Manchester To Stage 2021 Para Powerlifting World Cup and Tokyo Paralympic Qualifier

British Weight Lifting, UK Sport and Manchester City Council are delighted to announce that Manchester will host a World Para Powerlifting World Cup in the city in March 2021.

Taking place at Wythenshawe Forum, the National Lottery funded Manchester 2021 Para Powerlifting World Cup and Tokyo Paralympic Qualifier will be held between 25-28 March 2021.

The announcement to host a major Paralympic qualifier in the UK, comes on the back of hosting a very successful World Para Powerlifting World Cup in Manchester in February 2020, where British lifters claimed 12 medals.  With the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games now just nine months away this competition will be a standout opportunity for the Paralympic movements strongest athletes to achieve the ranking places needed to make the Games.

The competition will be one of the final qualification events for athletes aspiring to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, following an extension to the qualification period due to the disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Commonwealth silver medallist, Louise Sugden, said: “After the success of the Manchester 2020 Para Powerlifting World Cup, I’m incredibly excited to hear this event will be returning in 2021 thanks to the support from Manchester City Council, British Weightlifting and UK Sport. The organisation of this event in 2020 was absolutely world class and, as a result, it was a great competition to be part of from an athlete’s perspective. It gives us an opportunity to compete after such a long period without competitions and provides something to work towards without the stress and challenges involved in international travel.

“The competition will provide a brilliant opportunity for Great Britain’s athletes looking to secure qualification to the postponed Paralympic games and invaluable experience for the next generation of British Para Powerlifting athletes. It is always an honour to have the opportunity to compete in front of a home crowd filled with family and friends and I hope, if I’m selected, I can produce another performance to be proud of which will contribute to my qualification for Tokyo 2021.”

Ashley Metcalfe, CEO for British Weight Lifting commented “I am delighted that we will be hosting the WPPO World Cup in March.  I would like to thank UK Sport and Manchester City Council for their support and providing this fantastic opportunity to showcase Para Powerlifting in a city renowned for world class sport.

“We look forward to welcoming lifters from across the globe and hope it will inspire not just our leading lifters to perform at their very best and strengthen their bids to be selected for Tokyo but also the next generation of athletes keen to get in involved in a hugely exciting and passionate sport.”

Esther Britten, Acting Deputy Director of Major Events at UK Sport said: “The announcement of the World Para Powerlifting World Cup is brilliant news as we look to get back to hosting major international sporting events that will help British athletes qualify and prepare for Tokyo. We thoroughly enjoyed working with event hosting partners to deliver the previous event and are very much looking forward to doing the same again.”

Councillor Luthfur Rahman OBE, Manchester City Council's Executive Member for Culture and Leisure, said: “We're proud to be working with British Weight Lifting and UK Sport to welcome some of the world's top Para Powerlifters to the fully accessible Wythenshawe Forum.  With plans being put in place to ensure that this World Cup event can be staged in a Covid-safe manner, it will provide Britain's leading stars with a great opportunity to qualify for the upcoming Tokyo Paralympic Games."

Jorge Moreno, Head of World Para Powerlifting commented “We look forward to seeing para powerlifters go back to competition on the international stage.  We are confident that Manchester will be the host of an exciting return to competition for all para powerlifting athletes.”

Manchester is a globally recognised sporting capital that has secured its place as an international destination for sport, tourism and business. The city is a leading light in the successful hosting of international sport in this new era, having successfully staged the Manchester Open international squash tournament and the Muller British Athletics Championships in September.  Wythenshawe Forum has previously held a number of international sporting events, including weightlifting and provides a fully accessible venue.

The full calendar of Para Powerlifting events can be viewed here https://www.paralympic.org/powerlifting/events

For more information about this event contact competitions@britishweightlifting.org