Tag Archives: IAWA Gold Cup

About the IAWA Gold Cup

A young Al Myers of the USA is presented with the Howard Prechtel Memorial Trophy at the 2013 IAWA Gold Cup. Al won with an outstanding Power Row of 145 kilos.

With so many new people having joined USAWA in the past few years, and now a brand new crop of world record holders in Canada, I’d like to highlight a very special upcoming meet all our members should know about: the 2024 IAWA Gold Cup, to be held on November 2 in Norwood, MA, near Boston.

The Gold Cup is an international record breaker event, where lifters choose an IAWA lift to contest. The catch is that all attempts, even your opener, must be done at a record breaking poundage. The winner is the person who does the most impressive lift, as calculated through Blindt coefficients. (More on the scoring in a minute.)

The Gold Cup is not held on US soil very often; in other years you might have to fly to Australia or the UK to compete. But for 2024, the Gold Cup is coming to us, and is being hosted in Norwood, Massachusetts, presented by Frank’s Barbell Club. The full information on how to enter the Gold Cup is here, including information about the banquet and recommendations for local hotels.

How the Gold Cup works

There are two eligibility requirements for lifters to compete in the Gold Cup.

  1. You must be a member of IAWA or an affiliate (if you are a USAWA member, you’re good)
  2. You must already hold an IAWA world record (but if you do not hold a world record, you can still compete in the Silver Cup)

The day begins (after weigh-ins) with the Silver Cup, a choose-your-own-lift competition for those who do not already hold an IAWA world record. So don’t skip this meet just because you haven’t had a chance to set a world record yet! You can still compete in the Silver Cup and, in the process, perhaps earn your first world record.

Then comes the Gold Cup. Lifters may choose any IAWA lift that has a Blindt coefficient. The Blindt coefficients are sort of a “difficulty factor” that is used to compare lifts to each other. Lifts that are typically done with light weights have higher Blindt coefficients; those that are typically done with heavy weights have low Blindt coefficients. Each lifter’s score is multiplied by the Blindt coefficient for the lift they did.

For example, the highest Blindt coefficient is 5.4637, for the One Hand Pinch Grip Clean and Press. The lowest is 0.0955, for the Harness Lift. That means a 20-kilogram pinch grip clean and press is roughly equivalent to a 1,144-kilogram harness lift. The Blindt coefficients are calculated from existing world records, so they reflect the weights people have actually managed to lift.

The usual age, gender, and bodyweight adjustments are all used as well. This competition format means that two lifters can be of different ages, different weight classes, different genders, and choose different lifts for the competition–and they can still be ranked against each other to determine a winner.

The last few winners of the Gold Cup include:

  • 2023 – Danny Kingsland (UK) with a 33 kg left handed strict bent press
  • 2022 – Chad Ullom (USA) with a 332.5 kg Shanks lift (Dinnie lift)
  • 2021 – Jim Gardner (UK) with a 91 kg shoulder drop
  • 2019 – Al Myers (USA) with a 90 kg ring fingers straddle (Jefferson) deadlift
  • 2018 – Paul Barette (UK) with a 32.5 kg right handed strict bent press

How to enter

To enter the Gold Cup (or the Silver Cup), you can find the information and entry form here. (Choose your lift from among the lifts in the IAWA Rule Book here.) The competition is held on November 2, 2024, but entries close a month earlier, on October 2, 2024. So you have about a month to choose your lift and sign up!

Gold Cup

By Steve Gardner

2018 IAWA GOLD CUP

Group picture from the 2018 IAWA Gold Cup, in Eastbourne, England

Group picture from the 2018 IAWA Gold Cup, in Eastbourne, England

The 2018 Gold Cup is over and we look forward to next years event in Perth Australia. Reflecting on this years event, which was spectacular, and finished with 22 new IAWA World Record Holders, I cant help but think how lucky we are to have such great people amongst our numbers, an International family of All Round Weightlifters who come together and compete in a spirit of goodwill and ready to support one another without question…. and the result is some really fantastic lifting, just as it was yesterday. Everyone is so grateful to Paul Barette and Adrian Pryor for putting on this years Gold Cup, and what a superb event and banquet it was too. Thanks again to everyone who attended from wherever they had travelled, coming together to make it an unforgettable event,and what better fitting end than for Paul Barette to take the Howard Prechtel Award too with an outstanding Strict Bent Press, yes another super event, the 29th Gold Cup!!!

RESULTS (PDF) – 2018 GOLD CUP Results

Gold Cup

by Al Myers

Group picture from the 2015 IAWA Gold Cup in Perth, Western Australia.

