November is typically a slow month for USAWA, but Allison Lupo has certainly shined impressively completing all of the lifts in the Goerner Deadlift Dozen Plus One. She has also quietly crept up the records list and holds 151 records (including 47 ALL age records) in 103 different lifts including presses, clean & Jerks, deadlifts, misc bar lifts, heavy lifts, strongman and special equipment lifts. How many individuals can claim a record in the back lift, neck lift, hand & thigh lift, hip lift and harness lift? She also shares 4 team lift records with Tony Lupo. I have always felt like strength is for everyone and every age and since coming on the scene during the 2023 IAWA World Postal Championship, she has impressively competed in 27 different events in Missouri, Kentucky, and Fergus, Ontario, Canada. Congratulations Allison!
Do you know a USAWA member who should be recognized as a future Lifter of the Month? Send nominations to the Secretary at bethskw@gmail.com.
Buffville Gym is a fantastic place we hosted meets in the past. Also, on Saturday, immediately following the awards we will have the OTSM RECORD DAY.
If you plan on participating in the Record Day portion, please let me know what lifts/records you want to perform. This way I can ensure we have all the proper equipment available for you to set incredible records.
Finally, plenty of seats will be available, but feel free to bring your own chair to be more comfortable.
I’m looking forward to seeing everyone this weekend.
As a final reminder all Old Time Strongman lifts are now available to set IAWA World Records!
This is the OFFICIAL OLD TIME STRONGMAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. This is a POSTAL meet, so different countries can all compete simultaneously across the World. The OTSM Worlds will take place on December 7 in different locations on separate continents. All results will be sent in by each locations meet director and results will be tabulated ASAP! Each lifter will receive a OTSM Worlds medal and T-shirt for participating. International locations for the OTSM Worlds to be held, are in England, Australia and the USA. Other International locations may be added.
OLD TIME STRONGMAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP – USA LOCATION
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2024
BUFFVILLE ARENA in ALBANY, KENTUCKY
ADDRESS:2608 BUSINESS 127 NORTH, ALBANY, KENTUCKY
This is the North American Continental location for the OTSM World Championship. All lifters from any North American nation are welcome to attend. CANADA, USA, MEXICO & all Central American countries are invited. Also, any International lifters who want to compete are invited to attend .
WEIGH-INS:8 AM – 9:30 AM ,LIFTING BEGINS AT 10:30 AM
THE 3 LIFTS: HACKENSCHMIDT FLOOR PRESS, DINNIE LIFT & INCH DUMBBELL DEADLIFT (ONE ARM, LIFTER MUST DECLARE THE ARM AND NOT CHANGE ARM DURING COMPETITION)
ENTRY DEADLINE – December 6, 2023 – email clintpoore@hotmail.com or by phone at 606-688-2600.
ENTRY FEE:None, just let me know you are attending, then have fun lifting & breaking records!
USAWA MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED:Please join the USAWA before the meet. Registration will also available at meet site if you need to join the USAWA the day of the meet. If lifting in England or Australia please pay your National Registration fee prior to the meet.
AWARDS:WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP AWARDS in EACH WEIGHT CLASS & AGE GROUP. OVERALL GRAND CHAMPION TROPHY MALE & FEMALE with Medals awarded to all competitors. T-shirts provided for all lifters, I must know your t-shirt size two weeks prior to the meet, we will have a few extra as well.
OLD TIME STRONGMAN WORLD TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP AWARD – The top 5 points total from each countries will be added together to determine the Old Time Strongman World Team Champion.
RECORD DAY – The Old Time Strongman Record Day will be on Sunday, December 8 @ 9 am. No more than 5 Record attempts, per person. Please let me know what records you will be attempting so that I can be sure I have the appropriate equipment. USAWA National Records can be set at the Record Day, if we have 3 referees present IAWA World Records may be set.
Good morning, good day, good afternoon and good night to you!
This article is about 5 ways to grow the USAWA in 2025.
1. We can begin 2025 by actively recruiting meet directors in more states. The USAWA currently has active meet directors or clubs in Kansas, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Louisiana, Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Kentucky. One prominent goal should be to increase this to 20 states and meet directors in 2025. An easy way to encourage meet growth in other areas is by adding a link to the website saying “HOST a USAWA MEET in YOUR AREA!” Then we can follow it up by adding a meet director resource page to help new & existing USAWA meet directors with any questions they might have.
2. Make the USAWA NATIONALS the premier event of the year! The USAWA Nationals should be the can’t miss event of the year, not just another meet on the schedule. It needs to be special and an event the whole family would want to attend. You may be saying that “it already is”, I will disagree with that statement. The Nationals should take precedence over every other meet and should be the shining example of what the USAWA has to offer lifters. If you have recently lifted outside of the USAWA in a weightlifting or powerlifting nationals, then you will see we as an organization need to to step it up and make the USAWA Nationals the main event of 2025!
3. Modernize the USAWA logo. I have inquired about this in the past and was rebuffed by erroneous claims. I have been assured the logo has been changed at least twice before in the past & it’s high time for the USAWA to have a modern and professional looking logo. A logo speaks volumes to potential lifters and the current USAWA logo doesn’t look good at all in the modern world of strength sports. Let’s work together to have a logo that is professional and modern that encompasses everything the USAWA has to offer. Hopefully I will have one to present in the near future, but if someone has a better idea…..lets see it!
4. Give sponsors a reason to support the USAWA! We are the only strength organization in America that doesn’t allow basic 7mm Knee Sleeves in competition and this needs to change. To further add to this, we need to consider allowing yoga pants/leggings, whichever you call them. This would be a great plus in attracting more women to the USAWA and meet directors can check to make sure they are of non-supportive material. Allowing Knee Sleeves and Leggings/Yoga pants is a step in the right direction and will help open the door to potential sponsors for our larger events. Plus, it would make sense, USA Weightlifting already allows non supportive leggings.
5. Finally, we must EMBRACE CHANGE! For the USAWA continue growing its membership, we as an organization must be open to doing things differently than we did in the past. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity. Let’s move the USAWA forward and embrace change to grow in 2025. 2024 was a record membership year for the USAWA with 135 members. Our 2025 goal should be no less than 200 members, if not more.
In closing, may we learn from President John F Kennedy’s words, “Change is the Law of Life….and to those who only look to the past or present are certain to miss the future!” Our 35th President was making a very wise statement that holds true for us today. May we as the USAWA, be open to change and never miss the opportunities of the future!
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.
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).
To order online, add up the items and shipping and send the payment through PayPal. Then email me your order at SalGuimino@yahoo.com regarding what you want, that you paid via PayPal, and where you would like it shipped.
Supplies are limited! Act fast! Etc etc!
I will modify the list as orders come in. This is first come, first served. I will fill them as fast as I can. I will let you know if what you order is no longer in stock. Feel free to check in with me before placing your order. Photos of all items are here. The following is what gear we still have in stock:
