USA Weightlifting Announces Roster for 2022 IWF Junior World Championships

The 2022 International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) Junior World Championships will occur from May 2-10, 2022, in Heraklion, Greece. On April 27, 2022, USA Weightlifting (USAW) announced Team USA’s full roster on their Instagram page. Twenty weightlifters will fly to the Mediterranean to represent the USA. Here is the full roster below:

 2022 IWF Junior World Championships | Team USA

Below are the athletes competing for Team USA in Greece and their corresponding weight class:

Male Athletes

• Hampton Morris — 61KG
• Mario Marquez — 67KG
• Ryan Grimsland — 73KG
• Caden Cahoy — 73KG
• Preston Powell — 81KG
• Dade Stanley — 89KG
• Lander Wells — 89KG
• Timothy Davis — 96KG
• Morgan McCullough — 102KG
• Ryland Shriver — 109KG

Female Athletes

• Leila Cook — 55KG
• Miranda Ulrey — 55KG (Reserve)
• Katie Estep — 59KG
• Meaghan Strey — 59KG
• Mallory Garza — 59KG (Reserve)
• Abby Raymond — 64KG
• Olivia Reeves — 71KG
• Reagan Henry — 71KG
• Alyssa Ballard — 76KG
• Anna McElderry — 81KG
• Avery Owens — 87KG
• Amanda Robles — 87KG

The official entry list was made available on the IWF website on April 11, 2022. USAW has athletes competing in all but five weight classes: Men’s 55KG, Men’s +109KG, Women’s 45KG, Women’s 49KG, and Women’s +87KG.

 

 

 

 

 

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[Related: International Weightlifting Federation Names Colombia as Host Country for 2022 World Weightlifting Championships]

Many of the Team USA athletes have competed on the world stage before. Morris, Estep, Ulrey, and Ballard medaled at the 2021 IWF Youth World Championships in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Below are those results and their corresponding medals:

2021 IWF Youth World Championships Results

• Hampton Morris (61KG)
  • Snatch — 120 kilograms (Silver)
  • Clean & Jerk — 156 kilograms (Gold, Youth World Record)
  • Total — 276 kilograms (Gold, Youth World Record)
• Katie Estep (55KG)
  • Snatch — 89 kilograms (Gold, Youth World Record)
  • Clean & Jerk — 109 kilograms (Gold)
  • Total — 198 kilograms (Gold, Youth World Record)
• Miranda Ulrey (55KG)
  • Snatch — 77 kilograms (Bronze)
• Alyssa Ballard
  • Snatch — 89 kilograms (Silver)
  • Clean & Jerk — 115 kilograms (Silver)
  • Total — 204 kilograms (Silver)

Several of Team USA’s athletes are returning to the Junior World Championships, including McCullough, Owens, and Reeves. McCullough ranked seventh overall with a 326-kilogram total in the 96-kilogram class. Owens ranked second overall at 87 kilograms, taking the silver in the snatch and clean & jerk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Related: Weightlifter Kate Nye Squats an All-Time Personal Record of 186KG (410 Pounds)]

Reeves is the defending Junior World Champion at 71 kilograms. At the 2021 IWF Junior World Championships, she scored the silver medal in the snatch with a 102-kilogram lift and gold in the clean & jerk (127 kilograms) en route to standing atop the podium via a 229-kilogram total.

The Team USA roster is stacked. We’ll see if Reeves can improve upon her total from 2021 and take down back-to-back titles. The rest of her team members have the resumes to contend for their respective podiums as well.

Featured image: @reagan.henryyyyy on Instagram