# 1981 World Weightlifting Championships

The 1981 Men's World Weightlifting Championships were held in Lille, France, from September 13 to September 20, 1981. There were 194 men in action from 35 nations.

## Medal summary

| Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| 52 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Kanybek Osmonaliyev Soviet Union | 110.0 kg | Jacek Gutowski Poland | 110.0 kg | Kazushito Manabe Japan | 107.5 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Kanybek Osmonaliyev Soviet Union | 137.5 kg | Ho Bong-chol North Korea | 132.5 kg | Kazushito Manabe Japan | 132.5 kg |
| Total | Kanybek Osmonaliyev Soviet Union | 247.5 kg | Jacek Gutowski Poland | 240.0 kg | Kazushito Manabe Japan | 240.0 kg |
| 56 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Andreas Letz East Germany | 120.0 kg | Anton Kodzhabashev Bulgaria | 117.5 kg | Nikolay Zakharov Soviet Union | 117.5 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Anton Kodzhabashev Bulgaria | 155.0 kg | Andreas Letz East Germany | 152.5 kg | Nikolay Zakharov Soviet Union | 147.5 kg |
| Total | Anton Kodzhabashev Bulgaria | 272.5 kg | Andreas Letz East Germany | 272.5 kg | Nikolay Zakharov Soviet Union | 265.0 kg |
| 60 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Daniel Núñez Cuba | 135.0 kg WR | Beloslav Manolov Bulgaria | 132.5 kg | Yurik Sarkisyan Soviet Union | 130.0 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Beloslav Manolov Bulgaria | 170.0 kg WR | Daniel Núñez Cuba | 167.5 kg | Yurik Sarkisyan Soviet Union | 165.0 kg |
| Total | Beloslav Manolov Bulgaria | 302.5 kg | Daniel Núñez Cuba | 302.5 kg WR | Yurik Sarkisyan Soviet Union | 295.0 kg |
| 67.5 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Daniel Senet France | 150.0 kg | Joachim Kunz East Germany | 150.0 kg | Mincho Pashov Bulgaria | 147.5 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Joachim Kunz East Germany | 190.0 kg | Mincho Pashov Bulgaria | 182.5 kg | Karl-Heinz Radschinsky West Germany | 175.0 kg |
| Total | Joachim Kunz East Germany | 340.0 kg | Mincho Pashov Bulgaria | 330.0 kg | Daniel Senet France | 320.0 kg |
| 75 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Yanko Rusev Bulgaria | 157.5 kg | Aleksandr Pervy Soviet Union | 155.0 kg | Julio Echenique Cuba | 152.5 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Yanko Rusev Bulgaria | 202.5 kg | Aleksandr Pervy Soviet Union | 202.5 kg | Hermann Kubenka East Germany | 190.0 kg |
| Total | Yanko Rusev Bulgaria | 360.0 kg WR | Aleksandr Pervy Soviet Union | 357.5 kg | Julio Echenique Cuba | 340.0 kg |
| 82.5 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Yurik Vardanyan Soviet Union | 170.0 kg | Asen Zlatev Bulgaria | 170.0 kg | Janusz Alchimowicz Poland | 160.0 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Yurik Vardanyan Soviet Union | 222.5 kg | Dušan Poliačik Czechoslovakia | 210.0 kg | Asen Zlatev Bulgaria | 202.5 kg |
| Total | Yurik Vardanyan Soviet Union | 392.5 kg | Asen Zlatev Bulgaria | 372.5 kg | Dušan Poliačik Czechoslovakia | 367.5 kg |
| 90 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Blagoy Blagoev Bulgaria | 185.0 kg WR | Yury Zakharevich Soviet Union | 180.0 kg | Andrzej Piotrowski Poland | 167.5 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Blagoy Blagoev Bulgaria | 220.0 kg | Yury Zakharevich Soviet Union | 217.5 kg | Lubomir Usherov Bulgaria | 212.5 kg |
| Total | Blagoy Blagoev Bulgaria | 405.0 kg | Yury Zakharevich Soviet Union | 397.5 kg | Lubomir Usherov Bulgaria | 380.0 kg |
| 100 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Viktor Sots Soviet Union | 182.5 kg | András Hlavati Hungary | 177.5 kg | Bruno Matykiewicz Czechoslovakia | 175.0 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Viktor Sots Soviet Union | 225.0 kg | Veselin Osikovski Bulgaria | 217.5 kg | Bruno Matykiewicz Czechoslovakia | 217.5 kg |
| Total | Viktor Sots Soviet Union | 407.5 kg | Bruno Matykiewicz Czechoslovakia | 392.5 kg | Veselin Osikovski Bulgaria | 387.5 kg |
| 110 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Vyacheslav Klokov Soviet Union | 185.0 kg | Valery Kravchuk Soviet Union | 180.0 kg | Plamen Asparukhov Bulgaria | 180.0 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Valery Kravchuk Soviet Union | 235.0 kg | Anton Baraniak Czechoslovakia | 227.5 kg | Plamen Asparukhov Bulgaria | 225.0 kg |
| Total | Valery Kravchuk Soviet Union | 415.0 kg | Vyacheslav Klokov Soviet Union | 410.0 kg | Plamen Asparukhov Bulgaria | 405.0 kg |
| +110 kg |||||||
| Snatch | Anatoly Pisarenko Soviet Union | 187.5 kg | Rudolf Strejček Czechoslovakia | 187.5 kg | Antonio Krastev Bulgaria | 185.0 kg |
| Clean & Jerk | Anatoly Pisarenko Soviet Union | 237.5 kg | Senno Salzwedel East Germany | 237.5 kg | Tadeusz Rutkowski Poland | 232.5 kg |
| Total | Anatoly Pisarenko Soviet Union | 425.0 kg | Senno Salzwedel East Germany | 417.5 kg | Tadeusz Rutkowski Poland | 415.0 kg |

## Medal table

Ranking by Big (Total result) medals
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Soviet Union | 5 | 3 | 2 | 10 |
| 2 | Bulgaria | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| 3 | East Germany | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Cuba | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 4 | Czechoslovakia | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 4 | Poland | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 7 | France | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | Japan | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (8 entries) | Totals (8 entries) | 10 | 10 | 10 | 30 |
Ranking by all medals: Big (Total result) and Small (Snatch and Clean & Jerk)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
| 1 | Soviet Union | 15 | 8 | 6 | 29 |
| 2 | Bulgaria | 10 | 7 | 9 | 26 |
| 3 | East Germany | 3 | 5 | 1 | 9 |
| 4 | Cuba | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 5 | France | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | Czechoslovakia | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 7 | Poland | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 8 | Hungary | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | North Korea | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Japan | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 11 | West Germany | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (11 entries) | Totals (11 entries) | 30 | 30 | 30 | 90 |