Topic: News: 2008 USA Olympic Trials

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Roach, Haworth lead US Olympic women's weightlifting
By Paul Newberry 

Melanie Roach was supposed to make her first Olympic team in 2000.

Eight years later, she could truly appreciate the thrill.

The 33-year-old mother of three finally fulfilled her Olympic dream Saturday, having overcome the back injury that ruined her expected trip to Sydney.

[attachimg=1]
From left, Cheryl Haworth, Natalie Woolfolk, Carissa Gump, and Melanie Roach,
are announced as the U.S. Olympic weightlifting team after the Olympic trials Saturday
May 17, 2008, in Atlanta. Roach was the top-rated lifter at the U.S. weightlifting trials,
claiming one of four female spots allotted to the Americans. She'll be joined in Beijing
by Carissa Gump, Natalie Woolfolk and Cheryl Haworth. Photo by John Amis.

This will be the third Olympics for Haworth, who claimed a bronze medal in her first appearance at the 2000 Sydney Games. The three-member U.S. men's team also was being decided Saturday at Georgia Tech.

Roach's comeback was even more remarkable considering she quit the sport for five years to start a family. When she decided to start lifting again, the pain returned, too, forcing her to undergo surgery in the fall of 2006 shortly after she claimed her sixth national title.

She hooked up with Dr. Robert Bray in Los Angeles, who was performing a procedure known as microdiscectomy that reduced the recovery time. He removed three fingernail-size fragments from her spine, and Roach was up and walking as soon as the anesthesia wore off.

''I knew right away that I was better,'' she remembered.

Bray surprised Roach by flying across the country to see her lock up a spot on the Olympic team. He walked up from behind and tapped her on the shoulder while she was celebrating in the warmup area.

''Thank you so much, Dr. Bray. You did an amazing job,'' said John Thrush, Roach's one and only coach since the former gymnast began lifting in 1994.

''When you're working with someone who has that much heart, it makes it easy,'' Bray replied.

Roach made all three of her lifts in the snatch, the heaviest at just over 178 pounds. As she held the bar above her head, she screamed in delight. After dropping it to the podium, she clapped her chalk-covered hands, threw both arms in the air and bounced off the stage.

She went to the clean and jerk merely having to avoid a total meltdown, and it quickly became apparent Roach wasn't going to let this opportunity get away. She lifted nearly 229 pounds with ease, then locked up her spot by hoisting just under 240 pounds on her second attempt.

Roach let out a yell while posing with the bar above her ahead, realizing this wouldn't be a repeat of 2000. She failed on her final attempt at 244 pounds, but it didn't matter.

She was heading for the Olympics.

''This is far better than anything I expected,'' Roach said. ''If I made the team in 2000, I wouldn't appreciate it nearly as much as I do now.''

Haworth, who was the face of American weightlifting when the sport made its Olympic debut at Sydney, has gone through her own trials over the last eight years. She underwent major surgery in 2003 after blowing out her elbow, and she failed to medal in Athens after re-injuring herself on the first snatch attempt.

She also had to fight through a slipped disc in her back, endured the embarrassment of a drunken-driving arrest in her hometown of Savannah, Ga., and went through a couple of coaching changes.

Haworth claimed the final spot on the U.S. team, but she's planning to make a run at a medal in Beijing.

''I'm ranked No. 4 but it doesn't matter at this point,'' she said. ''We're all going to China.''

The 25-year-old Haworth easily made all three of her snatches, and needed only one clean and jerk attempt to secure her place on the team.

''I'm really sort of getting my vengeance now,'' she said with a smile. ''I'm ready to get really strong and go compete the way I know how. The last two years, I didn't because I was so injured. My goal is to stay healthy and go get a medal. If I stay healthy, I won't have any trouble at all.''

For Roach, the hard part is over. She would love to win an Olympic medal, but just making it to Beijing was her main goal.

Afterward, she savored the moment with her husband and their three young children, including 5-year-old Drew, who is autistic. They all made the trip from Bonney Lake, Wash.

