Great Day to Lift

by Atomic Athletic on Tuesday, August 23, 2011 at 5:13pm

Boy, we sure had a great day to lift. Last Saturday, August 20, 2011, turned out to be a beautiful day. Really, any day with a weightlifting meet that goes without a hitch is a good day, but this was a GREAT day.

The competition platform was outside at the Atomic Athletic Tractor Pull Weekend USAWA Meet. Outdoor meets are always a risk in Northwestern Ohio, we can have all four seasons in one day. Yet, just as it started to heat up, we had a few clouds roll in, making it slightly overcast. Perfect.

Meet Highlights

Here are some highlights from a flawless three lift All Round Weightlifting event.

The lifts were: the One Hand Barbell Deadlift, Clean & Push Press, and Trap Bar Deadlift; which were competed at in that order.

The Top 5 Male Lifters, by formula were:

1st Place: David Polzin

2nd Place: John McKean

3rd Place: Dennis Habecker

4th Place: Roger LaPointe

5th Place: Scott Schmidt

Lifter Close-Up

While all the lifting was very well done, I really have to congratulate Dave Polzin. Dave was a National Level Olympic style weightlifter in the late 1970s through the mid-1980s. Dave's highest placing was 2nd in the US Nationals, in the 110 kg weight class. He was known for his powerful clean & jerk, with which he hit 200 kg (440 lbs.). It was obviously a good background for the all rounds, which is not always an easy transition.

Dave had never done a one hand barbell deadlift until last April, yet, on Saturday, he pulled 132.5 kg (292.1 lbs.). His clean & push press was another world record for his 61 year old age group (60-64 years), at 100 kg. I believe he has more than that in him and he has to power clean the weight. Like many of us, his knees are not what they used to be. Dave had never seen a trap bar until he started training at Atomic Athletic and he pulled 205 kilos (451.9 lbs.). Today, Dave lifts in the 100 kg weight class. We hope to see a good deal more of his lifting in the All-Rounds.

Meet Facts

The officiating was outstanding, having five international level officials taking turns as judges. This was also a drug tested event. We have had two USAWA events here at Atomic Athletic, with both of them being tested. There are an increasing number of officials and regular USAWA lifters checking out what we have going on here. While I think they were all pleased with our professionalism, I really think they are most pleased by the number of new lifters we have been bringing into the organization. There were three brand new lifters competing on Saturday, with many of the new lifters from the last meet competing for a second time. While maintaining professionalism, we like to keep it fun.

Make sure to check out our next meet. It will be announced in the very near future. Call me at Atomic Athletic if you have any suggestions for lifts (419)352-5100.

Trap Bar

http://www.atomicathletic.com/store/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=BSOTB50

Bumper Plates

http://www.atomicathletic.com/store/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=BPC45LB

Bars

http://www.atomicathletic.com/store/category.aspx?categoryID=297

Photo Album From the Meet can be found on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150202635477687.310908.71080577686&l=f57b9f2dd0&type=1