Officials

USAWA has very reasonable expectations for officials.  There is a written rules test and practical experience.  To expand the pool of officials, USAWA has offered video practical experience for Level 1 status and allows officials in other strength federations to carry over that experience.

Level 1 – (16) listed officials, (8) are 2026 USAWA members

Level 2 – (32) listed officials, (18) are 2026 USAWA members

It is quite impressive that over half of the 2026 members have passed the written test or Level 1 or Level 2 officials.

I feel like every athlete should be working towards becoming an official.  First, the open book written exam is a great way to learn about the lifts, commands and how competitions are run.  Second, the USAWA always needs officials for competitions.  With more certified officials, flights can operate smoothly and officials are not stuck officiating and can socialize.  Third, upon achieving Level 2 Status, the official can train aspiring officials.  This helps USAWA grow and expand geographically.

USAWA has an athlete training program for a couple of reasons.  First, it is a requirement for membership in the International All-Round Weightlifting Association.  Second, it ensures fair competition.

Officials are human and may make mistakes.  Early or late down commands are frustrating.  Quick lifts have often been red lighted as press outs.  Overall, it averages out. 

Having a training program minimizes mistakes in commands, points of performance (when do the shoulders need to be erect vs when do the legs need be straight?), is the uniform correct, and is the equipment appropriate for competition.  Having multiple certified officials allows for discussion when the rules are unclear.

Most recently, I was involved in a discussion about vertical bar deadlifts.  The rules state that the legs must be straight and knees locked, but the shoulder and body do not need to be erect.  “The lifting hand must be above the level of mid thighs at the completion of the lift.”  We considered the thigh to start above the kneecap and end at the inseam.  We did not mark the mid-thigh on the athlete’s uniform.  We further decided the hand started at below the wrist and most lifts even with a very wide stance would comply with the rules if the legs were straight and knees locked.

Level 1 – Test Qualified or Experience Qualified – Test Qualified is written test and 3 practical training sessions.  Experience Qualified is 25 practical training sessions.  A training session is sitting in the chair next to an official in the one-official system or being one of three judges in the three-official system.  Practical training could also be done by performing video officiating tests.

Level 2 – Elevate to Level 2 after officiating in 25 competitions.  10 of these competitions must be USAWA and 15 could be taken from another federation at the Officials Director’s discretion.

Full details on officials are in section VII of the rulebook and on the website.

2026 Annual Meeting

The annual meeting is still over three months away, but I would love to see the agenda formalized in the next two months so that members can give motions due consideration in their clubs and upcoming competitions.

New Lifts

(6) New lifts have been proposed, but none received majority approval of the Executive Board (unanimously rejected) and will not be brought to the general membership for consideration.

  • Bench Press, Repetition (1 min)
  • Bench Press, One Dumbbell – Right
  • Bench Press, One Dumbbell – Left
  • Bench Press, Larson (Fulton HT)
  • Deadlift, Heels Together Fulton
  • Saxon Deadlift (2” x 5”)

New lifts proposals must be sent to usawasec@gmail.com by May 28th to be considered by the Executive Board.  Historically the Executive Board has considered (1) is it a new lift, (2) does it represent an all-round movement, (3) can it be performed properly by the majority of members as described in this article by Al Myers.

Officer Reports

Officers and Special Assignment Directors should consider submitting their reports in writing to usawasec@gmail.com prior to the meeting.  This is not a requirement and during the past few annual meetings, reports have been given ad hoc during the annual meeting.

Treasurer Report – Bill Clark

Website Director Report – [by acting Secretary – Sanjiv Gupta] The website continues to be produced in WordPress with content being published by a handful of trusted servants.  The domain is registered with Network Solutions.  Curtis Cooper continues as the consultant that maintains the website and resolves issues.  The website was down earlier this year due to high volume access from overseas.  The website is now only accessible from the United States, UK, Australia and New Zealand.  No changes are planned for the upcoming year.

Award Director – Tony Lupo

Record Director – Tony Lupo

Drug Enforcement Director – Eric Todd

Officials Director – Joe Garcia

Postal Meet Director – Denny Habecker

Social Media Director – [vacant] – Facebook continues to be the primary social media platform.  It is a private group with 497 members.  Aside from USAWA business and announcement, some content is generated by non-USAWA members regarding historic all-round weightlifting and general odd lifting.  Reddit is active with minimal content.  The Instagram pages have been archived. 

Override Executive Board Decisions

Sanjiv Gupta intends to motion to delete Rule “Meet directors reserve the right to remove any athlete due to disruptive behavior.”  This rule was created on July 27, 2025 unanimously by the three-person board of Clint Poore, Tony Lupo and Kyle Frappier.  I don’t think it is necessary and can be used to by meet directors to discriminate against athletes.

Sanjiv Gupta intends to motion to delete addendum to Section IX sub-section 4 “at the meet director’s discretion, including all USAWA national events.” This addendum was created July 27, 2025 unanimously by the three-person board of Clint Poore, Tony Lupo and Kyle Frappier.  Official scoring is required per the National Championship guidelines Section X subsection 9 and this addendum creates a conflicting rule.  The 33% gender allowance was unanimously passed at the 2024 Annual Meeting to align the USAWA with the IAWA and allow for women to be part of a larger competitive field and should not be overridden by three male board members.

New Business

No new business has been proposed for discussion at the annual meeting. 

New business should be specific with references to the appropriate section of the Rulebook or By-Laws for which the change is being proposed.

