Elizabeth Wagner, 17-year-old Lakeland resident and Arlington High School junior, competed in the USA Weightlifting National Junior Championships Feb. 15-18 in Spokane, Washington.
Her father, Kurt Wagner, accompanied her to the competition. Her mother is Jill and she has three younger sisters.
Mr. Wagner said the competition is comprised of the two Olympic-style lifts, the snatch and the clean and jerk. “Each competitor has three attempts at each lift, starting with the snatch. Competitors are grouped by body weight and can be up to 20-years-old as of December 31, 2018.
“Elizabeth competes in the 58kg weight class. She qualified for the Spokane event back in October at the West Tennessee Barbell Open where she hit a combined total of 130kg.”
Mr. Wagner said his daughter got involved with weightlifting through Crossfit, which incorporates the Olympic lifts in many of their workouts. He said, “The movements help with strength, conditioning and explosiveness, something that benefits soccer players…or almost any sport that involves quickness, power, endurance, etc.”
She started her meet, said her dad, by going 2 for 3 in the snatch, and hit a competition personal record of 57kg (125.6 pounds). “She followed it up going 3 for 3 with her clean and jerk. Her best clean and jerk was 68kg (149.9lbs). She finished with a combined total of 125kg.”
When asked about her performance, Elizabeth said she was pretty happy overall. “I have a few things I want to work on, but just getting to compete with the best lifters in the country was amazing. I’m already looking forward to next year’s competition in Chicago.”
Spokane was her second national-level competition, competing in Atlanta in May 2017 where she finished 14th in the nation. She currently holds all three Tennessee youth weightlifting records in the 58kg weight division. 56kg snatch, 70kg clean and jerk at a combined total of 126kg.
Her honors and activities continue with AP and honors courses and is part of the Scholars Program, Beta Club and National Spanish Honor Society and just this week, the National Honor Society. She plays soccer and does CrossFit several times a week.
… Photos courtesy of Kurt Wagner.
