Ali Moradi was elected General Secretary of the Asian Weightlifting Federation in a special meeting held yesterday in Manila, Philippines. Moradi, who is the President of the Iranian Weightlifting Federation, was also just recognized for his contributions to the development of the extremely successful Iranian weightlifting program as his country's superstar, Hossein Reza-Zadeh, was granted special permission to be married in the holy city of Mecca. Reza-Zadeh, the 2000 Olympic superheavyweight champion, who won the 2002 World Weightlifting Championships in dramatic style, was granted a "Badge of Courage" by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami earlier this year, recognizing his tremendous accomplishments, and was called "a model for other sportsmen" when his wedding in Mecca was approved.

Billed as "the NYC marathon of arm wrestling," the Big Apple Grapple XXVI is scheduled for March 22nd. The Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum is the host and competition venue for this event. For details, contact the NYAWA Hotline at (718) 544-4592.

In the wake of recent contest cancellations, IFSA-USA president Jim Davis issued the following statement today. "In the past 5 years, I have dedicated my life to the sport of Strongman and its athletes. In this same time, I have seen Strongman in America go from a few competitions per year, to a very recognized sport with national television coverage and unlimited potential. Last year we created a qualifying system which was the first ever in American. This year we again structured a qualifying series with 3 competitions set to air on National Television. Although this is a major breakthrough for the sport, we are just beginning to scratch the surface of what is a very promising future. As many of you may be aware of, we have had cancellations with 3 of our qualifiers. I am very close to putting the finishing touches on replacement qualifiers. Out of the great amount of cities and promoters that are very eager to come on board, I will research each one and select the ones that have the best venue and marketing. Our decision will be posted on our website http://x-tremestrongman.com/mainPage.html by the end of this week. This is my promise to the athletes and fans of Strongman: rest assured that we will give 100% effort and make this a success. Best Wishes and God Bless."

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - On the final night of the Titan Games, men's weightlifting had the packed house on its feet. Oscar Chaplin (USA) won the 85-kg category with a 155-kg snatch and a 185-kg clean and jerk, Julio Luna (VEN) won the 94-kg category, hitting a 160-kg snatch and a 205-kg clean and jerk, and Boris Burov (ECU) won the 105-kg category, via his 182.5-kg snatch and 195-kg clean and jerk. It was +105-kg winner, Shane Hamman (USA), however, who brought down the house, first with his 185-kg snatch and then with his 227.5-kg clean and jerk - boxing, wrestling, judo, and Taekwondo had just finished, so all eyes were on Hamman and he had the full house cheering on its feet as he made a good lift to close out the inaugural Titan Games.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - Alexandra Escobar (ECU), Carissa Gordon (USA) and Cheryl Haworth (USA) won the women's weightlifting events last night at the Titan Games. Escobar, a gold medalist in the clean and jerk at the 2001 World Weightlifting Championships, won the 53-kg category last night with a 90-kg snatch and a 105-kg total. She cleaned 110 twice, only to miss the jerk both times. Gordon, a bronze medalist in the jerk and total at the 2001 and 2002 Junior World Championships, won the 63-kg category via an 85-kg snatch and a 112.5-kg clean and jerk. In the +75-kg category, Cheryl Haworth, 2000 Olympics bronze medalist, won with a 122.5-kg snatch and 147.5-clean and jerk. Tonight's weightlifting features the men, including Shane Hamman, Oscar Chaplin and Pete Kelley lifting for the US. Hamman is coming off a terrific fourth place finish in the snatch at the 2003 World Weightlifting Championships, and Chaplin won the gold medal in the jerk and in the total at the 2000 Junior World Championships.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - Three-time world champion John Godina became the first Titan Games' shot put champion today, with a throw of 67 feet 3-1/2 inches, and Olympic silver medalist Adam Nelson was second, with a throw of 66 feet 9-1/2 inches. The shot put was part of an afternoon program which featured a live band, and thanks to side-splitting announcers, matched big throws with big laughs for the star-studded field of spectators. Tonight's events include weightlifting, fencing, judo, Taekwondo, boxing and wrestling.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA - The inaugural Titan Games were launched last night in San Jose, California, and in a Night of Champions ceremony, weightlifters Tommy Kono and Tara Nott were among the elite group of athletes recognized as Titans. Kono, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, whose weightlifting roots go back to San Jose, mentioned that early his lifting career, he would hitchhike from Fort Ord (Monterrey, California) to San Jose, just to train on an Olympic bar!

Marquee names in their sports, Tommy Kono, Evander Holyfield and Dan Gable will be featured at the star-studded VIP Night of Champions dinner which opens the Titan Games on Thursday. Billed by the USOC as, "The Road To Athens for America's elite boxers, fencers, shot putters, wrestlers, weightlifters and judo, taekwondo and karate athletes," the inaugural Titan Games pits America's top athletes in these sports against an international field in a dramatic presentation featuring four sports at once. The Titan Games, with its unique organization, is the result of the USOC joining forces with the City of San Jose (California) and the San Jose Sports Authority, and will take place at the Event Center at San Jose State University this Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Tickets are available online at http://www.ticketmaster.com/presale/1916 and also at the box office at San Jose State University. If you can't make it in person, the event will air on ESPN on March 29th and March 30th.

How about a USPF bench press contest on Saturday and a strongman contest on Sunday? That's what Kevin Meskew, St. John Baptist de la Salle Church and Ascending Awards have planned on May 17th and 18th in Granada Hills, California. Contact Kevin for the details at: warrior01@earthlink.net Both contests include Open, Master, Junior and Police & Fire divisions. "Fun-Food-Games-Bring The Family!"

IFSA-USA president Jim Davis kicks off the premier American strongman season this weekend, with Art McDermott's X-treme Strongman Showdown in Wilmington, Massachusetts. McDermott's contest is one of five qualifiers around the US this year, leading up to the US National Strongman Championships, which Davis will host in St. Louis. The top four finishers from each qualifier, along with all the Americans who competed in the 2002 World's Strongest Man show, will be eligible to compete at the nationals. Davis said that he as tentatively planned the finals for August 8th and 9th, with the first day being used to trim the field down to about a dozen guys. On the second day, these remaining competitors will vie for the highly-coveted US invitations to the 2003 World's Strongest Man show. Competitors, fans and sponsors alike can follow all the details on the official IFSA-USA web site: http://x-tremestrongman.com/mainPage.html

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has opened the polls for selecting the best male and the best female weightlifter of 2002. This has been an IWF tradition for over 20 years and all fans of Olympic style weightlifting are welcome to cast a vote. Details are available at the IWF website: www.iwf.net