Topic: News: Caitlin Carter Medals at National Collegiates

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Caitlin Carter Medals at National Collegiate Weightlifting Championship
By Lorrie Whorton

 Caitlin Carter, a Willcox High School graduate, won the fourth place medal, set a personal best, and qualified for next month's National Championship, one of the country's most prestigious and challenging Olympic-style weightlifting meets.

All the action took place this past weekend at the National Collegiate Weightlifting Championship, held at the Reno Convention Center in Nevada.

The 22-year old Northern Arizona University graduate, class of 2006, competed against seven other women in the 58 kilo weight class. She snatched 61 kilos, clean and jerked 76 kilos, to total 137 kilos. That total was both a personal record and the minimum qualifying number she had to reach in order to be eligible to compete at the upcoming National Championships.

"I'm so excited!" says Carter, who placed ninth at the Collegiates a year ago and fell short of qualifying for the National Championships.

Says her coach in Flagstaff, Peaks Weightlifting Club's Chris DeRosa, "We went for a goal and we got it! Anytime you can beat your previous personal record by six kilos (more than 13 pounds) in a national meet, you've really accomplished something."

Carter, who grew up in Willcox, was especially pleased because her brother and mother were able to watch part of her lifting via their home computers. The meet was webcast live by College Sports TV, which will also re-broadcast the competition on its cable television channel between May 12-20.

"That was definitely a different experience," says Carter. "The TV lights were so bright and really heated up the competition platform area. At one point the camera guy was right next to my face when I stopped on the way to the platform to put chalk on my hands!"

The National Championships will take place May 11-13 in Schaumburg, Ill. There's not much time to rest.

"She's preparing to train for the next few weeks - hard!", DeRosa said.

Nor is there much time to eat, drink, and make merry: "It's back to lettuce for dinner!" jokes Carter.

In order to maintain the proper bodyweight to stay in her weight class, she'll focus on very healthy eating with lots of protein, fruits, and vegetables.

The minimum qualifying total that Carter needed to achieve in order to be eligible to compete in the National Collegiate Weightlifting Championship was 102 kilos.

In contrast, the total she achieved at that meet, 137 kilos, is the minimum qualifying total for the upcoming National Championships in May.

Olympic-style weightlifting includes two lifts: the snatch and the clean and jerk. Each competitor is permitted three attempts in each lift. The best of each lift is added together to make the total.

All Olympic-style weightlifting is measured in kilos, never in pounds. One kilo equals 2.2 pounds. Carter's totals measured both ways: snatch of 61 kilos (134.2 lbs), clean and jerk of 76 kilos (167.2 lbs), and total of 137 kilos (301.4).

For more information about Olympic-style weightlifting, visit USAW's web site at http://www.msbn.tv/usavision/index.aspx


Lorrie Wharton is from Peaks Weightlifting Club in Flagstaff, Ariz.