Group picture from the 2015 IAWA Gold Cup in Perth, Western Australia.

I’m finally back home and adjusting to the time changes from my recent trip to Perth, Australia competing in the IAWA Gold Cup.  It’s a long ways to travel – but was well worth it as I had an outstanding time there.  Trips like this one creates memories far beyond the meet experience.  I was very fortunate on this meet trip that my wife Leslie and daughter Molly traveled with me. It was the FARTHEST they have ever flown before!  Now for some “reflections” on the 2015 IAWA Gold Cup.

First of all, meet promoter John Mahon did a phenomenal job.  He had carefully planned a three day event for the lifters. The first day consisting of the Gold Cup, the second day consisting of a Heavy Events competition, and the final day consisting of the very first ever international Old Time Strongman Challenge.  I will elaborate more on a later date on the OTSM and Heavy Events events in a blog, as today I want to stay focused on the Gold Cup.  John had a tremendous support group from his fellow Australian All Rounders to put on this event.  I know from my meet promotions that you can’t do it all by yourself – and how important it is to have help from others.  Peter Phillips really “stepped up” to help John.  Peter is a true warrior with the iron and besides being a great lifter, is a great person.  Peter competed ALL THREE DAYS, helped set up and tear down each day, hosted all of us at his house one night for an unbelievable Australian Barbie, took a day to join us for a tour of the farming country, loaded and officiated, and even celebrated his birthday amongst the weekend’s festivities!  Sam Trew has been a very involved lifter in IAWA events these past few years and worked hard “behind the scenes” setting up the competion venues.  Robin Lukosius kept everything organized and on schedule, as well as taking lots of pictures of the events (THANKS Robin for the photos!).  Others Australians very involved in this event were Anne Whitehead and the legendary John Patterson (I plan to do a story later on John).  I was glad to see other Australian lifters like Hercules Perryman, Bill Kappel,  Monica Cook, and others I’m sure I’m forgetting to mention.  The overall hospitality shown by the Australians was superb and way beyond expectations.

Injuries kept several out of the Gold Cup, but the lifting was outstanding. This was a true international event with the USAWA and the IAWA(UK) being in attendance with lifters competing.  My daughter Molly was the youngest lifter and performed great with her lifting. I was actually more nervous when she was on the platform than myself. She set new records in the Clean and Push Press with 55K, and then set the heaviest women’s Front Squat on the books with a 92.5K.  USAWA President Denny Habecker picked a difficult Gold Cup lift with the 2-Bar Deadlift, and after getting some balance issues out of the way in his warmups, lifted a solid 145K.   Veteran English lifter Steve Gardner again showed his strength with his fingers, lifting a big 100 KG in the Middle Fingers Straddle. Steve was busy all day with lifting and announcing the competition.  Karen Gardner looked really on good form with a big Continental Clean.  Graham Saxton rounded out the English crew, and showcased his pulling strength with a big dumbbell deadlift.  I got to spend alot of time over the week with Graham as we were all sharing a rental on a beach house.  Graham probably got more sun exposure than he has for years and kept getting redder as the week progressed.  By the end of our stay we were referring to him as BIG RED!

Peter Phillips breaking the oldest IAWA record on the books in the Feet in the Air Bench Press. He broke a record held by Howard Prechtel which was set in 1989.

Peter Phillips breaking the oldest IAWA record on the books of all the lifters in the Feet in the Air Bench Press. He broke a record held by Howard Prechtel which was set in 1989.

Besides the Howard Prechtel Award, the Australians awarded a couple of special awards which I thought added a special local flare.  Peter Phillips won the Award for breaking the oldest IAWA record on the books with his fine 122.5K Bench Press with feet in air. This record breaking performance broke a mark previous held by a 1989 record of the late Howard Prechtel’s! The Gold Cup was the “brainchild” of Howard’s – and it gives me pleasure to see us recognize his memory every year with it. Records are meant to be broken – and I have always said if it means something to someone to break one of your records that even makes your record even more noteworthy. I’m sure Howard would have liked to see Peter take down this old record of his.   Also – a Wilf Chapman Award was given to the lifter who broke a record by the greatest percentage.  I knew Wilf when he was alive, and he was a dynamic personality.  I found this award to be fitting in his honor, as he was always complaining about the IAWA correction formulas!  The award went to Sam Trew with his record setting performance in the Left Hand Hacklift.

The Gold Cup concluded with a very fine banquet at the Belmont Recreational Center.  Much thanks and appreciation goes to those who prepared this fine meal. Great lifting – great food – great drink – great conversations – the true essence of the IAWA!

MEET RESULTS (PDF) – IAWA Gold Cup 2015