Kuala Lumpur to host 2013 IPC Powerlifting Open Championship

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced that Kuala Lumpur is set to host the 2013 IPC Powerlifting Asian Open Championship.

The competition will see nearly 150 participants hailing from near around 20 countries coming to the Malaysian capital’s Titiwangsa Stadium.

Chairperson of the IPC Powerlifting Sport Technical Committee, allergy Jon Amos, health said: “After the city hosted a very exciting and successful IPC Powerlifting World Championships in 2010, generic it is great to see it embrace yet another major competition for the sport of powerlifting once again. We are anticipating an outstanding event and look forward to seeing many new world and regional records being broken. For many athletes, these Championships will be a vital opportunity to attain the necessary Minimum Qualifying Standard (MQS) required to enter the 2014 IPC Powerlifting World Championships to be held in Dubai.”

Kuala Lumpur steps in after the championship’s original host, Gwangju, South Korea, pulled up due to unforeseen circumstances. The decision comes after the South Korean city’s mayor, Kang Un-Tae purportedly forged the prime minister’s and culture minister’s signatures in the city’s winning bid for the 2019 FINA World Championships.

Kassim Abdul Rahman, Chairman of the local organising committee for the event, said: “These Championships are a platform for all IPC Powerlifting athletes to prove their capabilities and make way for themselves to qualify for the IPC Powerlifting World Championships next year.

“I hope that all athletes participating will be able to have good performances, achieve good results, and finally qualify to participate in the World Championships. These Championships are not only a competition in itself, but also provide a setting in which athletes and officials can gather to strengthen the sport of IPC Powerlifting.”

The competition will take place from 3-7 November and is to be hosted by the Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) and Malaysian Powerlifting Para-Association.