Weight class

A competition division that groups athletes within a specified body-mass range. Weight classes limit size disparities in sports where body mass can affect performance or safety.

Boxing weight classes: The divisions that organize boxers by body mass, from minimumweight through heavyweight. Professional boxing uses multiple divisions to match competitors of similar size.
Weigh-in: The official measurement of a competitor's body mass before an event or competition. A weigh-in determines whether an athlete meets the class limit.
Dehydration: A bodily state in which water loss exceeds water intake, reducing total body water. Rapid weight loss before weigh-ins can cause dangerous dehydration.
Openweight: A competition format without a fixed upper body-mass limit for its competitors. Openweight contests remove the mass boundaries that define ordinary divisions.
Wrestling weight classes: Competition divisions that group wrestlers by body mass, with limits varying by style and governing body. Wrestling uses classes to reduce size advantages in grappling contests.
Weight cutting: Rapid reduction of body mass, commonly used by athletes to qualify for a lower division. Athletes may reduce mass shortly before weigh-in to enter a chosen class.
Weight cycling: Repeated loss and regain of body mass over time. Repeatedly making a lower class can produce cycles of mass loss and regain.
Handicap (sport): A rule that adjusts starting conditions or scoring to offset differences among competitors. Handicaps address competitive disparities without assigning athletes to mass divisions.
Weightlifting weight classes: Divisions that group weightlifters by body mass for competition in the snatch and clean and jerk. Lifters compete for records and rankings within body-mass divisions.
Rehydration: The restoration of body water after dehydration through fluid intake and other means. Some athletes regain fluid and mass after making a dehydrated weigh-in.

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