''I'm really proud of my mom for making the Olympics,'' said 7-year-old Ethan, who will accompany her to China.

Three-year-old Camille jumped into the conversation.

''I am going to the Olympics, too,'' she said.

Actually, she's not, which Ethan was quick to point out.

''Yes I am,'' insisted Camille, who then gave her big brother a punch to the chest.

Get ready, Olympics. Team Roach is heading your way — eight years behind schedule.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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It's finally time for Roach
Weightlifter, 33, makes U.S. team after interruptions for injury, family

ATLANTA — Melanie Roach was supposed to make her first Olympic team in 2000.

Eight years later, she could truly appreciate the thrill.

The 33-year-old mother of three finally fulfilled her Olympic dream on Saturday, having overcome the back injury that ruined her expected trip to Sydney.

Roach was the top-rated lifter at the U.S. weightlifting trials, claiming one of four female spots allotted to the Americans. She'll be joined in Beijing by Carissa Gump, Natalie Woolfolk and third-time Olympian Cheryl Haworth.

"This is far better than anything I expected," Roach said. "If I had made the team in 2000, I wouldn't appreciate it nearly as much as I do now."

The three-member U.S. men's team also was decided Saturday at Georgia Tech. Kendrick Farris was the top-rated qualifier, followed by Chad Vaughn and Casey Burgener. Woolfolk and Burgener will be heading to Beijing as a couple; they are engaged and planning to get married in November.

Roach's comeback was even more remarkable considering she quit the sport for five years to start a family. When she decided to start lifting again, the pain returned, too, forcing her to undergo surgery in the fall of 2006 shortly after she claimed her sixth national title.

She hooked up with Dr. Robert Bray in Los Angeles, who was performing a procedure known as microdiscectomy that reduced the recovery time. He removed three fingernail-size fragments from her spine, and Roach was up and walking as soon as the anesthesia wore off.

"I knew right away that I was better," she remembered.

Bray surprised Roach by flying across the country to see her lock up a spot on the Olympic team. He walked up from behind and tapped her on the shoulder while she was celebrating in the warmup area.

"Thank you so much, Dr. Bray. You did an amazing job," said John Thrush, Roach's only coach since the former gymnast began lifting in 1994.

The 117-pound Roach made all three of her lifts in the snatch, the heaviest at just over 178 pounds. As she held the bar above her head, she screamed in delight. After dropping it to the podium, she clapped her chalk-covered hands, threw both arms in the air and bounced off the stage.

She went to the clean and jerk merely having to avoid a total meltdown, and it quickly became apparent Roach wasn't going to let this opportunity get away. She lifted nearly 229 pounds with ease, then locked up her spot by hoisting just under 240 pounds on her second attempt.

Roach let out a yell while posing with the bar above her ahead, realizing this wouldn't be a repeat of 2000. She failed on her final attempt at 244 pounds, but it didn't matter.

"I really wanted this. I really wanted to be on the Olympic team," Roach said. "It's just an amazing day. I'm so excited."

Farris and Vaughn dominated the men's competition, with the main battle for the final spot. Burgener took it with a clean and jerk of 493 pounds on his next-to-last attempt. He fell over backward on the stage in jubilation.

"It was just a surge of energy," Burgener said. "I can't put it into words. It was like every surge of emotion you can feel all coming down at once."

No one was more relieved that Woolfolk, watching in the crowd with her spot on the team secure.

"It would have been bittersweet if I had made it and he didn't," Woolfolk said. "I would have been heartbroken."

Burgener's spot is not yet official, but U.S. officials were told this week they would get a third man because of doping cases involving other countries.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Trials result gives Friend hope for 2012
By Matt Forman

Northwestern freshman Natalie Friend finished 13th overall at the 2008 U.S. Weightlifting Olympic Trials in Atlanta on May 16, her first showing against the best professional lifters in the nation.

