The first day of the 2016 USA Weightlifting (USAW) American Open kicked off with the excitement that you would expect from a national competition with over 800 athletes competing. Medals were presented in the woman’s 48KG, 53KG, and 58KG categories, along with the men’s 56KG and 62KG weight classes. Several American Youth, Junior and Masters records were broken along the way.
48KG
2015 USAW World Team member Kathleen Winters snatched 78KG (172lb) to have a 3KG lead at the break over silver medalist Alyssa Ritchey who finished with 75KG (165lb). Bronze medalist Megan Seegert successfully lifted 74KG (163lb) to extend her own Junior American Record. Hayley Reichardt snatched 71KG (156lb) to extend her own Youth American Record.
In the clean & jerk, Ritchie successfully lifted 95KG (209lb) to win a gold medal in the lift. Winters successfully hoisted 93KG (205lb) overhead to secure the silver. Reichardt made all three of her attempts to finish with 91KG (200lb) and a bronze medal in the clean & jerk. Reichardt and Seegert ended up in a tie for the overall bronze medal; however Reichardt won the tie breaking criteria based on lower body weight. Reichardt re-set the 16-17 age group American records in both lifts and the overall total.
53KG
Two-time USAW World Team member Cortney Batchelor won a gold medal in the snatch on her opening attempt of 83KG (183lb). She had two close misses with 87KG (191lb) which would have surpassed the current American Record, currently held by Charis Chan. Junior aged athlete Jourdan Delacruz was successful with 77KG (169lb) to win a silver medal, before two close misses with 80KG (176lb) which would have extended her own Junior American Records.
In the clean & jerk, Batchelor successfully lifted 100KG (220lb) to secure the overall win. Delacruz missed her opening two attempts before being successful with 97KG (213lb) to sweep the silver medals and set a new Junior American Record in the lift. Snow Charpentier won the overall bronze medal by 1KG (2lb) over Laura Mohler by successfully lifting 97KG (213lb) in the clean & jerk.
58KG
In a category where athletes struggled to make more than their openers, all the medal winners were elite athletes who successfully made multiple attempts. 2016 Olympian Mattie Sasser (Marshall Islands) successfully totaled 201KG (442lb) to defeat USAW World Team member Jessica Lucero in what ended up being a fight to the finish over who would make their last lift. Ultimately Lucero called for 116KG (255lb) for her last attempt in the clean & jerk, which would have won the overall gold medal and extended her current American Record by 1KG. Unfortunately it was not her day to do so, and Sasser ended up on top. Sweeping the bronze medals in both lifts and the total was seasoned GRID League competitor and National Medalist Sarabeth Phillips.
56KG
This category was thrown for a loop after the snatch portion where 2014 National Champion Michael Fox, one analyst’s predicted champion, was unsuccessful with attempts of 105KG (231lb). Fox did come back to lift 125KG (275lb) in the clean & jerk to win a medal in the lift. Brian Reisenauer was successful with 106KG (233lb) on his third attempts, which set him up well for his overall gold medal. Andrew Cheung swept the silver medal in both lifts and the total, while he continues to improve at national level competitions. Antwan Kilbert set a youth American Record in the 14-15 year old age category with his 91KG snatch that also won him a bronze medal in the lift and in the total.
62KG
As expected, Derrick Johnson seized a comfortable lead in this competition and never relinquished it. He successfully snatched 122KG (268lb) before a close miss with 125KG (275lb) which would have extended his own American Record, and been over double bodyweight in the lift. 2016 National Champion Jacob Horst, himself still a junior aged athlete, lifted 115KG (253lb) to win a silver medal in the lift; he would finished in the silver position overall.
Seasoned veterans and former USAW World Team members Aaron Adams and Sean Hutchinson finished in 3rd and 4th place, respectively, in the overall standings. At the 2006 American Open, Adams, Johnson, and Hutchinson were all on the medal podium – 10 years later these guys are like fine wine improving with time.
Full Results from Friday can be found here
The American Open ends this Sunday, and with over 850 athletes competing, never miss a beat with their live steam. For full athlete start list, check out this link.
More Records Set
In other news, ample American Records were broken or extended by their current owners on day one. Some highlights:
In the woman’s 63KG 40-44 year old age category, Jennifer Hauser set all three records with lifts of 72KG (158lb) in the snatch and 87KG (191lb) in the clean & jerk for a total of 159KG (350lb).
In the woman’s 58KG 45-49 year old age category, Joann Aita set all three records with lifts of 70KG (154lb) in the snatch and 83KG (183lb) in the clean & jerk for a total of 153KG (336lb).
In the youth 14-15 year old 44KG category, Emma Nye and Olivia Chardon each set new records. In the snatch Chardon lifted 59KG (130lb) for a new record. In the clean & jerk, both ladies went back and forth with the record, Nye initially setting it at 72KG (158lb). Chardon ended the session with 75KG (165lb) for a new record and the overall total record of 134KG (295lb).
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