PART 2: Behind the Scenes at the 2014 Arnold

Saturday
The highlight of Saturday was seeing the international women's session.  This would produce the top two female competitors ranked by Sinclair.

Risto Sports '  entrant was Vanessa Quinones of Colombia.  Vanessa's prior best total in international competition was 176kg at the 2013 Junior World Championships.  Vanessa came to Risto Sports in January to train in hopes of making the Colombian National Team.

In a month of high volume training designed by Head Coach Ivan Rojas, Vanessa's squat increased by 10kg.  At a local meet, the Atlantic States Open in FEB 2014 in Danvers, MA, Ivan had Vanessa do an easy day of 70/75/80 in the snatch and 95/98/100 in the clean and jerk as a warm-up for the Arnold.

At the Arnold, it was time to put Vanessa's increased strength, improved technique, Risto Singlet, and risto sports weightlifting shoes to the test.  Since the competition was based on sinclair, Vanessa decided not to cut weight to 53kg and compete at 55kg, her normal training bodywieght. Vanessa opened with an easy 77Kg in the snatch. She then went to 81kg, which she narrowly missed by finishing the extension in the pull a little short.  In her third attempt, she repeated 81kg for an easy successful snatch.

For the clean and jerk, I simply expected that Vanessa would open conservative with 95 or 98kg.  To my happy surprise, Vanessa hit a super easy 95kg in the warm-up room, even easier than in training, and we opened her with 100kg.  Vanessa , then, took 105kg for an easy second attempt.  For her third, she went for 107kg.  Her clean was very strong; certainly, you could tell her new improved leg strength and improved technique was behind her.  As she went for the jerk, she just missed it behind.  Jerking a weight such that it drops behind is actually harder than doing a correct jerk, because it requires more power from the lifter.  Still, she finished with 186kg as a heavy 53kg.

Interestingly, even though she was competing at 55kg, her National Federation took note of the fact that she has the second highest clean in the country for a 53kg. Whereas, Colombia's top 53kg was clean and jerking 110kg.  The Colombian Federation, after seeing video of her 107kg,  invited Vanessa to compete on the National Team.  She will represent Colombia at the Pan Am Championships this year. I really admire the fact that the Colombian federation has the foresight to see a lifter that has had great improvement and place them on the National team.  They weren't hung up on the fact that she weighed 55kg or lifted this in the US, they looked at results and potential.  I think we can use more of this in the US, and it seems we are moving in this direction (I hope) with the multiple qualifiers that the USAW is starting to have.

Vanessa Quinones of Risto Sports, cleaning 107kg as a heavy 53

After finishing lifting, the only person who could knock Vanessa off the #1 spot was Lydia Valentin.  I really respect the fact that Lydia came to the Arnold and put on a good show.  She went 105/110/115kg in the snatch and  130/135/140X kg in the clean and jerk.  Her 140 kg clean was beautiful; her jerk was closely missed as it was a tad out front, just by having the hips rotated backward by a degree.   The 140kg clean was super easy considering that her best in IWF competition recorded is 145kg.  I think we'll see her do more at Europeans. I have become a Lydia Valentin fan.

Lydia Valentin of Spain cleaning 140kg at the Arnold, photo by Risto Sports

Sunday

Sunday was the best day for me.... because  LG (Gwendolyn Rojas)lifted.  LG weighed in at 44.3kg. She was the youngest lifter in her session.  At 10 years old, LG would be battling 16 year olds for the Youth prizes (apparently, the organizers decided to cut the 13 and under prizes because too few lifters were entered ).   For me, it wasn't really important to me how she placed- more that she hit personal records and competed with great technique. 

Well, never underestimate LG as she just missed 1st place in the youth division by her last lift.  LG came in second to a 16 year old and beating several teenagers in the process.  She made 37kg in the snatch. In the clean and jerk she went 42/47x/47x.  She cleaned both her 47kg's strong, and she just missed her jerk, with her second 47kg jerk being much closer.  Again, either of her 47's would have given her first.  Still, her placement against an uneven field of teenagers was awesome, and I am proud of her.  Finally, she is a very good sportswoman always just going to do her best vs worrying about out-lifting other lifters. She constantly reminds me that the only person I compete against on the platform is myself-- and that is the most efficient way of becoming a champion.

Look at that position! LG , Gwendolyn Rojas, rocking her Risto Sports Rio weightlifting shoes and singlet

Here's part of the video of her 47kg-- yes, that's me screaming and doing a very bad camerawoman job.  I