The 2024 Olympics are approaching, and fast. With just a hair over two months left until the summer Games kick off in Paris, France, all eyes turn upon the Olympians selected to bring some hardware home to the United States.
This year, America is sending perhaps its strongest roster of weightlifters ever to compete at Paris 2024. Not only are these athletes among the best weightlifters in the world, they’re all poised to take a shot at the top of the podium.
In cooperation with USA Weightlifting (USAW), it is BarBend‘s distinct pleasure to introduce the five Americans representing Team USA on the Olympic stage this summer:
2024 Olympics Team USA Weightlifting Roster
- Jourdan Delacruz (49KG)
- Hampton Morris (61KG)
- Olivia Reeves (71KG)
- Wes Kitts (102KG)
- Mary Theisen-Lappen (+81KG)
Jourdan Delacruz (49KG)
For lightweight Jourdan Delacruz, Paris 2024 is more than a second Olympic Games — it’s a chance at redemption. After a valiant campaign to make it onto the States’ Olympic roster in 2021, Delacruz “bombed out” in Tokyo, failing to register a Total (the sum of an athlete’s snatch and clean & jerk).
Jourdan Delacruz (49KG) | By the Numbers
- 22 IWF event appearances since 2015
- 4 World Championships appearances, improving from 13th place to 3rd between 2018 and 2023
- 4 Pan American Championships medals, including three golds and one silver
- American Record holder in the snatch, clean & jerk, and Total
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At her first Senior World Championships in 2018, Delacruz ranked a modest 13th. Flash forward to the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and Delacruz made it to the Senior World podium (bronze) for the first time in her career. She won her two previous IWF events before that as well, but hasn’t competed since last September.
We aren’t sure what sort of shape she’s in heading into Paris, but one thing is for sure — she’s got a wrong to right and the grit to make it happen.
Hampton Morris (61KG)
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61-kilogram Hampton Morris is a history-maker, and we mean that literally. Morris, 20, broke a 50-year U.S. world record drought in Men’s weightlifting earlier this year with a 176-kilogram clean & jerk — nearly thrice his own weight held overhead.
Hampton Morris (61KG) | By the Numbers
- 7 international competition wins since 2019
- Number-two ranked 61-kilogram Olympian
- 3 out of 3 Senior American record holder
- Junior and Senior world record holder in the clean & jerk
Morris travels to Paris as Team USA’s best hope for an Olympic medal in Men’s weightlifting in a generation. The gold-medal position is expected to go to Chinese athlete and snatch world-record holder Li Fabin, but Morris is in a solid position to bag silver if he has a good day on the weightlifting platform. And when Morris has good days, he has great ones.
Olivia Reeves (71KG)
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Since the 2016 Olympics in Rio, American weightlifting has undergone something of a renaissance. At the World Championships in 2015 (held in Houston, TX), the Team USA women ranked 14th in overall points. Flash forward to 2023 and the American women’s contingent ranked second. That’s off the back of practice, perseverance, and prodigal performers like 71-kilogram Olivia Reeves.
Olivia Reeves (71KG) | By the Numbers
- 13 podium finishes out of 15 international competition appearances since 2019
- 3 out of 3 Junior world records in the Women’s 71-kilogram category
- 3 out of 3 Senior American records in the Women’s 71-kilogram category
- Number-one ranked 71-kilogram Olympian
Reeves is heading to her first Olympic Games as the favorite for gold in the Women’s 71-kilogram category. She’ll face stiff competition from the likes of Ecuador and Romania, but Reeves has momentum — and an abundance of raw strength — on her side.
Wes Kitts (102KG)
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Tokyo Olympian Wes Kitts will appear in Paris as a “Continental” representative of the Pan-American region. The International Olympic Committee has in recent years prioritized athlete representation from all major worldwide regions at all Games events. Don’t sleep on Kitts, though — we certainly aren’t.
Wes Kitts (102KG) | By the Numbers
- 19 international event appearances since 2016
- 3 out of 3 American records in the Men’s 109-kilogram category
- 2 out of 3 American records in the Men’s 102-kilogram category
- 3 Pan-American Championships wins
- 2019 Pan American Games winner at 109 kilograms
Kitts, 34, is the oldest and most tenured competitor on Team USA’s weightlifting roster. As a husband, father, and business owner, Kitts has a lot on his plate. He’s also facing down multiple previous Olympic Champions in the Men’s 102-kilogram category, but we’re confident that Kitts has the steady hands and cool head required to perform under pressure.
Mary Theisen-Lappen (+81KG)
America has maintained a decade-long presence on the Women’s super-heavyweight international podium thanks to storied competitor (and two-time summer Games bronze medalist) Sarah Robles. Come the closure of the Paris 2024 qualification procedure in April, and Robles had gracefully stepped back to make way for newcomer Mary Theisen-Lappen.
Mary Theisen-Lappen (+81KG) | By the Numbers
- 7 podium finishes out of 8 international event appearances since 2020
- 2 Pan-American Championships wins
- 2nd place at the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships
- Senior American record holder in the clean & jerk
- Number-five ranked +81-kilogram Olympian
Theisen-Lappen ventures to Paris as the world-number-five Women’s super. She’ll do battle with Great Britain, South Korea, and Thailand for a likely-bronze medal finish. Theisen-Lappen may not be as tenured as some of her colleagues, but we actually think that’s an advantage.
Theisen-Lappen has improved rapidly in the last two years and shows no signs of slowing down. She’ll make it to the podium and probably set some new American records along the way.
Where Is Athlete Number Six?
Per the athlete quotas set forth by the IOC at the outset of the Paris weightlifting qualification period, countries are permitted to send up to six weightlifters — three men and three women — to the Games this year.
Team USA houses only five; no other American athlete placed high enough in their weight classes’ ranking lists to make the cut this time around. USAW has confirmed to BarBend that there are no official alternates on their Paris roster at this time.
2024 Olympics Weightlifting Schedule
The Paris Olympics begin on Jul. 26, 2024, and run until Aug. 11. Weightlifting won’t be showcased the entire time though; all weight class events will take place over a five-day period between Aug. 7 and 11.
Here’s a breakdown of the weightlifting schedule for Paris 2024, plus which American team members will be on stage. Dates and times are subject to change. All times are in Eastern Standard Time (EST).
Wednesday, August 7
- 9:00AM: Men 61KG | Hampton Morris
- 1:30PM: Women 49KG | Jourdan Delacruz
Thursday, August 8
- 9:00AM: Women 59KG
- 1:30PM: Men 73KG
Friday, August 9
- 9:00AM: Men 89KG
- 1:30PM: Women 71KG | Olivia Reeves
Saturday, August 10
- 5:30AM: Men 102KG | Wes Kitts
- 10:00AM: Women 81KG
- 2:30PM: Men +102KG
Sunday, August 11
- 5:30AM: Women +81KG | Mary Theisen-Lappen
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Editor’s Note: BarBend is the Official Media Partner of USA Weightlifting. The two organizations maintain editorial independence unless otherwise noted on specific content projects.
Featured Image courtesy of USA Weightlifting
