It wasn’t the night CJ Cummings — and most fans of American weightlifting — hoped for, but the 17 year-old lifter still came away with a new American record.
Cummings started off his performance at the 2017 IWF World Championships with a 3-for-3 performance in the snatch, making successful lifts at 136kg, 139kg, and then 141kg for a new Senior, Junior, and Youth American Record.
Cummings already owned the Junior and Youth American records with 139kg, but his 141kg lift broke Alex Lee’s record at 140kg by a single kilogram. Check out the record-breaking lift below.
Unfortunately, Cummings was unable to complete any successful clean & jerk attempts during the competition, which meant he did not post a total. Heading into the 2017 Worlds, many weightlifting fans speculated Cummings could end the United States’ World Championship medal drought, which dates back to 2005. Cummings’ 141kg snatch wasn’t far off Won Jeong-sik’s (South Korea) lift of 148kg — the heaviest of the session — but it wasn’t enough for a medal on the night.
Jeong-sik won the Men’s 69kg category in Anaheim with a 326kg total, 5kg ahead of second-place finisher Tairat Bunsuk of Thailand.
Featured image: @usaweightlifting on Instagram
