Two weightlifting events are contested at the first Olympic Games of the modern era in Athens in 1896 - the men's one-hand lift and the men's two-hand lift. 

The top two places are claimed by the same two men in each event, although their order is reversed.

Britain's Launceston Elliot claims gold in the one-hand lift in front of Denmark's Viggo Jensen, who takes top honours in the two-hand lift.

Many years later at Athens 2004, China topped the medals table for a second successive Olympics. They won two golds in men's competition and three in the women's. 

Shi Zhiyong beat Le Maosheng in a Chinese battle in the men's featherweight final.

Hossein Rezazadeh of Iran won the over-105kg gold for the second Games in a row.

Two events are held in weightlifting in the American city - this time the men's two-hand lift and the men's all-around dumbbell. 

Greece's Perikles Kakousis tops the podium in the two-hand lift ahead of American Oscar Osthoff, who wins the all-around dumbbell event.

Weightlifting returns to the Olympic programme for the first time since 1904 with competition in five men's weight classes. 

France top the medal table with two golds thanks to winning performances from Henri Gance at middleweight and Ernest Cadine at light heavyweight.  

Competition consists of five weight classes in the French capital and, despite hosts France winning two gold medals once again, it is Italy who top the overall standings with three. 

Pierino Gabetti takes the featherweight crown, while Carlo Galimberti and Giuseppe Tonani come away with the middleweight and heavyweight titles respectively.

Germany are the strongest performers on this occasion, claiming two gold medals and a bronze. 

Kurt Helbig shares the lightweight title in the Dutch capital with Austria's Hans Haas, while Josef Strassberger triumphs in the heavyweight division. 

At Los Angeles 1932, France return to the top of the overall medals standings courtesy of success for Raymond Suvigny, René Duverger and Louis Hostin in the featherweight, lightweight and light heavyweight categories respectively.  

In 1984, the Soviet-led boycott of the Los Angeles Games meant that the most dominant forces in weightlifting at the time, the Soviet Union and Bulgaria, did not take part. 

China emerged as a powerhouse of the sport, winning gold medals through flyweight Zeng Guoqiang, bantamweight Wu Shude, featherweight Chen Weiqiang and lightweight Yao Jingyuan.

This saw them top the medal table in front of Romania.

Egypt end Europe's domination by heading the medals table with two gold medals. 

Anwar Mesbah shares the top of the lightweight podium with Austria's Robert Fein, while Khadr El Touni wins the middleweight crown. 

Louis Hostin of France becomes a two-time Olympic champion by defending his light heavyweight gold from Los Angeles 1932.

After a break for war, the bantamweight division is added in London in 1948.

This is the first change to the Olympic weightlifting programme since 1920. 

American Joseph De Pietro claims the inaugural crown, while compatriots Frank Spellman, Stanley Stanczyk and John Davis win the middleweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight gold medals respectively to place the United States on top of the pile.

Egypt win the two other titles available.

China prove to be the dominant nation for the fourth successive Olympics at London 2012 as they win five gold medals.

Lightweight Lin Qingfeng and middleweight Lü Xiaojun both win men's gold for China, while flyweight Wang Mingjuan, lightweight Li Xueying and super heavyweight Zhou Lulu take top honours in women's competitions.

For Lü, it is the first of his three Olympic golds in a row.

The middle-heavyweight division is added in Helsinki, moving the heavyweight class up from 82.5 kilograms to 90kg. 

Victory for Norbert Schemansky in the newly-created category is one of four golds for the United States, who top the medals table for the second Games in a row.

Their champions include John Davis who makes it back-to-back heavyweight titles.

The United States claim a third straight medal table win with gold medals clinched by bantamweight Charles Vinci, featherweight Isaac Berger, light heavyweight Tommy Kono and heavyweight Paul Anderson. 

For Kono it is a second successive Olympic title after his lightweight crown in Helsinki in 1952.

The Soviet Union have to settle for the runners-up spot again with three golds.  

The Soviet Union get the better of the United States after their recent rivalry, winning five gold medals and three directly at the expense of the Americans.

Featherweight Yevgeny Minayev, middleweight Aleksandr Kurynov and heavyweight Yury Vlasov all beat American opposition in their respective finals.  

Soviet Arkady Vorobyov wins a second Olympic title in a row at middle-heavyweight.

