The University of Texas Weightlifting team hit the competition platform in Irving, Texas for the 2022 Texas State Weightlifting Championships. Team members represented their home clubs in junior and senior competitions throughout the weekend. Three athletes brought home senior state medals and one athlete brought home a junior state medal!
Luis Leyva kicked off the Texas State Championships for the UT Weightlifting team. He represented Texas Barbell Club, competing in the 81kg Junior Men’s session. Luis went 4 for 6 in his second weightlifting competition. His 81kg snatch, 113kg clean and jerk, and 194kg total earned him competition PRs all around, as well as a silver medal! Following Luis, Jacob and Maanas, both representing Texas Barbell Club, took to the platform on Saturday night. Jacob set competition PRs across the board, as well as new UT Weightlifting records in the Men’s 67kg division, going 92kg snatch and 120kg clean & jerk for a 212kg total! His lifts earned him 4th place! Maanas closed out day 1 for the UT Weightlifting Team, going 4 for 6, hitting 87/118/205.
Blake Gamez, representing Team Texas, kicked off the big Sunday for the UT Weightlifting team. Blake had a slow start in the snatches, but came back in the clean & jerk to hit 108kg to earn the Men’s 61kg Silver Medal. His third attempt clean & jerk at 115kg would have won him the gold, but he was called for a press. Next up, Dillon James, representing Austin Barbell Club in the Men’s 89kg class, went 3 for 6, hitting 97/135/232 on the day. Victor Delgado rounded out the men’s side on the second day of competition for the UT Weightlifting team. He went 4 for 6, hitting 115/137/252 and earning 5th place in the Men’s 96kg division.
On the women’s side, Maddie, Jamie and Brie competed simultaneously to close out the University of Texas Weightlifting team performance. All three girls represented Texas Barbell Club and went 5 for 6 on the day! Competing in the 71kg class, Maddie Moore posted a 72kg snatch and a 90kg clean & jerk for a 162 total. Jamie Pearce hit a 72kg snatch and an 88kg clean & jerk for a 160kg total. She earned competition PRs across the board, including a 5kg total PR, as well as all new UT Weightlifting Records for snatch, clean & jerk and total. This huge performance won her a bronze medal in the women’s 76kg class! The final lifter of the day, Brie Gomez had her biggest showing ever on a competition platform. This performance included a 5kg competition PR in the snatch at 82kg, a 2kg competition PR in the clean & jerk at 99kg, and a 7kg total increase from North American Open Finals in December!! These lifts earned her 3 new UT Weightlifting records, silver in the Women’s 64kg division and punched her ticket to senior national championships in July!
The University of Texas Weightlifting Team will compete locally at Tarleton State Weightlifting’s Cowboys & Kilos 29 Jan, and then nationally at University National Championships at the beginning of March in Columbus, Ohio!