given the opportunity to represent my country in Rio this summer is something I’m incredibly proud of,” said Webster, who is coached by Andy Sutor at the Empire Sports Club in Bristol.

“I’ve been training well and my recent performance at the British Championships has given me a fantastic platform to build on. The next few weeks of preparation are absolutely crucial and I’ll be doing all that I can to get the best possible result for the team in Rio.”

Tommy Yule, Weightlifting Team Leader and British Weight Lifting performance director, added: “I’m very proud of both Rebekah and Sonny and their efforts in getting selected to represent Team GB in Rio this summer.

“Both have been progressing really well; Rebekah winning senior medals both at the Europeans in April and last month’s British Championships, and Sonny also setting new British under 23 records and achieving personal bests in what was the final competition before the Games.

Zoe Smith misses out through injury. (Photo: Matchtight)

“Our focus is now on maintaining and building on their progress over the next few weeks, to give both athletes the best chance of performing in Rio.”

Commonwealth champion Zoe Smith, who does some of her training at the University, misses out through injury.

Other University of Bath graduates to have been officially selected for the Olympic and Paralympic Games so far are Heather Stanning (rowing), Heather Olver (badminton), Alexandra Rickham (sailing) and Louise Hunt (wheelchair tennis).

Athletes who train at the University to have been selected so far are Joe Choong, Jamie Cooke, Kate French and Samantha Murray (modern pentathlon); Jazz Carlin, Siobhan-Marie O’Connor, Chris Walker-Hebborn and Andrew Willis (swimming); Ben Fletcher (judo); and Paul Blake (athletics).

Report courtesy of Team Bath press office via Matchtight Ltd.

In the process he has raised thousands of pounds for Bristol Children’s Hospital, who saved the life of his friend and fellow Team Bath coach Bob Smith’s baby daughter.

More than 300 people – including the judo, rugby and tennis players that Vella trains at the STV – turned out to roar on the popular coach in his record attempt.

And they saw Vella deadlift 126kg for 44 repetitions in just 49 seconds, giving him a total weight of 5,544kg – eclipsing the previous record of 5,520. He is now waiting for the record to be ratified.

“I’m really happy with that,” said Vella. “It was as tough as I thought it would be but I underestimated just what an effect this crowd would have on me – they were amazing.

“To get this number of people out is great not just for me but for Bob, his daughter Autumn and The Grand Appeal at Bristol Children’s Hospital.

“We have to wait and see if it is an official record but the main thing is I have done something to raise people’s awareness of this tremendous cause.”

Vella is close friends with fellow S&C coach Smith, whose daughter Autumn underwent emergency treatment at Bristol Children’s Hospital for a life-threatening heart condition last year aged just four weeks old.

“I am originally from Melbourne in Australia and Bob and his wife Katie were a terrific support to me when I first moved to the UK in 2014,” said Vella.

“After hearing what they went through when Autumn was ill, I knew I had to do something to thank the doctors and nurses that looked after their whole family with such amazing care and compassion”

Vella has already raised nearly £2,500 through his record attempt and hopes to double that amount. To support his bid, visit www.justgiving.com/Luke-Vella/

Bob Smith is also fundraising for The Grand Appeal, running a half marathon every single week during 2016. He has so far raised more than £3,000 of his £8,000 target. To support him, visit www.justgiving.com/bobsm100/

Report courtesy of Team Bath Press Office at Matchtight Ltd.

Zoe Smith at the British Championships (Photo: British Weight Lifting)

Zoe Smith broke two British records as she boosted her chances of competing at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games by securing a top-ten finish at the IWF World Weightlifting Championships in the United States.

Commonwealth champion Smith, who does some of her training at the University of Bath Sports Training Village, lifted an overall total of 221kg – the most ever by a British woman in the -63kg weight category – as she placed ninth.

The 21-year-old lifted a new snatch personal best of 97kg before setting a new British record of 124kg in the clean and jerk, beating the previous standard set by Michaela Breeze nine years ago.

Smith posted on Instagram: “To be competing alongside some of the best in the world was a real privilege. Hopefully someday soon I’ll even give them a run for their money! Ninth place at the World Championships ain’t too bad at all.”

The next major target for Smith is April’s European Championships in Norway, where British Weightlifting need to secure more ranking points to gain a Rio 2016 berth – good luck Zoe!