Another important recognition is received by Pyrrhus Dimas. More specifically, the 4-time Olympic champion was announced as an official ambassador of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF).
This honorary assignment is in recognition of Pyrrhus Dimas’ significant achievements in the sport of weightlifting, his international prominence and his long-standing contribution to the promotion and development of the sport on a global level.
Pyrros Dimas is a four-time Olympic champion, winning the gold medal at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics, while he completed his illustrious athletic career at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where he won the bronze medal in front of the Greek public.
He is considered the most successful weightlifter in the annals of the IWF and at the same time the most successful Greek athlete regardless of sport. He was also a three-time world champion in 1993, 1995 and 1998, and was inducted into the World Weightlifting Hall of Fame in 2009.
Pyrros Dimas, who is a member of the IWF Executive Council and chairs the International Federation’s Innovation Committee, has been an inspiration to generations of athletes in Greece and around the world, and now in his new role he can take the message of the sport to an even wider audience.
“It is a great honour for me to receive this recognition and I am truly humbled to be the ‘face’ of weightlifting for fans of the sport on all five continents. I take on this new role with a great sense of responsibility as I want to contribute in the best possible way to the promotion of the sport I love,” said the Olympic legend.
While adding: “At the same time, I will dedicate all my efforts to further strengthen the position and value of weightlifting within the Olympic Movement. It should not be forgotten that weightlifting was one of the nine founding sports of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens. We have a long and successful tradition.”
“From the moment I retired from active duty, I tried in every capacity to give as much as I could to the sport. The title of Ambassador is the culmination of that effort. We know that not every child who starts a sporting activity will become a champion, but they will certainly become part of a happier and healthier world – and that remains the most important thing,” concluded Pyrrhus Dimas.
