The Snatch, Clean & Jerk
So, this should be the easy bit as a Technical Official, right? You’re likely also a weightlifter, maybe you’re a coach or an avid spectator of the sport… either way it’s unlikely you’ve come to the role of the TO without some prior knowledge of the Snatch, Clean and Jerk. But the truth is, despite there being just the two lifts to officiate, there’s an awful lot to watch out for. Some infringements are easier to spot that others, and some lifts are easier to make a call on. I remember the first time I saw someone do a split snatch on a competition platform… officiating that was quite jarring in the first instance…!
From our experience, there are some elements of the lifts that are harder for TO’s to make judgment calls than others – we’ve tried to make the descriptions or explanations here as simple as we can, but if you have any questions, drop us a line in the contact us box, and we’ll do our best to help.
Incorrect movements for both lifts
- Stopping or pausing during the pull (for example at hang – this is most frequently seen in masters lifters, sometimes the pull slows down but doesn’t stop, however if there is a clear pause in the pull at any point, i.e the bar does not go from the floor to overhead or to the front rack in one movement, that is a no lift).
- Touching the platform with any part of the body other than the feet (most notably the bottom or the knee).
- Leaving the platform or touching the area outside of the platform before the lift is complete.
- Not replacing the complete barbell on the platform at the end of the lift (as the bar is lowered, it can clip the edge of the platform and bounce off – this is still good).
- Not facing centre ref at start of lift.
- Lowering the barbell before the down signal.
- Feet aren’t in line at the end of the lift.
- Body not motionless at the end of the lift. The bar rotating (helicoptering), causing the athletes body to turn is still considered motion and therefore they must stop the momentum of the spin and become stationary.
- Be aware of lifters that ‘who, for any reason, cannot fully extend the elbow(s)’, eg are unable to fully lock out the elbow. This is fine but it is up to the athlete to display this fact (by touching or pointing to the elbow(s). Failure to do so means that the lifters inability to lock out results in a no lift.
Snatch
- Be aware of uneven arms or a press in the overhead position.
- A bounce back, or ‘lock unlock’ in the elbows at the bottom of the snatch, ie the elbows go from a locked position, to buckling slightly and then re-locking, this is a no lift.
- Any pause of the barbell is a no lift.
- Knee dropping to platform no lift.
- Ensure legs are fully extended at the end of the lift.
Clean & Jerk
- Be aware of a double movement or pause at contact of thigh.
- Be aware of ‘dirty clean’ – where the bar is cleaned up to chest and then moved onto the shoulders. You will notice a clear double movement when this occurs.
- Elbows can’t touch knees, if they do hit red immediately.
- Lifter must be completely still in between clean and jerk.
- Before the Jerk, the Lifter can adjust the position of the barbell to;
– a) Withdraw or “unhook” the thumbs.
– b) If breathing is impeded
– c) If the barbell causes pain
– d) To change the width of the grip - The barbell adjustments noted above are not considered to be an additional attempt at the jerk.
- Any jerk attempt that is not completed (dip and drive / dip) is a no lift including knee bend
- Check the knees are fully extended at end of lift.
- Oscillation to gain advantage:
– The bar is allowed to naturally oscillate when the lifter stands up from a lift. A lifter can take advantage of this natural oscillation which generally happens with a very quick lead into the Jerk from the Clean.
– The lifter is not allowed to maintain/encourage the continuation of the oscillation (eg, bouncing the knees or pulsing the elbows etc.).
– In the C&J, as the lifter must remain stationary between lifts, watch the lifters arms, shoulders, and legs to see if they are causing a purposeful oscillation of the bar.
– However, the lifter is allowed to take a deep breath which may cause oscillation providing they jerk soon after. Taking several breaths to deliberately encourage oscillation is a no lift.
Summary
There are a lot of things to look out for as a referee, when officiating the snatch, clean & jerk. Helpfully, there is a natural order to the observation that you get used to, the more you do it. Until then, one thing we’ve found helpful as we’ve tried to improve as officials, is testing each other with weightlifting videos on social media. Observing a lift, judging it as good or bad, and then checking our decision and explanation with one another – to learn but also get used to some of the more challenging infringements to spot – namely, oscillation and the press out. However, the rules for this test is that we must watch the video is full speed first, make the call, and then review. It’s unfair to watch a lift in slow-mo as this is something you don’t have the chance to do unless on the Jury at a major comp. We’re working on a video library of examples for the no lift infringements as a resource for developing these skills, too. You can find these on our YouTube and Instagram as well as throughout TO the bar, as we update them.