<p class="reg-lead">The Constitution and By-Laws of the International Weightlifting Federation, adopted by the Constitutional Congress on 29 August 2021 in Doha and in force from 31 August 2021 — an instrument rewritten in the wake of the federation's governance crisis.</p>

<table class="reg-facts">
<tr><td>Adoption</td><td><b>29 August 2021</b> — Constitutional Congress, Doha, Qatar</td></tr>
<tr><td>In force from</td><td><b>31 August 2021</b></td></tr>
<tr><td>Drafting</td><td>Reform and Governance Commission of the International Weightlifting Federation</td></tr>
<tr><td>Length</td><td><b>135 pages</b> — the Constitution together with the By-Laws</td></tr>
</table>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>What is this document?</h2>
<p>This document is the Constitution and By-Laws of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF): both the federation's foundational instrument and the body of rules applied under it, in a single volume. The legal nature of the federation, its objectives, the conditions of membership for national federations, the governing organs and the decision-making mechanism, elections, and the ethics and disciplinary organs are all determined here.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec hi">
<h2>Why this edition is of particular importance</h2>
<p>This text is the product of the <strong>"Constitutional Congress"</strong>, and its drafting was undertaken by the "Reform and Governance Commission" — two names that themselves explain the context. In the preceding years, weightlifting had been under heavy pressure from the International Olympic Committee on account of doping cases and governance failings, and the sport's place in the Olympic Games was in doubt.</p>
<p>The federation's response was to rewrite its foundational instrument: strengthening the independence of the judicial and disciplinary organs, redefining the conditions for candidacy and elections, and separating functions more clearly. The Ethics and Disciplinary Commission, which had previously operated under the federation's management, acquired a more independent position in this structure — a matter set out in detail in the Interim Ethics and Disciplinary Commission Regulations.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>Who this document matters to</h2>
<p>The Weightlifting Federation of the Islamic Republic of Iran is bound to observe the framework of this document in drawing up its own statutes and in holding its elections, and the conditions of membership, suspension and eligibility of candidates derive from it. For sports lawyers, this edition is the reference point for cases arising after 2021: any challenge to the competence of a decision-making organ or to the electoral process must be measured against the text of this Constitution and not against earlier editions.</p>
</div>

INTERNATIONAL WEIGHTLIFTING FEDERATIONCONSTITUTION 2021

<p class="reg-lead">Interim Rules of the Ethics and Disciplinary Commission of the International Weightlifting Federation, 2021 edition — a document that contains both the procedural rules of the Commission and the ethical and disciplinary regulations themselves.</p>

<table class="reg-facts">
<tr><td>Title</td><td><b>Interim</b> Rules of the Ethics and Disciplinary Commission (EDC)</td></tr>
<tr><td>Structure</td><td><b>Four parts</b>: general provisions, procedural rules, eligibility determination for candidates, and ethical and disciplinary regulations</td></tr>
<tr><td>Length</td><td>17 pages</td></tr>
<tr><td>Related body</td><td>Independent Investigation Commission (IIC)</td></tr>
</table>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>What these regulations determine</h2>
<p>The document comprises four parts. The first sets out the general provisions and the scope of application. The second contains the procedural rules of the Ethics and Disciplinary Commission: the constitution of the Commission, <strong>its independence</strong>, the conduct of proceedings, the filing of a complaint with the secretariat, referral to the Independent Investigation Commission, hearings, evidence and the burden of proof, decisions, and appeals against decisions.</p>
<p>The third part is devoted to the "eligibility determination panel" and its procedure — that is, the mechanism that examines the eligibility of candidates standing for election to the Federation. The fourth part is the ethical and disciplinary regulations themselves: objectives, the general and specific duties of good conduct, and then the measures and sanctions and the rules governing their determination.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec hi">
<h2>Two points that distinguish this document</h2>
<ol class="reg-tl">
<li><b class="t">The "interim" character is deliberate</b>These rules were adopted during the period of reform of the Federation's governance so that, pending the establishment of a permanent structure, there would be no gap in adjudication. The title of the document states this transitional situation expressly.</li>
<li><b class="t">Eligibility determination for candidates is a judicial function, not an administrative one</b>The examination of the eligibility of candidates standing for election appears in this same document, alongside the disciplinary procedural rules. This means that the rejection of a candidate's eligibility is a decision that, like a disciplinary ruling, is subject to appeal and has its own procedural rules.</li>
</ol>
<p>Reference to the "Independent Investigation Commission" also appears at several points in the procedural rules; investigation and adjudication are separated so that the body examining an allegation is not the same body that decides upon it.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>Who this document matters to</h2>
<p>Every weightlifting athlete, coach and official facing a case before the Ethics and Disciplinary Commission, and every candidate standing for election to the Federation's bodies, is subject to this document. For counsel, this text is both a road map for the disciplinary defence and the basis for challenging decisions relating to candidate eligibility.</p>
</div>

International weightlifting Federation Ethics and disciplinary commission interim rules2021

<p class="reg-lead">The Anti-Doping Rules of the International Weightlifting Federation, adopted by the Executive Board on 15 December 2020, in force from 1 January 2021 and amended on 28 March 2021.</p>

<table class="reg-facts">
<tr><td>Adoption</td><td><b>15 December 2020</b> — Executive Board of the International Weightlifting Federation</td></tr>
<tr><td>In force from</td><td><b>1 January 2021</b></td></tr>
<tr><td>Amendment</td><td><b>28 March 2021</b> — Executive Board</td></tr>
<tr><td>Structure</td><td>Articles 1 to 25 in <b>82 pages</b></td></tr>
</table>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>What these regulations determine</h2>
<p>This document implements the World Anti-Doping Code in the sport of weightlifting and follows its standard structure: the definition of doping (Article 1), the list of anti-doping rule violations (Article 2), the burden and standard of proof (Article 3), reference to the Prohibited List of substances and methods (Article 4), sample collection and investigations (Article 5), analysis of samples (Article 6) and results management (Articles 7 and 8).</p>
<p>What distinguishes this document from its counterparts is not its date but its context: in the years leading up to this edition, weightlifting had seen serious doping cases and the credibility of the sport's anti-doping programme was the subject of external review. The March 2021 amendment, only three months after the text entered into force, is a sign of that same pressure.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec hi">
<h2>Results management in two separate articles<span class="reg-tag">Articles 7 and 8</span></h2>
<p>Unlike many comparable regulations that consolidate results management into a single article, this document separates it into <strong>two articles</strong>. Separating the stage of review and notification of a violation from the stage of adjudication and issuing a decision means, in practice, that the athlete has distinct procedural rights at each stage — from the right to be informed and to respond, to the right to request a hearing.</p>
<p>For the athlete, the most important application of this separation lies in the calculation of time limits: the deadline for responding to a notification of a violation is not the same as the deadline for appealing a decision, and missing either carries its own consequence.</p>
</div>

<div class="reg-sec">
<h2>Who this document matters to</h2>
<p>Every weightlifter, coach and team physician at international level is subject to these rules, and the Iranian weightlifting federation bears responsibility for their implementation. For sports lawyers, this text is the basis of the defence in weightlifting doping cases after January 2021 and must be read together with the version as amended in March of the same year.</p>
</div>

Sport Regulations Weightlifting

INTERNATIONAL WEIGHTLIFTING FEDERATIONCONSTITUTION 2021

International weightlifting Federation Ethics and disciplinary commission interim rules2021

International weightlifting Federation Anti-doping Rules2021