USAWA

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 28^th 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  The Instagram pages have been archived.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.

I know it is over four months away, but it is time to start thinking about the agenda for the 2026 Annual General Meeting being held in conjunction with the National Championship. Lots of things happen at the Annual Meeting which should be conducted by the President according the the accepted rules of parliamentary procedure (Roberts Rule of Order). Link is to a simplified version. The latest editions include the 12th Edition and the In Brief 3rd Edition.

Approval of the 2025 Minutes – These have been posted on the website and there is usually not much discussion.

New Lifts – Proposals for new lifts are to be made to the secretary at usawasec@gmail.com New lift proposals are reviewed by the board and if the majority of the board members approve the lift, they will be presented at the Annual Meeting. New lifts must be proposed by May 28th (30 days ahead of the annual meeting).

Officer Reports – Reports will be made by the Treasurer, Website Director, Awards Director, Records Director, Drug Enforcement Director, Officials Director, Postal Meet Director, Social Media Director and IAWA Representative.

Override Executive Board Decisions – This is the opportunity for the membership to override any decisions made by the Executive Board. The board has made (2) decisions since the last annual meeting that are subject to being overridden.

New Business – These can be made in person at the meeting. Of the few annual meetings I have attended, new business made in writing to the Secretary ahead of time makes it easier for members to know what they are voting on. We are currently operating under the 14th Edition of the Rulebook. New business can include changes to the Rules or the By-Laws. Rule changes require simple majority vote. By-Law changes require 2/3 majority vote.

Elections – Elections were held in 2025 and we are not due for elections until 2027. However, several appointments were made by the Executive Board. It might be appropriate to get consent of the membership to retain the existing Executive Board.

Select Promoter of the next National Championship – Historically, the National Championship has moved around the country. Consider placing a bid for the 2027 National Championship.

Updates for the 2026 Annual Meeting will be posted monthly and will include a draft agenda as New Business is submitted to the Secretary at usawasec@gmail.com

The 14th Edition of the Rulebook is now available for download from the website and purchase from Amazon.

• New Lift – Reflex Bench Press – A38
• Drug Test Appeal change
• Wrist wrap/Knee wrap thickness removed
• Leg coverings added
• Provisional membership clause removed
• Special Assignment Director – Social Media Director added

The authors wish to thank everybody who contributed ideas to this rulebook. Thanks go to Kerry Clark, who did the editing and design on the original rulebook and the first revision in 2003. Also, I want to thank everyone who contributed pictures to this rulebook. This includes Denny Habecker, Tim Piper, Mary McConnaughey, Jim Malloy, Scott Schmidt, the late Joe McCoy and many others. I especially want to thank the late Tom Ryan, who did the proof reading of many prior Rulebooks to make them as error-free as possible. Thanks to Beth Skwarecki, who made the 2024 updates. Finally, thanks to Jessica Hopps for proof reading the 14th edition.