Attempts
How Often Weightlifters Miss
Lifters at national meets make 84% of their opening snatches and 55% of their third snatches. At senior World Championships and Olympic Games the same attempts succeed 74% and 41% of the time, and only 34% of third clean and jerks are made.
- First snatches made, national
- 84%
- First snatches made, Worlds and Olympics
- 74%
- Third clean and jerks made, Worlds and Olympics
- 34%
- Attempts counted
- 2,857,319
Make rates by attempt
National meets here are domestic competitions in seven countries; Worlds and Olympics means the senior World Championships and Olympic Games. Each attempt gets harder: the bar goes up after a make, and a miss is usually taken again at the same weight. At the Worlds and Olympics the make rate is 10 percentage points lower than at national meets on opening attempts, and 13 to 18 points lower on second and third attempts.
Snatch 1st
Snatch 2nd
Snatch 3rd
Clean and jerk 1st
Clean and jerk 2nd
Clean and jerk 3rd
How the size of the jump changes the odds
After a made attempt, the share of next attempts made at national meets, by the kilos added. Bigger jumps are made less often, most of all on third attempts: a third snatch 1 kg heavier than the second is made 70% of the time, one 6 kg heavier 46%.
| Kilos added | Snatch | Clean and jerk | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd | 3rd | 2nd | 3rd | |
| +1 kg | 84% | 70% | 82% | 68% |
| +2 kg | 78% | 60% | 81% | 61% |
| +3 kg | 74% | 56% | 76% | 56% |
| +4 kg | 71% | 52% | 74% | 53% |
| +5 kg | 72% | 52% | 74% | 52% |
| +6 kg | 68% | 46% | 70% | 45% |
| +7 kg | 69% | 45% | 70% | 45% |
Choosing your own jumps? Put your lifts into the Sinclair calculator to see how your total compares with competitive lifters in your class.
Data: 2,791,179 attempts at national meets in the United States, France, Australia, the United Kingdom, Norway, Switzerland and Ireland, and 66,140 at senior World Championships and Olympic Games since 1998, all through 2026.