Some members have expressed concerns with non-United States based athletes being full members and able to set and hold United States records, but no specific agenda item has been brought forward.

Results from the 2026 USAWA Club Championship – Correction

As often happens, occasionally a mistake is made in reading a number or making a typo – or in this case both. Two of Abe Smith’s final lifts were not entered correctly. His Zercher was 365 and was originally typed into my spreadsheet as 340. The Ciavattone Deadlift should have been 435 and was mis-typed as 405. This adds 55 pounds and 56 Lynch and age-adjusted points to his total. Clark’s Gym Team 1 picks up that many points as well adding slightly to their margin of victory. Thank you to the one who caught that.

2026 Club Championship and Record DayDownload

Results from the 2026 USAWA Club Championship

Last Saturday and Sunday, the calendar turned to March, the climatological beginning of spring. It must have been the perfect time to hold the USAWA Club Championship meet which was revived last year by High Country Vigour in Lakewood, CO. This year the meet drew four clubs to the competition at three locations and included 24 lifters! Remote sites included High Country Vigour and Habecker’s Gym. Clark’s Gym was the epicenter of the meet and we were visited by members from a new club, Per Aspera Strength from Shawnee, KS. The 24 lifters (six women and 18 men) formed a total of eight teams and threw around the eye-popping sum of 15,644 pounds of iron, nearly eight tons or an average of 652 pounds per lifter! The Lynch and Age factor points brought the total to more than 16,000 lbs, in spite of this contest including a very challenging set of lifts.

Following the procedure of the Team Championship at the end of 2025, the winners in three different categories (women, mixed, and men) will receive certificates with their placement. There was only one women’s team – and they hailed from Clark’s Gym and are the 2026 Women’s Champion. They were Janet Thompson, Allison Lupo, and newcomer Dylan Wenzel. Every member of that team either tied their own records or set age and weight marks and all weight standards in each of the four events! All members of the team were particularly strong on the Ciavattone Deadlift.

The mixed division was very competitive and showcasing three teams of similar composition (two men one woman). The newcomers – Per Aspera Strength led the way with 2531.4 Lynch and age points to capture the 2026 Mixed Category Championship. While the men placed second and eighth individually, no small feat, they featured lifter Esmie Tseng who finished first among all women with 640 lbs raw weight. She set ALL category records across the board and impressed the crowd with a 250 lb Zercher and 275 lb Ciavattone Deadlift. Her teammates Kyle Wiebe and Andrew Mykel were equally noteworthy with both lifters totaling 1000 lbs or more in raw weight, two of three lifters to get that amount. Kyle had the lift of the day with a 500 lb Ciavattone Deadlift and set two records overall. The mixed runners-up were from High Country Vigour and featured the veterans Sanjiv Gupta and K. Van Wagner, who were joined by newcomer Josh Williams. The two veterans contributed with five age and weight or all weight records. While Josh Williams led the way on a team that posted some strong Ciavattone Deadlifts and Zercher lifts. Finishing third by less than 150 lbs was Habecker’s gym a team led by Beth Skwarecki, whose total of 555 lb was second among women. In each lift she set records for age and weight or in the All category. Mike Locondro and Jerome Licini lifted admirably, both showing well in the Ciavattone Deadlift.

The men’s division drew four teams, three of which were Clark’s Gym teams. The difference between first and third was a mere 450 lbs. Clark’s team 1 wins the 2026 Club Championship in the Men’s Division. On team 1 were Abe Smith, Travis Luther, and Phil Marlin who were three of the top four male lifters. Abe Smith, who finished a mere four pounds under 1000 lbs, had the distinction of being the only lifter whose Lynch and age score cracked 1000 lbs. Abe set two new standards with his efforts. Phil Marlin contributed by lifting the most raw weight, including the best-in-the-record book Turkish Get Up, an incredible 136 lb hoist. Travis Luther had a great day all-around totaling 906 lbs – the best among Clark’s gym members who live in Columbia! This team was also the best overall meaning that for two straight years Clark’s Gym takes the crown. Not far off was Clark’s Gym team 2, which featured Toby Ortega and the father-son duo of Jeff and Riley Wenzel. Toby visited us from Champaign-Urbana, IL, and he always helps kick the gym’s spirit up a notch when he’s in town, this time by finishing fifth overall and setting three new records. Jeff Wenzel is always a strong lifter and finished the day as the fifth lifter to exceed 900 lbs overall. But young Riley is closing the gap on dad with each event – Saturday finishing only 53 Lynch and age adjusted weight pounds behind the old man. A true chip off the ol’ block. Habecker’s Gym, including Barry Bryan, Miles Pruznick, and Denny Habecker, was a close third, impressive because two members of the team are long-time veterans (and hall of famers) whose combined age topped the list. But, Denny and Barry demonstrated they still got it, and Barry was sixth overall with three age and weight records. The team’s youngest member was one of only four lifters to get 100+ lbs in the Turkish Get-up and finished a mere two pounds(!) short of 900 lbs. Clark’s gym contributed a third team which finished fourth and was led by John Carter, and included Tony Lupo, and Logan Wenzel. This team comprised of the two oldest Clark’s lifters from the weekend and our youngest. The former two did very well in spite of being a bit nicked up. John Carter and Logan Wenzel netted two age and weight records each.

See the rest of the story inside! There were some great Record Day contributions and the full team and individual results are also listed.

2026 Club Championship and Record DayDownload

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