Topic: News: Israel's Goals Switch From Football to Weightlifting

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Nick Israel's Goals Switch From Football to Weightlifting: Competes at FHSAA 2A State Championships
By Joe Koch

WELLINGTON — Before the 2005 football season, Wellington senior Nick Israel had some big goals.

And one of them already had been achieved. He was going to be a starting running back for the Wolverines. Other goals — such as being named All-Area or All-State or playing college football — looked like they'd fall in line after he rushed for 212 yards on 20 carries in Wellington's spring game against Park Vista.

But all those dreams were dashed when Israel suffered a severe knee injury during a 7-on-7 game last summer.

"I twisted wrong," he said. "My (left) foot got stuck, and I tore my anterior cruciate ligament and the cartilage in my knee."

Israel's senior football season was over before he played a single down.

"It killed me inside," he said. "It probably wasn't until even after the season was over that I finally got past it."

The sporting world, though, is full of second-chance stories, and Israel is proof of that. Unable to play football, he put all of his energy into the school's weight lifting team. Today, along with 10 other area competitors, he'll be competing at the Class 2A State Weightlifting Championships at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville.

Israel made a solid impression at the sectional meet as he won the 169-pound class with a combined effort of 600 pounds (325 in bench press and 275 in the clean-and-jerk). The next finisher was 50 pounds off the pace. What's more impressive is that he would have captured top honors in the 183-, 199-, 219- and 239-pound divisions.

"I took it easy at sectionals," he said. "But it's nice to know that I would have won all the upper weight classes except heavyweight."

Israel, who said qualifying for the state meet was his sole focus at the sectional meet, believes he'll have a great opportunity for top honors.

"I didn't shoot for any personal bests at the sectional meet," he said. "I went through the motions, got my lifts in and took it easy. Nobody has any expectations for me."

Indeed. Israel trails five other state qualifiers in the 169-pound class.

Carrying a weighted grade-point average of better than 4.0, Israel will attend the University of Florida as a pre-med major. And, he plans to lift weights for a long time.

"Florida has a club weight lifting team, and I'll do that," he said. "Depending on how that works out, I might switch to Olympic lifting and try to qualify for the Olympics in six years."

Jupiter lifter top qualifer at 139: Jupiter's Brian Ton is the state's top qualifier at 139 pounds. The Warriors senior didn't make a lift at the sectional meet until the bar was at 250 pounds in the bench press and 225 pounds in the clean-and-jerk. He had a combined total of 525 pounds (275-bench, 250 clean-and-jerk), winning the sectional title by 90 pounds. Ton's teammate, Nico Pento, is the sixth-best qualifier at 129 pounds.

Other qualifiers: Royal Palm Beach (Anthony Alvarez and John Schmitt, both at 119) and South Fork (Chris Guerrero at 169 and Andrew Chesnut at 183).