History

The event can boast of being the longest running on the international weightlifting calendar of both the European Weightlifting Federation (EWF) and the World Weightlifting Federation (IWF).

The ALPE ADRIA International Weightlifting Tournament was founded in 1965 by Marcello Zoratti (Friuli Venezia Giulia), Janko Grošelj (Sloveina) and Anton Köfler (Carinthia) between the neighboring Regions/Nations of SLOVENIA (SLO) FRIULI VENEZIA GIULIA (ITA) and CARINTHIA (AUT).

Over the years, participation was gradually extended to other neighboring Regions/Nations. Currently the Regions/Nations entitled to participate are Bosnia Herzegovina (BIH), Croatia (CRO), Slovenia (SLO), Friuli Venezia Giulia (ITA), Niederösterreich (AUT), Veneto (ITA) and Zala ( HUN).

The event, born in the times in which the “Berlin Wall” clearly divided peoples with similar traditions, made it possible in the first “heroic” years to build a real “bridge” of friendship through sport, in an area defined as ” Mittel European” to be the meeting point between three “cultures”, the Latin, the Slavic and the Germanic.

The aims of the annual meetings, which are normally held in the first weekend of June of each year in rotation in one of the participating Regions/Nations, are, in fact, the strengthening of the strong bonds of friendship existing between the athletes of these neighboring regions and the in-depth study and exchange of technical knowledge from different schools.

The teams of each representative reflect the complete consistency of athletic potential, being made up of a female and 3 males: 1 Under 17, one Junior and one Senior. The ranking is made by adding the Sinclair score of all the athletes.

For each match the top 3 teams are awarded, and the first classified is temporarily assigned the “Super Trophy” which is definitively delivered at the end of the 7-year cycle to the Region/nation that recorded the best score (sum of the scores of the 7 years).

Since 2003, the Alpe Adria Master tournament has also been added, which is held every year in November and which has allowed the prolongation of the sporting careers of many athletes, who are happy to compete and meet up with old friends on the platform every year.

In Ljubljana, the official headquarters of Alpe Adria, on 7 June 2014 at the Elective Congress, there was the “handover” between Marcello Zoratti and Ernesto Zanetti who assumed the presidency for the 2015-2021 cycle, and between Peter Žagar and Jože Zaluberšek who became its new secretary general. Marcello Zoratti, founder of Alpe Adria and “past President” has been appointed Honorary President for life of the event.

Due to the Corona Virus epidemic, the Alpe Adria International Tournament was forced to interrupt its activity in 2020 and 2021, therefore the 7-year cycle which was supposed to end in 2021 was extended to 2023.

In the latest edition, the 57th, organized in Zalaeszerceg (HUN) on 24 June 2023, the Elective Congress of the positions for the next 7-year cycle 2024-2030 was also held. Ernesto Zanetti (ITA) was re-elected President, Damjan Ćanžek (SLO) Vice President and Jože Zaluberšek (SLO) Secretary General.