Grip Championships
By Al Myers
MEET ANNOUNCEMENT –
2020 USAWA GRIP CHAMPIONSHIPS
LaVerne Myers performing the Rim Lift at the 2018 IAWA Gold Cup in Eastbourne England.
The USAWA Grip Championships will be here soon. This has become an annual event in the USAWA over the past 10 years, and is one of the signature, championship events of our organization.
LaVerne, the meet director for the Grip Championships, has just sanctioned and revealed the details for this year’s Championships. He has picked a fine selection of grip lifts that should provide a good challenge to everyone.
After the competition, there will be an exhibition challenge in the Rim Lift. This is not an official USAWA lift but is an IAWA-UK official lift. A couple of years ago LaVerne and I performed it in the Gold Cup in England and really enjoyed the lift. It is a great grip lift that emphasizes a pinch grip. Below is the IAWA-UK rule for the Rim Lift which we will follow in this challenge. This lift will not be part of the Grip Championships scoring as it is not an official lift of the USAWA.
E33 RIM LIFT
The lifter will deadlift, hacklift or straddle a loaded barbell whilst holding only the rims of the discs. The maximum sized discs for the is lift are 18 inches. On the inside the discs must be flat and smooth, and on the outside the rim cannot be deeper than 1inch. The lifter must not grasp any handles, holes or specially prepared areas, only the thumbs on the smooth inside and the fingers on the outside rim. Any bar can be used as the distance between the collars is optional. Whatever style of lift the lifter chooses the lift will always be finished in the correct fashion, with an erect posture. On completion the referee will signal to replace the bar.
Causes for Failure:
- The causes for failure for the deadlift, hacklift or straddle will apply, depending on the style elected.
- Failure to achieve the correct fully erect finishing posture.
- Lowering / replacing the bar before the referees signal.
As you may notice it is similar to our Reeves Deadlift but has several differences thus making it a completely different lift. If the Rim Lift is well received by the lifters LaVerne is considering putting it forward as a new USAWA lift.
MEET DETAILS:
Meet Director: LaVerne Myers 785-479-2264
Meet Date: Saturday, February 8th, 2020 1:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Location: Dino Gym, 1126 Eden Road, Abilene, KS 67410
Sanction: USAWA – Membership required
Weigh-ins: 12:00-1:00 PM the day of the meet
Divisions: Juniors, Women, Masters, and Open
Awards: None
Entry: None – But please give advance notification if attending
Lifts:
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 2″, One Arm
Deadlift – Fulton Dumbbell, One Arm
Deadlift – 2 Inch Dumbbells
Deadlift – One Arm, No Thumb