Lasha Talakhadze (; ; born 2 October 1993) is a Georgian weightlifter, holding the all-time world records independent of weight category in the snatch (225 kg, 496 lb), the clean and jerk (267 kg, 589 lb), and the total (492 kg, 1,085 lb) since 2021.

Talakhadze is a three-time Olympic champion, seven-time world champion, and seven-time European champion competing in the super-heavyweight category (105 kg + until 2018 and 109 kg + starting in 2018 after the International Weightlifting Federation reorganized the categories). He is a three-time winner of the IWF Male Lifter of the Year.

Since 2024, Talakhadze is a parliamentarian for the Georgian Dream party in Georgia.

Career Early career and +105 kg division Talakhadze represented Georgia at the 2015 World Weightlifting Championships, and originally finished second with a total of 454 kg. In December 2015, Aleksey Lovchev (the original gold medalist and world record holder in the clean & jerk and total) failed a drug test for Ipamorelin. The IWF stripped his gold medal and rescinded his world records, and as a result Talakhadze became world champion.

At the 2016 Olympics he completed a snatch of 215 kg to break the world record of 214 kg set by Behdad Salimi (who took the record back with 216 kg, equaling the all-time highest set by Antonio Krastev of Bulgaria in 1987). In the clean & jerk portion of the competition, Behdad Salimi initially completed a 245 kg lift on his second attempt, but it was overruled by the 5 member jury, and was unable to complete his third attempt of 245 kg. Lasha then completed his next lift of 247 kg, giving him the lead after Salimi did not make a lift. He then completed a clean & jerk of 258 kg to set a new world record total of 473 kg and won the gold medal by a 22 kg margin over silver medallist Gor Minasyan.

In his first competition after winning the gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics, he set a new world record in the snatch at the 2017 European Weightlifting Championships with 217 kg, and in the process broke the all-time highest snatch of 216 kg set by Antonio Krastev in 1987, and matched by Behdad Salimi at the 2016 Olympics.

At the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships, Talakhadze broke his own snatch record with 220 kg, giving him a 9 kg lead over former world record holder Behdad Salimi. In the clean & jerk portion of the competition he lifted 257 kg which set a new world record for the total with 477 kg, also breaking the all-time highest total of Leonid Taranenko from 1988. In the competition he won all three gold medals, set 2 world records and had a 23 kg lead over the silver medalist Saeid Alihosseini.

+109 kg division In 2018, the IWF restructured the weight classes and nullified the existing world records. The 2018 World Weightlifting Championships were the first international competition with new weight classes and Talakhadze competed in the +109 kg category. In the snatch portion of the competition he opened with 207 kg which placed him in the gold medal position with Gor Minasyan being the only competitor with another attempt. After Minasyan missed his third attempt, Talakhadze had the gold medal in the snatch secured. For his last two lifts, after securing the gold medal, he completed two world record lifts of 212 kg and 217 kg to put him 12 kg ahead of Minasyan after the snatch portion. In the clean & jerk portion of the competition he completed his first lift of 245 kg which set a new world record in the total, and would have won the gold medal in the total if he did not complete any more lifts. After Mart Seim failed to make a 251 kg clean & jerk, Talakhadze completed a world record lift of 252 kg for his second lift. He finished the competition with another world record lift of 257 kg, and finished with a 474 kg total, a full 24 kg over silver medalist Minasyan.

In 2019, he competed in the 2019 European Weightlifting Championships which was held in Batumi in his home country of Georgia. Apart from being the heavy favorite to win the +109 kg category, there were expectations that Talakhadze would increase upon his current world records. In the snatch portion of the competition he lifted 208 kg in his first attempt (which would have been good for a gold medal), and then set a new world record with a 218 kg lift. Coming into the clean & jerk portion he led fellow Georgian weightlifter Irakli Turmanidze by 12 kg, and his first lift of 245 kg secured him the gold medal in the total. His second lift of 260 kg set a new world record in the clean & jerk and in the total. His total world record of 478 kg set during the competition was the highest total ever achieved in weightlifting, the previous highest of 477 kg was set by himself in 2017.

Fresh off of his victory at the 2019 European Weightlifting Championships, he again looked like the heavy favorite to win his fourth World Championships. During the snatch portion of the 2019 World Weightlifting Championships he completed a 215 kg lift which secured him a gold medal, his third lift of 220 kg tied his performance at the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships, where he lifted 220 kg in the old 105 kg category, as the heaviest snatch of all time. During the clean & jerk portion he secured gold medals in the total and clean & jerk with his second lift of 255 kg. His third lift of 264 kg in the clean & jerk set a new world record in the clean & jerk and total, his total of 484 kg was the highest total recorded in international competition in history.

In 2021, he won the gold medal in the men's +109 kg event at the 2021 World Weightlifting Championships held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, breaking his own records in the snatch —225 kg—, the clean and jerk —267 kg— and in the total —492 kg.

In June 2022, at the European Weightlifting Championships, recovering from an injury in his left leg, he again took first place, becoming a six-time European champion with a score of 217–245–462.

At the 2022 World Championships in Bogotá, Colombia, in the category over 109 kg, he won the champion title in the sum of two exercises with a result of 466 kg and also had both small gold medals (in the snatch with a result of 215 kg and the clean and jerk with 251 kg).

In Yerevan, at the 2023 European Championships, in the over 109 kg category, Lasha won a gold medal by lifting a total of 474 kg. He also won gold medals in both the snatch and the clean and jerk.

