Petter N. Sæterdal, 2025-07-12
Open this box in separate window: www.psland.no/akb/tau/tau-calc.php
Link to page where you can calculate TAU with several lines. Here you will also find the current topline results for 2025. www.psland.no/akb/tau/TAU-javascript.htm
bodyw total Sinc. Name and info. 55.68 307 481 LONG Qingquan, OL 2016 61.89 333 482 Chen Lijun, 2015 Houston WC 68.68 359 484 Liao Hui, 10.11.2014 Almaty 78.65 387 481 Perepetchenov, Russian GP, 2003.09.27 93.52 418 478 Ilya Ilyin, London 2008 104.4 437 479 Ilya Ilyin, 5th Russian president cup 113.01 447.5 478 Chigishev, EC 2003 124.13 460 479 Chigichev. OL 2008 Beijing 157.34 473 474 Talakhadze Lasha, 2016 OLYMPIC RioLooking at Sinclairs calculation
This table shows some of the best results in the world during the last years, at the time this was written. In the Sinclair coloumn the results are between 474 and 484. Lasha Talakhadze, the weightlifter with the highest total gets a lower Sinclair-level then all the others. In my opinion the 473 kg total is the ultimate world top result and there is no reason it should be considered to a lower value than any of the others along the top line of these results.
Hui Liao in the 69 category has 484 Sinclair points and I find it wrong that his result is calculated as better then the others along the top line of weightlifters. This is the simple proof that Least Squares (LSQ) is not the best method for comparing the lifters.
You may click this photo to see it better
Inspired by the above mentioned lack of precission, I have made an alternative with a very simple linear method. A simple method is also important while only special educated persons are able to understand Sinclairs method based on Least Squares and regression. The basic idea of the linear method started when i made a x/y plot of all the results of my local club. (bodyweight/total)
The photo illustrates the idea of using straight lines between the top results. You may plot all the results in the world, but only a few will touch the thread and carry the weight of the two discs.
Compared two real results this plot shows one heavier lifter (right-most nail) with a lower total than Lasha Talakhadze. He will offcourse not reach a top level off 1000 points wich stops at the highest peak of the thread. On the left side it's posible to define a starting bodyweight at 56 kg or probably plot any result that exists among the smallest persons to see how the line goes on the top of these results. It has been difficult to find children results to use in the left side of the plot.
Calculation
The calculation may be very simple as shown in an example:
bodyw tot Name
84.69 394 Rybakov Andrei
We will have to know the two top level results that surrounds bodyweight 84.69 kg. The top level (1000) results are listed on top of this page.
The surrounding results are:
bodyw tot 78.65 387 Perepetchenov, Russian GP, 20030927 93.52 418 Ilya Ilyin, London 2012
a = 93.52-78.65 = 14.87
b = 418-387 = 31
c = 84.69-78.65 = 6.04
d = c * b/a = 12.59
LineLevel = 387 + d = 399.59
Rybakov = 1000* 394 / 399.59 = 986
Many years ago, when I composed this calculation method, I also concluded that we don't need any weight classes for weightlifters. This calculation method is so precise and reliable that all the lifters can be farly compared to each other. Even men and women can be compared to each other by this method in one single ranking list. For many years this was not fair while weightlifting as a woman sport was not yet fully developed statistically, but now (2025) it semes that results in female world competitions are getting almost as close as for the men.
I could try to describe how a competiton like this could look like. If all the atletes accept the current list of topline results and the calculation method, then we just see who gets the highest TAU level during the competition. This is an advantage for the lifters that comes latest in the competition, but such advantages is also common in other sports. You could give this advantage to (1) the lifters with the highest TAU-level and let them lift at last, or you could give this advantage to (2) the heaviest lifters. I suggest both (1) and (2); The 10 lifters in the last session has the highest TAU-level and lifts in bodyweight order where the heaviest comes in at last.
If someone is able to get a TAU-level more than 100% then this new result must be added among the topline challengers and once in a year a new topline list must be calculated.
The radical diffence from traditional weightlifting competitions is that we will get only one gold medal, one silver medal and one bronce medal. An other huge benefit is that the competitions do not have to last for many days. You could arrange a WC in weightlifting in 3 hours with only 3 sessions, 10 atletes in each session. Then let the lifters with the highest priority perform in the last session. I think this would make weightlifting as a sport much more exiting. The audience could could be very well informed about the calulation during the competition with both information booklets and huge data screens.