She lifted 78 kilograms in the Snatch and 102 kgs in the Clean and Jerk, placing third in the Women's B division, which featured nationally ranked lifters No. 11-20. Only the top four lifters qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

"I'm glad I went because I won't be as terrified (the next time I go)," Friend said. "Everyone was so serious, and there was so much pressure all around."

And while Friend did not qualify for the 2008 Games, she is a 2012 Olympic candidate, according to her experienced lifting coach, Mike Gattone.

Friend agreed with her coach.

"I feel like I've got a pretty good chance for 2012 if I keep improving and stay healthy," she said.

Gattone trained 2000 Olympic Gold Medal-winning weightlifter Tara Knott, the first woman to win gold in the sport.

"I've got a great coach," Friend said. "He's always coming up with these new things for me to do. That's always a big help."

After this year's Olympic Games, several top female lifters are expected to retire, making room for younger athletes - like 19-year-old Friend - to take their places.

Friend has already garnered attention on the national stage. She competed in the USA Weightlifting National Junior Championships earlier this year and was named the competition's "Best Lifter." Friend has been pleased with her results since she started training with Gattone at the beginning of this school year.

"It was a big improvement from the last couple of years," Friend said. "It also means that in the next four years I could (qualify) for the World Team or the Pan-Am Team."

Friend said making these teams would be worthy accomplishments, but not the pinnacle of her sport - the Olympics. In order to qualify for London 2012, she said she would follow a basic recipe. One that does not include steroids, she joked.

"Basically, it's just going to the gym every day," Friend said. "It's not really any magic formula."

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Burgener makes Olympic team
By Joe Naiman

Eight years ago Casey Burgener left Bonsall for the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. He will be spending part of this summer in Beijing for the 2008 Olympic Games after making the United States Olympic weightlifting team.

“I’m honored to even be going to the Games. It’s such a blessing. It’s such a great opportunity,” he said.

Burgener was notified of his Olympic selection May 17 following the conclusion of the Olympic trials at Georgia Tech University in Atlanta. Burgener lifted 224 kilograms in the clean and jerk. “I really felt strong,” he said. “After I had taken it, the weight felt really light.”

The 224-kilogram lift is an official personal record; a heavier amount in Brazil last year wasn’t recognized. Burgener also lifted 180 kilograms in the snatch.

Burgener, who weighed 126.66 kilograms at the trials, competes in the superheavyweight division for lifters weighing 105 kilograms and above. Although he lifted the heaviest total weight from among his weight class, the determination of the Olympic competitors is based on averages over the past three years. “I wasn’t overly confident,” he said. “A lot of it depended on all the other lifters.”

Burgener was ranked third overall among the superheavyweight lifters. The United States will take three weightlifters in each weight class to Beijing, so Burgener qualified for the Olympics with that ranking.

“It was probably the most exciting competition I’ve ever had in my entire life,” he said of the trials. “It was incredible.”

Burgener is appreciative of his family members and friends who came to Atlanta to provide encouragement. “I don’t know if I would have been able to pull through,” he said.

Following the trials Burgener returned to Bonsall along with his fiancée and encountered a celebration welcoming him home. “I just want to say thank you to them,” he said. “It makes me know how great the people of Bonsall are and the people of Fallbrook are.”

Burgener, who is now 25, moved from Carlsbad to Bonsall when he was 3 years old and attended Bonsall Elementary School and Sullivan Middle School. He spent two years at Fallbrook High School before transferring to Rancho Buena Vista High School, where his father is a physical education teacher and strength coach. Burgener graduated from Rancho Buena Vista in 2000 and moved to the Olympic Training Center following his high school graduation.

Burgener’s fiancée, Natalie Woolfolk, lived in Maryland before beginning the Olympic Training Center program for women weightlifters. Woolfolk also qualified for the 2008 Olympic Games. The wedding is scheduled for this fall.

Burgener will spend twelve weeks at the Olympic Training Center before departing for Beijing.

[Shaun Le Conte]

I've never seen so much misinformation bunched together in 4-5 sentences! But good luck to Casey Burgener at the Olympics.