Mastering Olympic Weightlifting Techniques: Snatch, Clean and Jerk, and Grip

As of today, there are two lifts conducted at the Olympics Weightlifting – the snatch, and the clean and jerk. The sport has evolved and excluded many lifts like the clean and press and all of the one-arm lifts. In competition, every athlete gets three attempts at each lift, and the sum of the highest weight successfully lifted in each event is the basis of the scoring.

A thorough critical analysis goes behind judging every lift in a major competition. International bodies governing the sport have worked over the years to make this judging process as objective as possible to avoid any bias. There is a need for an unbiased and consistent scoring system as an unfavorable judgment means that an attempt would be disallowed and would not be considered. As you can imagine, this would significantly change the outcome of any competition. 

Prerequisites for Olympic Weightlifting:

As one learns the sport, a few basic techniques are what the athletes can’t get without. Out of which, the squat is one of the most important movements to master as both of the events require some variation of the squat. The athlete needs to build a sense of consistency with the pattern of squat, abiding by a certain set of key principles. Of course, each lifter will have differences in proportions for which, the width and angle of foot placement will be very individualised.

The front squat is specific to the loading patterns of the clean and is routinely used in training. The athletes need to maintain the trunk in extension and keep it as upright as possible throughout the exercise. It is also essential for them to use the particular grip that they use for the clean and jerk.

Mastery of the overhead squat is a must for both the jerk and the snatch in Weightlifting. It trains the athlete for the receiving phases of the snatch and squat jerk. This exercise can be very challenging due to the higher demands of mobility from the shoulder, trunk, and hips. Additionally, the athlete requires tremendous stability to move the weight along a vertical path while maintaining the weight between the stance, close to the center.

The Snatch:

In the snatch the athlete is required to directly lift the barbell overhead in one motion without pausing in between. To a novice observer, the existence of two events might seem redundant, but once we discuss the biomechanical implications of each lift, one would begin to understand the key differences between the two events. 

The bar is held wider than while performing the clean, and coaches use the hip crease as a reference point for determining the grip width for their athletes. When the athlete is standing with the arms extended, the bar should be exactly at the level where the hips flex. This leads to an effective force transfer to the bar.

Although the lift happens smoothly in a seemingly continuous movement, it is beneficial to divide it into phases. This helps the athlete to analyse the lift to find specific areas that need improvement.

Phases of the snatch:

• Starting position – requiring ankle and hip mobility, back extension, and a wide grip.
• First pull – the movement of the barbell from the floor, crossing the knee and approaching mid-thigh level.
• Transition – the bar comes at the hip level, done by slight flexion (bending) at the knees again. The end of this phase is called the power position.
• Second pull – this phase includes the transition phase and here there is straightening of the knees added with extension at the hips and the ankles. It is sometimes also referred to as triple extension.
• Third pull – The athlete drops under the bar while rotating shoulders outwards and bending at the hips and knees.
• Receiving – the athlete is under the bar and the weight is supported by completely extended elbows overhead. 

From the receiving position, the athlete performs an overhead squat to stand erect and complete the lift.

The Clean and Jerk:

As the names might suggest, the clean and jerk event involves lifting the weight overhead in two steps: the clean is when the bar is lifted off the ground and rested on the shoulders; the jerk is a part of the event where the barbell is thrust overhead.

The jerk can be performed in a few variations. The most commonly used is the split jerk, where one foot is placed ahead of the other, similar to a forward lunge stance. The squat jerk and power jerk are the other 2 methods, although they are used less often in training and Weightlifting competition. Notably, the athlete has to use their lower body to perform the jerk, allowing for a greater overall power production. This is not the case in the clean and press event, which was discontinued at the Olympics in 1972. 

Phases of the clean:

There are a few common phases where the movement is very similar, with a change in the grip width on the bar.

• Starting position – narrow grip as compared to that of the snatch.
• First pull
• Transition
• Second pull
• Third pull – the athlete bends from the elbows, rotating them under the barbell, such that the palms face upwards.
• Receiving position – the elbows point forward, the shoulders are flexed to about 90 degrees, and the load of the barbell is taken in the front squat position.

The athlete then extends the hips and knees to stand up and prepare for the jerk. Where the athlete has to end the lift with the bar overhead in an extended position of the elbows.

Phases of the jerk:

• Jerk dip – the athlete bends from the knees and hips to prepare for the force production
• Jerk drive – here, the athlete extends from the lower body to impart force on the barbell to propel it upwards. 
• Jerk receiving position – the respective stance is taken and the athlete locks out from the elbows and shoulders. This phase requires a great deal of shoulder stability, core control, and balance.

The hook grip: 

Weightlifting athletes are known to use a very peculiar grip for their lifts and other exercises. The hook grip differs from a conventional overhand grip by the position of the thumb. In a regular overhand grip, the thumb is placed over the fingers, whereas in the hook grip, the thumb is placed between the bar and usually the first and second fingers. The palms in both grips face towards the lifter. 

The hook grip can be quite uncomfortable and painful to use and requires patience from the lifter to allow for adaptation. The benefits, however, are significant. The hook grip increases the integrity of the grip without reducing the involvement of the first two fingers. It also prevents the bar from rolling out of the fingers while lifting heavy loads by creating a balanced system of forces around the bar. 

You might be thinking that there already exists a grip that prevents the bar from rolling out of the fingers which is routinely used in powerlifting exercises – the mixed grip. But if we look at the weightlifting events, it is easy to understand why the mixed grip cannot be used for the clean and jerk, and the snatch. It would be impossible to perform the movements with a supinated (underhand) side.

The athletes train throughout the year with variations in the load and volume, based on certain periodization principles. Just like training for any other sport requires exercises other than the sport itself, weightlifters also need to perform exercises in their training that are different from the lifts themselves. Many times, these exercises are a component of the lift, and are chosen based on the areas of focus for the particular athlete. The athletes also need to undergo a general strengthening program that includes fundamental Weightlifting movements to work on an all-round development of the athletes. This training plan takes care of any imbalances in the athlete profile.

Conclusion

Weightlifters often struggle with mobility, which needs to be included in some proportions throughout the training calendar. Some athletes might benefit from stability exercises for the core, shoulder girdle and the pelvis.

Communication and critical discussions, if done efficiently, can make all the difference in the athlete’s performance especially when the athlete is dealing with specific issues like an injury or its risk factor, or just a technical correction.