Charles Vinci of the US makes it back-to-back golds at bantamweight.

The Soviet Union prevail at the top of the medal table for the second successive Games at Tokyo 1964, winning four gold medals through bantamweight Aleksey Vakhonin, light heavyweight Rudolf Plyukfelder, middle-heavyweight Vladimir Golovanov and heavyweight Leonid Zhabotinsky.

Yoshinobu Miyake of hosts Japan wins the first of his back-to-back Olympic titles at under-60 kilograms.

One men's event is eliminated from the programme at Tokyo 2020, bringing the total number of competitions down to 14.

China win a huge seven gold medals to top the pile for the sixth consecutive Games, as no other country manages more than one.

Lü Xiaojun wins his third consecutive Olympic title in the men's under-81kg.

Shi Zhiyong adds to his gold from Rio 2016 in the men's under-73kg and Lasha Talakhadze of Georgia defends his super heavyweight title.

Leonid Zhabotinsky successfully defends his heavyweight crown as the Soviet Union finish top of the medals table for the third consecutive Games with three golds. 

Viktor Kurentsov and Boris Selitsky claim the middleweight and light heavyweight titles respectively.  

Yoshinobu Miyake of Japan wins the under-60kg gold for the second consecutive Games, while Poland's Waldemar Baszanowski makes it consecutive lightweight titles.

The flyweight and super heavyweight classes are introduced in Germany - the first changes to the Olympic programme since 1952. 

It is also the last year that the clean and press features as one of the lifts due to difficulties in judging proper technique. 

Bulgaria end the Soviet Union’s supremacy, topping the medals table with three golds and three silvers.

Vasily Alekseyev of the Soviet Union wins the first of his two super heavyweight titles in a row.

The Soviet Union bounce back in emphatic fashion after losing top spot four years previously, claiming seven gold medals. 

Vasily Alekseyev is among the Soviet winners as he successfully defends his super heavyweight title.

Elsewhere, Norair Nurikyan of Bulgaria becomes a two-time Olympic champion.

The men's heavyweight division is divided into two categories - the under-100kg and under-110kg.

This increases the number of weight divisions to 10. 

Light heavyweight Yurik Vardanyan and heavyweight Leonid Taranenko both set world records to secure two of the Soviet Union's unrivalled total of five gold medals.

The Soviet Union returned to Olympic weightlifting action to devastating effect, topping the medals table with six golds. 

This included success in the five heaviest classes on the programme.

Naim Süleymanoğlu won the men's 60kg class for Turkey, the first of his three Olympic titles in a row.

The Unified Team, which replaced the Soviet Union following the break-up of the country, finished top of the medal standings with five golds.

Naim Süleymanoğlu wins the second of his Olympic titles for Turkey and there is the emergence of Greece's Pyrros Dimas and Kakhi Kakhiashvili, representing the Unified Team.

Both win gold and will go on to add two more in their careers.

Aleksandr Kurlovich wins a second Olympic title representing the Unified Team.

The range of each weight class is adjusted by one kilogram to four kilograms for these Games, marking the first redefinition since 1920. 

Greece, China, Russia and Turkey all win two gold medals each, and three silver medals for the Greeks see them top the medals table.

There is a third Olympic title for Naim Süleymanoğlu, while Pyrros Dimas and Kakhi Kakhiashvili claim their second gold medals.

Competition at these Games sees the introduction of women's weightlifting for the first time, across seven weight categories.

The number of men's divisions comes down to eight. 

China win four of the women's titles and add another gold medal in the men’s middleweight division to top the standings with five. 

Pyrros Dimas of Greece and Kakhi Kakhiashvili, now also representing the Greeks, win their third Olympic titles.

Zhan Xugang of China wins his second Olympic title in a row.

China win another five gold medals to top the standings again at their home Olympics.

Chen Yanqing successfully defends her women's lightweight title as hosts China come out on top once more with eight gold medals.

The Chinese win six gold medals - four more than their nearest challengers - to sit on top of the medal table for the fifth Olympic Games in a row.

Long Qingquan wins his second Olympic gold at under-56kg, eight years after his first at Beijing 2008, while Lü Xiaojun adds the second of what will later be his three titles.

In women's action, Rim Jong-sim of North Korea made it back-to-back Olympic gold medals.