Weightlifters’ Supporters Foundation
Registered charity No. 1100389.
Trustees: B P Hamill; C J Charles; N D Binder; J Hadley
Correspondence: 36 Rowtown; Addlestone; KT151HQ
bphamill1@gmail.com
For grants contact Caroline Charles: 30 Hortensia House
London SW10 OQP
Views herein are those of the editor and may differ from those of the BWL executive.
Winter 2015-16 No. 17
Seasonal greetings! Welcome to new readers.
Who are we? The Foundation has substantial funds. It is a legally constituted Trust Fund with
trustees dedicated to assisting under 19 lifters and clubs with a programme to increase the
numbers of u19s active in Olympic lifting. By law we cannot help you if your programme is
not clearly favouring recruitment of under 19s (i.e. under 19 0n Jan 1 st last). The funds were
donated to the trust by the late Wally Holland OBE and the trustees firmly intend to respect
his wishes. Since taking over we have continued giving grants, big and small, whilst increasing
the fund through cautious investments. In fact the Foundation has been much more active
since the current trustees were invited to form a Trust fund by the late Wally.
EDITORIAL
The news about drugs in athletics may be seized upon in relation to Weightlifting. As I
understand it the IWF has already initiated steps to do what, surprisingly it seems, athletics
has failed to do: that is to have a totally separate body to run the doping programme in
athletics. Strange is it not that the gym world seems sure, with no evidence, that Weightlifting
is tarred with the same brush as athletics seems to be? Sure there have been enough scandals
and positive findings in our sport to make suspicion a topic of gossip. Let us hope the IWF and
continental federations are really on top of systems likely to succeed in eliminating dope in
Weightlifting. A recent IOC meeting decided that testing in athletics should become the
responsibility of WADA and be taken out of the hands of sports bodies. Of course this will
add greatly, if it happens, to the required budget for dope control. Currently the WADA cannot
afford to do all that is needed to carry out this change.
In this issue: Seven year old girl competing safely. The army may be embracing
Olympic lifting: but slowly! Evidence that no supplement is safe! The navy is
already on board (Excuse the pun)
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Here is a bargain. AP brand 20 k Olympic Bar for just £276. Delivered. Subject
to being unsold!! I have previously sold two of these bars which have taken
heavy Olympic lifting without complaint. Black steel, not chromed. Why so
cheap? They have been used at a trade show, once.
MORE BARGAINS: Werksan competition set 190k unused. Price £2995 plus
VAT and delivery. Also available 2 x 10 Werksan discs, lookalikes for Eleiko,
and in my gym seem to be just as durable. All subject unsold. And 10 k rubber
bumper plates £74 per pair! More offers on page 8! The fund has not added
any profit!
Obituary: Older readers will remember Ken MacDonald who competed for England in the
Empire Games. I do not keep records myself so have few other details. He trained at the
Central London YMCA with John Jackson to whom I am grateful for the sad news. Ken died
from diabetes related illness, a problem that is becoming an epidemic in today’s sugar laden
diets. He had a big family spread around several countries. RIP. Readers may not know but
Tony Cook is a commentator and archivist who seems to be able to report much of interest
about the modern and ancient history of the sport. I feel his Back Hang Gazette will supply
more info on Ken. Contact Anthoney Cook for info on the Gazette at 4 Anne Grove,
Cleethorpes; DN35 9DA chantiwrassler@ntlworld.com.
Thinking of Tony is it not time that his life ban be rescinded. It would not survive a legal
challenge and his only offence was to be very rude indeed to the then CEO. His tongue is
usually firmly in his cheek! He always is very rude about me but cannot understand why I am
offended when I am not pilloried somewhere in his rag!
Thankyous
Thanks to Katia Lannon for a donation and some kind words, Other awards for PBs were given
to Mercy Brown; Ellie Pryor; M Timms; Amber Sheppard; Se Gavin: Chris Murray. Katia is a
BWL Leader; a PE Teacher & Modern Dance instructor. She has a B Sc. and a Level 3 Personal
Trainer award. To produce two children with all that lot in her lap/belly is really something!
But there is more: She is teaching her 16 month old the Snatch with a plastic bar and weights,
and the appropriate noises! Kazem Panjavi was awarded £170 as a contribution to his
successful participation in a French inter club event at Dunkirk. The Foundation was pleased
to present a Paralympic Bench to Locker 27 on indefinite loan. As that club has a Powerlifting
section I guess it will be well used. Paralympian Oliver Brown lives very close to the club.
Finally, though more may be claimed after Houston, we granted several doses of £25 to lifters
who made PBs in internationals. We had thanks from the North London W L Club to which
we donated a four figure sum. More of that later.
