Weightlifting champs at Mount Maunganui

The North Island Weightlifting Championships are on in Mt Maunganui this weekend.

The event is a qualifier for the National Senior and Junior Championships in October and is the second biggest event on the national calendar.

Eleven Western Bay athletes will be competing against the best lifters from throughout the North Island with a total of 84 athletes competing over the two day event.

Two of the local lifters in Carl Bevan and Sachiko Kawakami will attempt to break national records (masters records). Sachiko has just become a grandmother while Bevan is trying to break a record held by a previous Commonwealth Games medalist which he has broken in training several times.

The major clubs from Auckland (NZ Weightlifting Academy, Strength HQ, Functional Strength Olympic, Otara Barbell Club, Papatoetoe Olympic Weightlifting, Northsport Olympic Weightlifting) will be up against the major regional clubs from Wellington (41 Degrees Weightlifting), Hamilton (Waikato Weightlifting), Whangarei (Northland Olympic weightlifting) and the two local clubs (Bay of Plenty Barbell and Raw Barbell).

There are 84 entries across eight sessions of high quality weightlifting.

Thanks to support from TECT, Industrial Athletic and First Credit Union.

factbox:
What: OWNZ North Island Championships
When: July 30-31, all day both days from 9amWhere: Hosted by Bay of Plenty Barbell at BOP Strength and Conditioning, 109 Newton Street, Mount Maunganui