Topic: 2009 USA Senior Nationals Start List Shocker

[Mike Wittmer]

I suspect the number of competitors was intentionally lowered to reduce the total number of competitors to make the event(s) manageable in the timeperiod allowed. That was the practical problem I foresaw, but perhaps I am mistaken.

That is correct.  The main issue is the 2016 Olympics.  It is my understanding that this is to showcase Chicago for the IWF.  They wanted to keep it manageable, but I also heard that adding more (a few more) lifters, the partial nationals, gives it more of a feel for what a larger event would entail. 

I know some who would have gone but did not hit the higher qualifying total. 

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

I think it is shameful to screen out American lifters from our Sr Nationals in order to put on the Pan Ams. Indeed I recall Dragomir and Dennis talking to me about this and saying we need to make sacrifices in order to run this meet in the hope we would get the 2016 Olympics. I remember them asking me if I agreed and they were shocked that I didn't. Its a lot of money to get the Olympics, but I don't think the money is going to help if we don't have any lifters left and I seriously doubt running this meet is going to affect that decision significantly. Less than 50 men in the USA Sr Nationals- simply amazing. Opportunity is running dry in our sport. Even the best lifters don't start at the top. Rob our lifters of enough opportunity and you will lose them. And, this is just another brick in the wall, so to speak.

Edit: I would also add that I do not believe combining meets will be helpful to most of the American lifters, who simply are not ready for major international competition. It will be disruptive, distracting, and intimidating for the majority, and decrease the likelihood of them staying in the sport and excelling IMO.

[Paul LaDuke]

Edit: I would also add that I do not believe combining meets will be helpful to most of the American lifters, who simply are not ready for major international competition. It will be disruptive, distracting, and intimidating for the majority, and decrease the likelihood of them staying in the sport and excelling IMO.

I disagree with you on this point.  Athletes love good competition.  Competition is what brings out the best (and worst) in an athlete.  The fear of failing in competition is what drives the great athletes to higher levels of performance.  If any of our US weightlifters were intimidated out of our sport because of the increased level of competition at Pan-Ams that is too bad, but good riddance.  I hate to sound harsh, but if you are lifting at the level to qualify for the USAW Sr. Nats and are intimidated by some foreign team, you aren't going to make it far in this sport anyway!  Don't let the door hit you on the way out!  Exposing our athletes to better competition is what is needed for success.  We can't keep it "in house" and expect to compete internationally!  The USAW must expose our athletes to better competition so that we get better on the international scale.

That said, I don't think combining the USAW Sr. Nats with the Pan Ams was a good thing.  The reason being is because of the increased total excluding qualified lifters.  I think they should have kept the QTs were they were and allowed for bigger weight classes.  This may have increased the fan's watching the competition.  Since so few Americans were lifting, very few people were in the stands from what I saw and reports that I heard.  I fear that low attendance numbers may have actually hurt Chicago's chances of landing the 2016 Olympics.  If more US athletes would have lifted, there would have been more fans in the stands.  More fans in the stands, the more the IOC would give credence to the efforts of Chicago for 2016?  Now, I am not myopic enough to think that attendance at 1 weightlifting meet was a make or break for Chicago 2016, but ...

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

Paul,

Would you put elementary sprinters against high school sprinters? High school sprinters against Olympic sprinters? No, competition is great, but it should be of the same level. It sounds nice to say young kids/jrs should get motivated by getting their butts kicked, but then I doubt you have lifted in a C session before either. 

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

I think it is shameful to screen out American lifters from our Sr Nationals in order to put on the Pan Ams. Indeed I recall Dragomir and Dennis talking to me about this and saying we need to make sacrifices in order to run this meet in the hope we would get the 2016 Olympics. I remember them asking me if I agreed and they were shocked that I didn't. Its a lot of money to get the Olympics, but I don't think the money is going to help if we don't have any lifters left and I seriously doubt running this meet is going to affect that decision significantly. Less than 50 men in the USA Sr Nationals- simply amazing. Opportunity is running dry in our sport. Even the best lifters don't start at the top. Rob our lifters of enough opportunity and you will lose them. And, this is just another brick in the wall, so to speak.

I hope a lesson has been learned now that we didn't get the Olympics. Combine this travesty of turning our National Champs into a showcase for foreign lifters while screening out Americans with the lack of fight put on for Casey Burgener so as not to offend the powers that be, and you can see altruism's disastrous effects on weightlifting (and everything else).