In Saudi Arabia, where the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships took place, Lasha again won the world champion title — the seventh in his career with a result of 473 kg in the total. He also won gold medals in the snatch and the clean and jerk.

In February 2024, he withdrew from the European Championships in Sofia after an injury in one of his knees.

In August 2024, Talakhadze won third Olympic gold medal in weightlifting. He defended his third title in men's +102kg weightlifting at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. He took the win lifting 215 kg in the Snatch and 255 kg in the Clean & Jerk for a total of 470 kg. He defeated his opponent Armenia's Varazdat Lalayan, who took silver on 467 kg.

Member of Parliament On 26 June 2026, Talakhadze was involved in a physical altercation during a brawl that erupted in the Georgian Parliament. The incident occurred during the final plenary sitting of the spring session, which was dedicated to Irakli Kobakhidze's annual government report. Footage published by media outlets clearly identified Talakhadze striking an opponent from behind, along with Archil Gorduladze, chair of the legal issues committee, also physically striking opponents during the confrontation.

Awards and recognition World records Throughout his career he has set 26 official senior world records.

Other awards In 2016, due to his world record setting performance at the 2016 Summer Olympics Talakhadze was awarded the President's Order of Excellence by Giorgi Margvelashvili. In 2017 and in 2018, the Georgian National Olympic Committee awarded him the title of Georgia's Sportsperson of the Year. In 2018 he was named the IWF Male Lifter of the Year for 2017. In 2019 he was named IWF Male Lifter of the Year for 2018.

Personal life 2013 doping ban In 2013, Talakhadze was banned from competition for 2 years after testing positive for the performance enhancing drug stanozolol.

Major results Year Venue Weight Snatch (kg) Clean & Jerk (kg) Total Rank 1 2 3 Rank 1 2 3 Rank Olympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil +105 kg 205 210 215 242 247 258 473 OR 2021 Tokyo, Japan +109 kg 208 215 223 OR 245 255 265 OR 488 OR 2024 Paris, France +102 kg 210 215 220 247 255 — 470 World Championships 2010 Antalya, Turkey +105 kg 157 162 162 27 180 180 — — — — 2011 Paris, France +105 kg175180 187 15207207 — 2438719 2015 Houston, United States +105 kg 200 200 207 238 247 247 454 2017 Anaheim, United States +105 kg 210215220 243250257477 2018 Ashgabat, Turkmenistan +109 kg 207 212 217 245 252 257 474 2019 Pattaya, Thailand +109 kg 208 215 220 247 255 264 484 2021 Tashkent, Uzbekistan +109 kg 210 218 225 CWR 247 257 267 CWR 492 CWR 2022 Bogotá, Colombia +109 kg 208 215 220 245 245 251 466 2023 Riyadh, Saudi Arabia +109 kg 208 215 220 245 253 260 473 European Championships 2016 Førde, Norway +105 kg 200 207 212 235 241 251 463 2017 Split, Croatia +105 kg 203 210 217 238 245 250 467 2018 Bucharest, Romania +105 kg 200 210 221 235 247 — 457 2019 Batumi, Georgia +109 kg 208 218 — 245 260 — 478 2021 Moscow, Russia +109 kg 211 217 222 245 253 263 485 2022 Tirana, Albania +109 kg 208 212 217 245 253 — 462 2023 Yerevan, Armenia +109 kg 210 217 222 246 252 — 474 World Junior Championships 2013 Lima, Peru +105 kg 185 190 195 217 221 — 411 European Junior & U23 Championships 2011 Bucharest, Romania +105 kg 175 180 185 205 212 217 402 2012 Eilat, Israel +105 kg 175 183 190 205 222 232 412 2013 Tallinn, Estonia +105 kg 182 190 — — 210 225 — — DSQ — 2016 Eilat, Israel +105 kg 193 200 205 222 235 — 440 European Youth Championships 2010 Valencia, Spain +94 kg 150 155 158 175 182 187 345 IWF Tournaments2019 Gaziantep, TurkeyInternational Naim Süleymanoğlu Tournament +109 kg 193 200 208 227 242 — 450 IWF World Cup 2020 Rome, Italy +109 kg 200 210 215 235 245 255 470

Table of world records

Discipline Result (kg) Location Competition Date+105 kgSnatch215 Rio de Janeiro, BrazilSummer Olympics16 August 2016Total473Snatch217 Split, CroatiaEuropean Championships8 April 2017220 Anaheim, United StatesWorld Championships5 December 2017Total477+109 kgSnatch212 Ashgabat, TurkmenistanWorld Championships10 November 2018217Total462Clean & jerk252Total469Clean & jerk257Total474Snatch218 Batumi, GeorgiaEuropean Championships13 April 2019Clean & jerk260Total478Snatch220 Pattaya, ThailandWorld Championships27 September 2019Clean & jerk264Total484Snatch222 Moscow, RussiaEuropean Championships11 April 2021Total485Snatch223 Tokyo, JapanSummer Olympics4 August 2021Clean & jerk265Total488Snatch225 Tashkent, UzbekistanWorld Championships17 December 2021Clean & jerk267Total492

Notes His 220 kg snatch was a world record until 2018 when the IWF restructured the weight classes. He has since surpassed that lift for a current personal best and world record in the +109 kg category of 225 kg set at the 2021 World Championships. His personal bests (on video in training) are 225 kg snatch and a 270 kg clean and jerk.

References

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