I am honored to be the new Record Keeper for the USAWA. This is a big job and I hope to live up to the trust put in me by the executive board. I would like to thank my predecessors, John Strangeway and Abe Smith. They did a great job keeping the list intact. It is a huge job.
I also want to thank Sanjiv Gupta for his help as well. Since the Nationals, Sanjiv, Abe, and I have acted as a team in all things. The records are now up-to-date through the Second Quarter Postals (6/30/2024). If you spot any errors in your records, let me know! I can be reached at lupoa0313@gmail.com.
We should have some rapid updates coming out in the next week as we work through July, then August, and September. After we get caught up, then we’ll tackle the TEAM LIFT file.
Welcome and congratulations to newcomers Stacy Todd and Allison Lupo to the Century Club on the Women’s side! On the men’s side, welcome and congratulations to Clint Poore, John Carter, and Joshua Monk! Thank you all!
The vacancy on the executive board has been filled. After considering several excellent candidates, the board has appointed Sanjiv Gupta to the At-large seat. Welcome and congratulations, Sanjiv!
Once again our president, Denny Habecker, has sanctioned the Memorial Record Day. This meet honors our former USAWA members who have passed over the years. As ET wrote last year: Some that immediately come to mind are our friends Art Montini, Mike Murdock, Dean Ross, and John McKean. I know there are many others, and too many to list for our purposes here. At any rate, it is a great way for us to honor those who have come before us in the organization. Here are the meet details:
Date: December 14, 2024
Location: Habecker’s Gym, Lebanon, PA
Please contact Denny if you plan on attending to remember these great people and set or break some USAWA records. You can email him at liftingliar@comcast.net
These results were first posted on 9/11/2024, but Al later wrote to me: “There was an error by the US Postal Service in which one club’s entries did not make it to my address. I felt it was the right thing to do to have these entries added to the World Postal Championships.” The updated results are below.
Another great year for the IAWA World Postal Championships!!
This year we had 55 lifters compete from the United States, Australia, and England. This World Postal Championships is one of three (with the World Championships and the Gold Cup being the other two) promoted by IAWA. I want to REALLY thank all those that participated. Your participation is what makes this a great event! As per the tradition the past few years, the lifts of the first day Worlds were contested. I’ve included best lifters, individual overall rankings, 3 person team rankings, and club rankings.
The Overall Best Lifter was ABE SMITH, followed by CHLOE BRENNAN and RJ JACKSON. The Overall Best 3-person Team went to BURTON’S POWERHOUSE (Chloe Brennan, Josh Davidson, Matt Jones). The Overall Best Club went to CLARK’S GYM, which had 14 members participate. The Overall Best Association went to the USAWA, with the IAWAUK in second, and the ARWF in third.
The youngest lifter that entered was LOGAN WENZEL at 9 years of age. The oldest lifter was BILL CLARK at 92 years of age! The highest total weight lifted was by MATT JONES with 465 kilos.
If anyone notices any errors in these results please let me know as soon as possible so I can get things corrected. Sometimes I have difficulties reading the handwriting on the official scoresheets.
Again, I want to thank everyone for entering this meet and making it an outstanding annual event in IAWA.
In this installment of the “USAWA 101” series, I’d like to talk about what we wear at competitions—our clothing and our equipment. If you’ve competed in weightlifting, powerlifting, or strongman, some of this may be familiar, but a few of our rules might be a bit different from what you’re used to.
The “lifting uniform”
6 year old Daphne Lansdown demonstrates proper use of a singlet, athletic shoes, and no wraps or other supportive equipment. Her socks do not extend above the knee, she is not wearing any headgear, and she has no tape on her hands.
You have two options for what to wear on your body. Either a singlet, or a shirt and shorts.
