IWF President Mohammed Jalood and IWF General Secretary Antonio Urso visited the capital of Armenia to start the process of organising the World Championships. 

During the visit, the IWF President and General Secretary met the journalists at the press conference together with the Armenia’s Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff Arayik Harutyunyan, the Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia Zhanna Andreasyan and the General Secretary of the Armenian Weightlifting Federation Pashik Alaverdyan.

During the press conference, all speakers mentioned the excellent organisation of the 2023 European Weightlifting Championships, which was a key factor in the Executive Board's decision to award the World Championships to Yerevan. 

"This is the second time I am visiting Armenia. In 2023, Armenia made an extraordinary opening ceremony and now everyone is thinking about how to do it even better. We believe that Armenia can organise one of the best World Championships. The 2023 Europeans were one of the best in terms of accommodation, transport and opening ceremony. 

"All countries voted for Armenia to host the 2027 World Cup and it is a very strong message that the Executive Board believes - Armenia can organise the championship at the highest level," said Jalood in his speech.

Antonio Urso went even further, describing the 2023 European Championship as the best in the last 10 years.

"The 2023 European Championship in Armenia was revolutionary in terms of organisation and I think it was the best European Championship in the last ten years. It means that Armenia is capable of organising events at a very high level. And it is a challenge because everyone is curious to see what it will be like in 2027.

"We have to consider that in 2027 we will have more than 600 athletes and more than 120 national teams at the World Championships and all the guests will feel the hospitality of Armenia," said Urso.

According to him, the organising countries now want to learn from Armenia.

"Recently we were in Ningbo, China, which will host the 2026 World Cup, and they told us that they will study the organisation of the 2023 Europeans in Armenia and learn how to do it the best way. This is a good confirmation of how well the tournament was organised".

Zhanna Andreasyan said that Armenia will not only try to maintain the high bar set by the 2023 European Championships, but also to raise the level. 

"We will host the best teams and the best athletes at the 2027 World Championships. We have set a high bar for the organisation of the 2023 European Championships, and we must not only maintain the bar, but also improve it. We are ready to do this in cooperation with the government," said Andreasyan.

According to Andreasyan, it will be a busy year for Armenian sport in 2027, when Armenia will also host the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships and the sporting events of Frankofonia. 

In recent years, Armenia has hosted a number of major sporting events, and Arayik Harutyunyan noted their importance to the country, not only in terms of sport, but also in economic terms. But this is the first time that Armenia will host a world championship in an Olympic sport.

"We have great experience in organising such events in recent years - the European Boxing Championship, the World Sambo Championship, the European Weightlifting Championship, and a few days ago the final round of the Futsal Champions League took place. 

"This is very important for the country economically. The 2023 European Weightlifting Championships were broadcast in more than 200 countries, while the Futsal final was broadcast in 70 countries.

"From now on we will start preparing for the 2027 World Championships. The European Championship 2023 was a real festival of sport and we want it to continue. We have promised the International Weightlifting Federation that we will at least maintain this level," said Harutyunyan.

The 2027 World Championships will be the biggest qualifying event for Los Angeles 2028 and Mohammed Jalood mentioned its importance.

"Armenia is one of the strongest countries in organising big events, especially in weightlifting.  Armenia has good traditions in this sport, I am very proud of it and I wish that Armenian weightlifters will be able to raise the flag of Armenia in Paris 2024.

The IWF will support Armenia to organise the best qualifying tournament for Los Angeles 2028. We will make a plan with the Armenian Weightlifting Federation and the Ministry of Sports to have the best organisation," concluded Jalood.

The IWF President and General Secretary also met with the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and then enjoyed a guided tour of the historic capital of Armenia.