Lightweight (≤67½ kilograms), Men

The three favorites were Poland’s world record holder Waldemar Baszanowski, his teammate Marian Zieliński, and Soviet Vladimir Kaplunov. They had won the last three World Championships and eight of the nine medals at the World in 1961-63, with Zieliński winning in 1963, Kaplunov in 1962, and Baszanowski in 1961. Zieliński and Kaplunov led after the press equalling the world record of 140.0 kg, but Baszanowski lifted 135.0 kg in the snatch to move into a tie with Kaplunov. When both lifted 165.0 kg in the clean & jerk they tied with a world record total of 432.5 kg, but Baszanowski weighed 67.15 kg to Kaplunov’s 67.50 kg, the class limit, which gave the gold medal to Baszanowski.

Baszanowski would go on to dominate this class in the 1960s, winning Olympic gold again in 1968, five World Championships and five European Championships. At the end of the 20th century, he was voted the third greatest weightlifter of all-time in several polls, trailing Turkey’s Naim Suleymanoğlu and Hungary’s Imre Földi. Kaplunov later moved up in weight to the middleweight class but retired after a lackluster 1966 season.