A singlet, if you’re not familiar, is a one-piece garment, usually form-fitting, that is shaped like shorts on the bottom, and continues up the torso, where it has straps that go over the shoulders. It looks like an old-timey swimsuit, or a wrestling outfit. In fact, if you need a cheap singlet quick, search for “wrestling singlet.” You can get one off Amazon for under $20. (The nice ones, from a company like Virus or SBD, cost more and may fit better. But they’re the same basic thing.) You may wear a shirt under your singlet if you like, but it’s not required.
Your other option is to wear a shirt and shorts. The shirt can be a T-shirt or a tank top. (We used to have a rule forbidding tank tops, but that was repealed at the 2024 national meeting.)
Whether it’s one piece or two, your lifting uniform must leave your knees and elbows exposed. That means no long sleeves, and no leggings under the singlet.
If you’re thinking “Can I wear ANYTHING that complies with these rules?” the answer is almost yes. There is a rule that states:
Lifting attire which contains inappropriate language or images, is too revealing, sloppy in appearance, or deemed otherwise inappropriate by the weigh-in official or Meet Director is a violation of the USAWA dress code.
I’ve never seen anyone get dress-coded for sloppy, revealing, or offensive clothing. But in theory, it could happen.
You must also wear “suitable” shoes. Most people wear sneakers of some sort, or weightlifting shoes. Deadlift slippers are also OK. You can’t lift barefoot, sorry.
Allowable equipment
Before we get into what you can’t use, I’ll just say what you can:
A belt, any kind, up to 12 cm (4.75 inches) in width.
Wrist wraps, not to exceed 1 meter in length. (They may be a maximum of 10 cm/4 inches wide, and 1 millimeter thick.)
Dry chalk on your hands
On three specific lifts, knee sleeves or knee wraps may be worn, up to 2 meters in length. These lifts are the Front Squat, 12” Base Squat, and Anderson Squat. You may wear knee sleeves on these lifts instead, if you like. No other lifts allow knee wraps or sleeves.
What you cannot wear or use
I’m very sorry to anyone who is used to using these items, but they are not allowed:
Wraps on any other part of the body (elbows, etc) except as mentioned above.
Headgear such as hats or headbands, unless it is for religious purposes. (Your hijab or yarmulke is fine.)
Gloves
Straps
Braces or supports, including knee and elbow sleeves (except as noted above for knee sleeves). If you have a doctor’s note stating that an item is medically necessary, the officials can make an exception.
Over-the-knee socks
Chalk or any substances on any part of the body other than the hands (no baby powder on the thighs)
On the hands, any substances other than chalk. No tacky, rosin, chewing gum, etc.
Tape, unless it’s covering an open wound or an injury (in which case it needs to be OK’d by the officials.) So, no, you cannot tape your thumbs for hook grip lifts.
Where to learn more
The full language of the rules about clothing and equipment is in the section of the Rulebook labeled VI. Equipment.
For any specific meet, if you want to know if your T-shirt is inappropriate or if your medically-necessary knee brace will be accepted, get in touch with the meet organizer and/or ask the head official.
For example, I recently refereed a meet where I was asked, ahead of time, whether a lifter would be able to use their doctor-prescribed compression stockings. My answer was yes. On the other hand, when I compete in USA Weightlifting events, I like to wear leggings and knee sleeves. But when I compete with USAWA I leave those items at home.
Ultimately we want everybody to be safe and healthy and have fun lifting more or less like the old-timers did.
A note on knee sleeves
The question of knee sleeves comes up from time to time—why doesn’t the USAWA allow them? The membership appears to be divided on the question, according to several votes and surveys over the years.
One side argues that knee sleeves don’t seem to give much if any mechanical advantage, and most strength sports allow them, so we should allow them too. On the other hand, some members see them as too modern for an organization that is trying to respect historical tradition, and the possibility that they may aid in lifting is enough reason to be cautious.
There was a lively debate on the topic at the 2024 National Meeting, and in the end knee sleeves remained banned (except for the three lifts that also allow knee wraps).
