TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS (Lakewood, CO and remote)
The team championships are returning to the USAWA championship roster! Here are Sanjiv’s highlights on this tradition, followed below by the meet announcement.
USAWA has a long history of team lifting with records dating back to 1989 with Joe McCoy and Bill Drybread. Since then, the popularity of team lifts has ebbed and flowed with a handful of records set every year at record sessions and the Gold Cup.
A turning point was the 2005 Deadliest Duo Meet. This meet had (5) different teams contesting the Team Deadlift and Team Clean & Jerk. This success was quickly followed by Team Nationals which had been a staple from 2007-2021. 39 different lifts were officially contested during Team Nationals
During those Team Nationals Al Myers and Chad Ullom slowly piled up records in 39 different lifts and still retain the top spot with the most team records. Most unusual was the Team Trap Bar Deadlift (2010 Al/Chad). Team One Arm Dumbbell Press, Right (2012 Rudy/Mike) is a close second. Note that athletes would have to face each other to pull off this lift.
While no team records were set in 2022 or 2023, there has been a resurgence since 2024. The power couple of Allison and Tony Lupo have set records in (16) different team lifts and show no signs of slowing down. New meets in Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Canada the past two years have also featured team lifts as part of the record day.
2025 USAWA Team Championship
Saturday, December 20, 2025
Location: Lakewood, Colorado and Hybrid
Weigh-Ins: 9:00 AM, Lifting Begins 10:00 AM
Meet Director: Sanjiv Gupta (sanjiv_gupta@hotmail.com 720-938-2029)
The Lifts: Team Clean & Press (A10) & Team Deadlift, Ciavattone Grip (B3)
Entry Deadline: December 6, 2025
Entry Fee; $10 per 2-person team
Officials: Must accompany Hybrid results to be eligible for records
USAWA Membership Required
Awards: Overall award to the best team as determined by gender-age-Lynch adjusted total (1.16 will be applied to M/F teams). Certificates for all entrants.
Special Event Team “Freestyle” – Teams are encouraged to select a 3rd USAWA Lift as their Freestyle entry. This lift must be video captured and submitted to the meet director. Best Team Lift based on Originality, Degree of Difficulty and Execution. Award to be determined.
Freestyle has historic roots going back to the 1904 Olympic Games as Freestyle was the tenth weightlifting event and was weighted heavily enough to override the outcome of the other nine lifts.