Weightlifting has become the latest sport to suspend its SportAccord membership ©Getty Images

Weightlifting has become the tenth sport to suspend its membership of SportAccord, insidethegames has been told today.

A decision was made "following the opening speech of the President of SportAccord at its General Assembly in Sochi", an International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) spokesperson revealed, and "following the decision of the ASOIF (Association of Summer Olympic International Federations) to suspend their membership from SportAccord", 

The subject will now be presented to the the IWF Congress, due to be held on June 5 prior to the 2015 IWF Junior World Championships in Wroclaw, Poland.

It means the sport joins athletics, shooting, canoeing, archery, boxing, taekwondo, wrestling, bobsleigh and triathlon in leaving SportAccord.

It follows the controversial attacked launched by SportAccord President Marius Vizer on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its President Thomas Bach in Sochi last month.

Vizer, who also leads the International Judo Federation (IJF), alleged the IOC "lacked transparency", that its Agenda 2020 reform process had brought "hardly any benefit" to sport and that it had unfairly blocked SportAccord in its drive to organise new Commissions and multi-sport events.

In addition to the 10 suspensions, every Summer body except for the IJF has also signed a letter supporting the decision of ASOIF to "disassociate" its affiliation with SportAccord, while both the International Paralympic Committee and the Commonwealth Games Federation have made a similar move.

Both boxing and taekwondo have also withdrawn from the SportAccord-organised World Combat Games, due to next take place in Lima in 2017.

United World Wrestling President Nenad Lalovic has said his sport will not participate in any SportAccord event until relations have improved. 

Weightlifting now may not be a part of the World Combat Games following their withdrawal from SportAccord
Weightlifting now may not be a part of the World Combat Games following their withdrawal from SportAccord ©Getty Images

Weightlifting, which was due to feature at the World Combat Games for the first time, will also presumably now not compete unless the decision is reversed, meaning fencing and judo are the only Olympic sports remaining still on the programme.

“It is important to know the history of SportAccord and its predecessor AGFIS/GAISF (General Assembly of International Sports Federations), but unfortunately today I might be the only one who can trace it back from personal experience right to 1977," added IWF President Tamas Ajan.

"As Council Member of AGFIS, I was the one who asked for an Extraordinary Council meeting of AGFIS in the 1980s, which we held at the International Terminal of Zurich Airport so that some Council members do not have to apply for Swiss visa."

"Then and there, I made it clear to Thomas Keller...that as a member of the Council I won’t give my name to anything that might go against the IOC even to the smallest extent.

"History often repeats itself.

"Now, in 2015, the same is happening and my philosophy remains the same about an ideal cooperation with the IOC.”



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