Five Lift Friday — Issue #1
Our mission with FLF is simple. Make your inbox less boring with a sprinkle of olympic weightlifting and good vibes. We'll highlight our favorite lifts from around the internet, our club, and re-discover some classics. Those who scroll further will uncover our Lanky Lifter Safe Space, and a carefully selected track from our training hall's No-Skip List.
Really just a fun morsel to make every Friday, Big Friday
Without further ado...
Lifts of the Week
1. The inaugural featured lift in FLF goes to South Korea’s Lee Sang. Dude absolutely smokes this 180kg/397lb clean and jerk (competes at 67kg/148lb!). We leave the lift-to-weight ratio math as an exercise to the reader. Technique x power is a collab we’re always here for.
2. Here's American Record holder Hampton Morris trying to break the sound barrier moving under some snatches at 117kg/258lb and 120kg/264lb. He's an absolute Houdini under the bar. Love the aggression throughout the lift. The pulls aren't all identical, but it looks like there's no way he could miss these. What a stud.
3. World team member Hayley Reichardt unleashing a 111kg/245lb clean + front squat + jerk. For context, she bagged a bronze medal at the world championships last year with 110kg/242lbs. In the jerk her legs look unfazed from the clean and front squat... super interested to see how much more she can hit on the platform.
4. Time for a little shine on our club. MB wrapped up a long training cycle with an absolute bang. Last week was one of the most bumping Fridays we've had in a while -- ladies and the fellas came all to slang. Eric and Isaac both came within a hair of snatch PR's, but were not denied in the clean and jerk. Each extended their personal bests. Neree battled back from a clark (claims it was just a set of pulls) to snatch 77kg/170lbs. And after chasing it for a long time, it was incredible to see Angie knock down 63kg/139lbs on the snatch. While they sadly went unrecorded, Jessica and Chloe also put down some impressive lifts and deserve a shout.
5. Lanky Lifter Safe Space
Milwaukee Barbell prides itself on creating a safe space for tall, lanky, rangey, anthropomorphically elongated lifters. We've long maintained the highest average height for all USAW clubs (probably).For anyone triggered by any of the following questions:
“So have you ever considered moving up a couple weight classes?”“Omg your bar has soooo far to travel”“Lmao you used to play basketball right? …No? Volleyball!?”“Yeah, but at least you have fun at concerts”
consider this corner of the internet a tribute to your struggles. We see you.
Periodically we are going to feature one of our lanky brothers or sisters. Our first beacon of hope in this space is Polish legend Syzmon Kolecki.
The man has a laundry list of highlights and big lifts to choose from, so we’re copping out and sharing this compilation from All Things Gym. This video includes a treasure trove of training footage running from childhood to adulthood, so you get to see how he develops.
17:16: 17yrs old, 232.5kg/512lb clean and jerk weighing 96.4kg
19:02 18yrs old, 235kg/518lb clean and jerk weighing 94kg
His performance at the 1999 European Championships is also noteworthy. Though already a junior world record holder, this competition is where he really put his name on the map in the senior ranks. He went toe-to-toe with reigning 2-time olympic champion (won again in Sydney) and one of the goats Akakios Kakhiasvilis. The man is ice cold throughout and the grit on his third attempt clean and jerk at 225kg/496lb to win is otherworldly.
If you’ve ever felt conscious for not filling out that t-shirt under your singlet, let this man be your spirit animal. Go off king.
No-Skip List
The No-Skip List is one of the most sacred traditions at Milwaukee Barbell, with origins tracing back to our original Florida Street training hall. Membership on this genre-bending list is exclusive (you’re more likely to win a Grammy than be elected). It's maintained orally. No one person knows the full list.
Each FLF we’ll unlock one entry here. This week's banger...
Disturbed - Stupify
