Fresh off his podium finish from last year’s IWF World Championships, Harrison Maurus is already back to moving big weight. And in case you missed Maurus’ performance at Worlds, he ended up earning a bronze in the 77kg weight class total and clean & jerk. His final lifts were a 155kg snatch and 193kg clean & jerk, which earned him a 348kg total.
He was the first American to stand on a Worlds podium since Wes Barnett won bronze in the clean & jerk in 1997. In hist latest video, Maurus can be seen crushing a 185kg clean triple for a new PR.
Check out the video below.
This is a big set for Maurus and is definitely shining some light into what we can hopefully expect from this young lifter as the year progresses. Over the last couple years, Maurus has been lifting in the 77kg weight class, but after Worlds his coach Kevin Simons mentioned they’re considering moving up to 85kg.
In a recent interview with Barbell Shrugged, both Maurus and Simons discuss their training relationship, what Maurus’ long-term goals are, and what we can expect to see this year. Check out the full interview and our cliff notes below.
From the interview, we pulled out a few key points we thought were interested from Maurus and Simons discussion with Barbell Shrugged.
- Simons coached Maurus in gymnastics before transitioning to weightlifting.
- Maurus squatted 100kg when we 11 years old, 150kg when he was 12, and 200kg when he was 13.
- Maurus mentions the consideration of moving up a weight class to 85kg, and will most likely compete at that weight at Youth Worlds in May.
- His biggest hope of moving up a weight class will be to improve in the snatch and squat, he also joked about hopefully squatting 300kg once he moves up.
- Over the next couple months, Maurus and Simons are working through a hypertrophy block to help add size and strength to Maurus’ frame.
- Maurus and Simons are both setting their sights on making it to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and Simons mentions he’s pushing/hoping for a podium finish.
- After Worlds, Maurus turns 18 soon after, so his 193kg clean & jerk will be his last Youth record ever recorded.
- Simons often programs strongman work for Maurus when he’s decently far out from competition to help improve overhead stability, grip strength, and work capacity.
Feature image screenshot from @harrison_maurus Instagram page.
