USAWA Championship Events
by Sanjiv Gupta
It has been over seven years since Al Myers penned his piece on Championships in the USAWA (https://www.usawa.com/championships-in-the-usawa/). I have absolutely no shame in stealing his article ideas and adding my own thoughts. Eight Championship events have been proposed and contested in USAWA. There is certainly something for everybody whether your niche is chain lifting, grip, OTSM or true All-Round.
The events listed are in the order that they were established.
National Championships
Established – 1988
Location- Rotates
Much has already been written about the National Championships. It has been held continuously since 1988 and had the most variety of host venues. Past USAWA Nationals (https://www.usawa.com/history-of-iawa/best-lifters-by-year/) is a summary of overall winners, locations, promoters and lifts. The past 10 years have seen an average of 15 athletes (Max 21 in 2017, Min 7 in 2022). I attended in 2023 and 2024.
Heavy Lift Championships
Established – 1994
Location – Rotates
Next to the National Championships, this is one of the longest running USAWA events. The lifts are always the same contesting the Neck Lift, the Hip Lift and the Hand & Thigh Lift. It has had a continuous run except for 2020. Eric Todd has won the men’s event 6 times and Steve Schmidt and Frank Ciavattone have won the men’s event 5 times and John Carter has won the men’s event 4 times. Cara Collins is the only multiple time winner on the women’s side with 3 titles to her name. This event is more thinly attended with an average of 6 athletes the past 10 years (Max was 9 in 2015, Min was 4 in 2017).
Postal Championship
Established – 2007 (by John Wilmot)
Location – Postal
It has been confusing to get the history of this event. It started off with 2 events and then 4 events with the fourth event being the Postal Championship. Records are still kept for the 1st quarter, 2nd quarter and 3rd quarter, but the “Championship” is the 4th quarter event. In some years the top performer over all 4 meets is reported and winning all 4 postal events would be considered a Grand Slam. It does have the honor of being the only meet contested every year since its inception without fail. Al Myers and Dan Wagman are tied at 4 each with the most men’s titles. RJ Jacson is in a class by herself with 7 women’s titles. As expected, this has had the most participation with an average of 20 athletes (Max was 38 in 2023, Min was 10 in 2014).
Team Championships
Established – 2007
Location – Dino Gym in August or September
While established in 2007, this was last contested in 2021. From 2007 to 2021 it had a continuous run except for 2020 for obvious reasons. It has had an average of 3 team enter (Max 8 in 2015, Min 1 in 2021). Among M/M pairs, Al Myers and Chad Ullom have a total of 12 wins. RJ Jackson and Molly Myers were the only F/F pair to ever enter winning that division in 2013. Finally, there have only been 3 mixed pairs with the Kressly Family winning in 2012, 2013 and 2015. With the recent run on team records during record days, it may be time to bring this one back.
Club Championships
Established – 2010
Location – Ambridge (2010-2012), Ledaig (2013-2019)
The club championship has not been held since 2019. It is a great format with each club receiving a cumulative score for 3 lifters. In the 10 years that it has been contested Dino Gym has 6 championships and Ledaig has 4 championships. Other clubs have competed, but often with incomplete rosters (less than 3 athletes in attendance). With 10 official clubs in 2024 it may be time to see this established again.
Grip Championships
Established – 2011
Location – Dino Gym in February
I attended this event in 2024 and had a blast meeting some new lifters and challenging my grip. It has been held continuously except for 2021. It is generally well attended with an average of 11 lifters in attendance (Max was 17 in 2017, Min was 3 in 2022). As it is usually held in February in Kansas, I am sure weather occasionally plays a role. LaVerne Myers has been at the top of the men’s field 7 times and RJ Jackson has been at the top of the women’s field 3 times.
Old Time Strongman Championships
Established – 2011
Location – KC STRONGMAN
This event has had a continuous run except for 2020. Featuring the OTSM lifts, it is well attended with an average of 9 athletes (Max 12 in 2017, Min 4 in 2015). Chad Ullom has the most men’s titles with 4 wins. Phoebe Todd has the most women’s titles with 4 wins. The most frequently contested lift has been the Dinnie Lift appearing in 6 of the 13 contests.
Presidential Cup
Established – 2012
Location – Hosted by USAWA President (Denny Habecker since 2012) in August
This is an interesting event in that participants are performing record day lifts and the most impressive lift as determined by the president is given the Presidential Cup. Beth Skwarecki is the only person to win the event twice. It has had a low turnout with an average of 5 athletes (Max was 8 in 2017 and 2023, Min was 3 in 2014).