The American Open in 2016 will be the last of its kind (as best as we can tell). While this year is the closing of of an event in which we’ve seen incredible growth and development, it is the beginning of a new type of development for USA Weightlifting. Furthermore, this will be the first event since the Olympic Trials and the United States’ appearance in Rio de Janeiro. While The 2016 American Open is just the first event of the new quad, for many this is the start of their run for 2020. Especially for the up-and-coming Junior lifters of USA weightlifting, this is just the first step in their move towards the Olympic Trials.
The Power and Grace Performance weightlifting team will be fielding it’s largest team to date it it’s young history with six girls registered and one male. It’s not often that we have such a large time gap between national events allowing for such a measured progression. Most of our athletes had the opportunity to take advantage of that gap in competition to develop and mature in specific weaknesses. From a programming standpoint, it also allowed us to pull away from the volume in the lifts and develop some overall strength and muscular balance.
Below is the roster for Power and Grace Performance be sure to watch out for them in three weeks.
48 kg – Meghan Valentine
53 kg – Jordan Delacruz
58 kg – Sarabeth Phillips
69 kg – Cherisse Taylor, Jessica Mounce
75 kg – Jessie Bradley
77 kg – Kevin Schmitt