By Emmerson Campbell
Now that the powerlifting season is over, the main focus for lifters in the year ahead is to improve their overall lifting poundage and eclipse their performances in 2011.
According to executives of the Guyana Amateur Powerlifting Federation (GAPF), the sport of powerlifting had a successful year with commendable accomplishments by John ‘Big John’ Edwards, Dawn Barker, Karel Mars, Kenneth Melville and Randolph ‘The Accomplisher’ Morgan, recording outstanding regional and world class performances.
Stabroek Sport caught up with Edwards, Barker, and Morgan who highlighted their resolutions for the new year.
Edwards, won the Men’s Open title, the Men’s Master’s 120 kg and overall Master’s title at the Caribbean Powerlifting Championships in the Cayman Islands in March as well as a bronze medal at the World Masters Championships in St Catherine, Canada in October.
Barker, a gold medalist at the Caribbean and the North American Regional Championships and best female lifter in the Caribbean said that her main aim is to squat 600 pounds as well as improve her bench press and dead lift.
“I will be working on squatting 600 pounds by next year November, out of the three, my squat is my strength, and it is not as easy as it may sound but I know that I can do it. For next year I want to also improve my dead lift and my bench press, my bench pressing really needs improving.”
The powerlifting queen of the Caribbean holds the North American record in her 84kg class for the squat when she squatted 523 pounds in Miami at the North American Regional Championships in July.
The ‘Accomplisher’, who has won gold medals for the past three years in succession at the Caribbean Championships, said his main aim next year is to break the world dead lift record for his 83kg class when he attends the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio, USA in March.
Morgan who dead lifted 705 pounds (320kg) at the Senior National Championships in October plans on dead lifting in excess of 759 pounds (345kg) which is the record in his category at the world-renowned championships.
“I’m basically looking to compete again at the Commonwealth to get the overall title and also to break the world record. Those are my goals in 2012.
To accomplish the world record in the dead lift, I’m hoping to dead lift like 360 kilos at the Arnold Classic.”
‘Big John’ who is one of Guyana’s most decorated powerlifters revealed that apart from improving his lifting weight-wise, he and other lifters are looking forward to attending and dominating the South American Championships, the Caribbean Championships, the North American Regional and the World Masters Championships.
“Next year we plan on going to the South American Championship which is mandatory by the IPF (International Powerlifting Federation) that Guyana attends because we are grouped in the South America region.”
“Also we will be looking forward to going back to the Caribbean Championships in March and bringing home the title, we will also be going back to the North American Regional and the World Masters Championships where our goals are to bring home gold medals and keep the Golden Arrowhead flying high.”
