The APF is a complex organization.  It could almost be described that it is five organizations in one.  Connected together, we have the APF, AAPF, WPC, and AWPC.  So what do all of these letters mean?  See above for the explanation on the difference between the APF and AAPF.  Branching off from the APF and AAPF is the WPC and AWPC–the World Powerlifting Congress and Amateur World Powerlifting Congress.  Soon after Ernie Frantz started the APF, he wanted to have international competition for his US lifters.  So, he went out and formed the WPC as the international arm of the APF.  Currently the WPC has over 30 member nations, and has an annual World Powerlifting Championships.  When the AAPF was formed in 1997, Ernie Frantz concurrently formed the AWPC as the international arm of the AAPF.  The AWPC also has an annual World Powerlifting Championships.  The difference between the WPC and AWPC are the same as described above in the difference between the APF and AAPF.  The home page for the APF/AAPF/WPC/AWPC ishttps://worldpowerliftingcongress.com/ for more information.

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If we put all of the organizations together, one could see the progression from one organization to the next as the lifter progresses in his or her lifting career.  A lifter would go from the AAPF to the AWPC, and then to the APF to the WPC.  Not all lifters will make it up to the level of the WPC, but that is the progression of the organizations.