Presidential Cup

By Denny Habecker

Where: Habecker’s Gym, Lebanon, PA
When: August  8, 2026
Weigh Ins: 10:00 AM
Lifting Starts: 11:00 AM
Entry Fee: None

The Presidential Cup will follow along some of the same guidelines as the Gold Cup, which is the IAWA meet which recognizes outstanding performances by lifters in the lift/lifts of their choosing.  The Gold Cup started in 1991 under the direction of then-IAWA President Howard Prechtel.  However there will be some differences in the guidelines of the USAWA Presidential Cup:

  • The Presidential Cup is hosted annually by the USAWA President only.
  • Must be a USAWA member to participate.
  • A lifter may choose any official USAWA  lift/lifts (up to a maximum of 5 lifts) to set a USAWA record/records in.
  • The lifter must open at a USAWA Record Poundage on first attempt.
  • The top performance record lift of the entire record day,  which will be chosen by the President, will be awarded the PRESIDENTIAL CUP.

USAWA President Joe Garcia is unable to host the Presidential Cup in 2026. Denny volunteered to host the event again and the the USAWA Executive Board approved his sanction request.

Just let Denny know if you plan on attending: liftingliar@comcast.net

Lifter of the Month, May 2026, Dan Jones

May featured the USAWA Heavy Lift Championship, Stars of Tomorrow and For Women Only meets.

Dan earned lifter of the month with his incredible 3304-pound total in the Heavy Lift Championship.  This was a 294-pound improvement over his 2024 numbers. 

Dan has been competing since 2023 and currently holds 64 records.  Dan is a member of Frank’s Barbell Club and is an excellent ambassador of All-Round Weightlifting on and off the platform. 

Congratulations Dan!

Do you know a USAWA member who should be recognized as lifter of the month? Send nominations to the acting Secretary at usawasec@gmail.com

USAWA Participation

Reviewing the January through May participation numbers brought forth some insights

YearMeetsParticipantsIn PersonRemote
202515685131
202612433423
  • 2026 shows 60% membership drop from 154 to 54
  • 2026 shows 30% drop in meets so far from 15 to 12
  • 2026 shows 36% drop from 68 members competing to 43 members competing

How are 2026 athletes competing? Remote only athletes are 17% of competing athletes so far this year. Only two athletes traveled out of state for meets this year.

  • 21 In Person and Remote/Postal
  • 13 In Person Only
  • 7 Remote Only
  • 2 Postal Only

Membership Numbers (sorted by 2026 Membership from Largest to Smallest)

Club2023202420252026
Clark’s24232522
Habecker’s91287
Frank’s1613117
High Country0666
N/A1950553
Per Aspera0003
Dino Gym6652
Iron Sharpens Iron0022
Ledaig1321
KCSTRONGMAN10871
Buffville1113120
Lou’s1110
Jackson WLC1100
Power Partners1000
Empower1000
TOTAL10013613454
-Canada322250

USAWA has a smaller, but more active group of lifters.

With membership lists going all the way back to 2010, some other insights can be gained.

  • No Club Affiliation is the most popular selection – This means new people are trying all-round
  • Club Membership and Activity is cyclic
    • Dino Gym – peaked in 2018 with 19 members
    • Clark’s – grew from a low of 1 member in 2017 to the juggernaut it is today
    • Frank’s – peaked in 2019 with 23 members
    • Habecker’s – relatively steady with an average of 6 members annually

Share your thoughts on the Forum, Facebook page or directly with the Secretary at usawasec@gmail.com.

Results from the 2nd For Women Only Meet and Record Day 2026

Last weekend the 2nd For Women Only Meet and record day was held here in Columbia, MO and remotely. This meet featured five events, the Bench Press – Feet Up, Swing – Dumbbell, One Hand, the Hack Lift, the Deadlift Barbell, One Hand, and the Push Press from the Rack. Two gyms and four lifters participated in the competition and record day.

The competition was tight onsite, but the winner this year was Jessica Hopps from Frank’s Barbell Club. Jessica was first overall with a total over 500 lbs raw weight and Lynch adjusted points. She won four of the five events and set two age and weight records as well as ALL records for her weight class. Her lifts included impressive efforts in the Hack Lift and Push Press from the Rack. The onsite competition was very close as two familiar lifters, Allison Lupo and Janet Thompson squared off. Allison’s lifts totaled over 400 lb, and she edged Janet by 0.27 Lynch adjusted points for 2nd overall. Allison set four new age and weight records including the Deadlift, One Hand which was the best effort of the competition in that event. Janet’s third place effort was very strong as she was close to personal bests in spite of not being at 100% strength for the meet. Young Dylan Wenzel competed as well and just one week after competing in the Stars of Tomorrow Meet. Again, she challenged my ability to model her Lynch factor, and under the guidance of her dad, completed the competition. She set five new age and weight records and ALL records in her weight class, including finishing 2nd in the Press from the Rack, when age and weight were taken into account. Congratulations to all the lifters! Please check out the record lifts as well. There were five individual record setters and one familiar set of team lifters that did some good lifting.

2nd Annual For Women Only Meet and Record Day

2026 IAWA World Postal Championship – The Andy Goddard Memorial

By Paul Barette

There is a new process for entry submissions – see below…

Honouring our IAWA friend Andy Goddard:

As in previous years the contested lifts are those of Day 1 of the IAWA World Championships:

Entries to be submitted by 31st August 2026 using the online form

More information including the rules for the competition and the entry form can be found on the IAWA website here.

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