Houston. Some good results in the World Champs and more in the Paralympic worlds. I
was expecting numerous applications for grants of £25; 50 and 75 from lifters who made PBs
in the Snatch and the C and Jerk and were 19 or younger when they did it. Some are doing so
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well that I fear we may run out of funds (not really!). I need some advice on how we should
re think the system so that our BWL affiliated Paralympic Bench Pressers can share in the
awards. They must be BWL members and so must their clubs.
What the Papers say. The Guardian, 10 Nov: Kings College (dept. of gerontology) reports:
having strong legs is striking in that it protects mental ability and brain structure.
Powerful legs help resist the effects of ageing. Simple life style changes may help us both
mentally and physically. I have lost most of my once moderate leg strength so you judge what
has happened to my brain!
The same paper had a letter claiming that, currently, 47 British sports people are banned for
drug offences. Of these 28 are from the Rugby codes. That’s 60%! On the other hand a Rugby
official, their compliance manager, was reported as saying that Union has had 2100 elite tests
last year with only 4 positives. The same source revealed that Union is introducing the
Biological Passport scheme.
Both the above stats cannot be correct. One must be wrong! Maybe the classification “elite”
is a clue. Could some groups of players be missing from the 60% group as they are not serious
players and are prepared to use artificial means to enter the elite group where they will be
well aware that the top echelons are to all intents and purposes “clean”? Who knows?
With recent scandals in athletics we can be sure that using chemical means to gain advantage
will be subject to a tightened regime.
The Guardian again, 25 Nov 2015 on Performance Enhancing Drugs in Rugby. It seems that
Welsh Rugby may have a particular problem. Seven of the 14 banned British League players
are Welsh, as are 10 of the 16 banned Union players. The CEO of Welsh Union explained that
the necessary clean- up is a challenge “not just in Rugby but in sport generally”. That sounds
like a pretty good swerve or even a dummy to me! Look at those stats again: the percentages
are 50% and 62% respectively. Does that not suggest that there is something a little special
amongst Welsh players?
Other sports, ours too, have a problem, but the jury will be out for a hell of a long time before
deciding that Rugby or at least Welsh players have no worse a problem than other sports.
Lift of the Quarter
For July to Sep it was the Two Hands Press. There were 53 entries with the winners as
follows: Open, J Amos, Tiverton; Junior, Chi Chea: Woking; Female, B Swales ; Over 60, Mick
Snudden IOWight; Over 70 M Godden IOW; Schoolboy: D Maynard, Tiverton; Over 80: J
Smith, Standlake. The last Quarter was the tricky Right Hand Snatch with Barbell. I failed 20
k! The current test is the Straight Arm Pull Over and have seen people managing 40k with
more to follow by early April. This could be a useful assistance exercise for Paralympic bench
pressers.
More info from Jim on: silentsmith@talk21.com. Give Jim Smith an Easter gift and send
your lift, age and Bodyweight to him by early April on: silentsmith@talk21.com.
People Mike Bennett and Adam Warwicker have started well with their North London
Weightlifting Club at the Olympic Games Legacy Athletics Centre in Lee Valley. They focus
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on youth, from Primary to Sixth form students and adults. They are seeking teams of relative
novices and appropriate ages for matches and are running classes in local schools. The Fund
is happy to have awarded them a four figure grant to buy relevant equipment.
With this focus on very young lifters can we hope to see young Dallas Nourse lifting there?
If you have some young ones why not call Mike on 0203 730 7917?
Bridgitte Swales, M.Sc is an examiner for the UK Strength and Conditioning Assoc.. She is also
a BWL Coach Level 2. For some time she has been working with me to develop students at
Surrey University and after some false starts it is beginning to take off. As she has also been
appointed coach to the St. Mary’s Weightlifting club she has been able to arrange a
competition between the two Universities. I have suggested that she adds Brunel where they
have a group of first year students being coached by Kristian McFee and others. Looks as if
the Fund’s grant of weights is turning up trumps in the area.
The comp between the two Unis was on Dec.18. More info from Bridgitte on
bridgitteswales@gmail.com
This is the second cooperation the fund has helped create. With Richard Kite and Rhodri
Lloyd (UK S and C Association) we produced a new BWL Position Statement on why young
people should do Weightlifting (see BWL’s Web site) . More info pieces will be follow. This
may change the negative perceptions some in the PE world still have.
Another good omen was at St. Mary’s where 30 students attended the Weightlifting
recruitment drive on Freshers’ day.
Sam Balchin (Sutton club) is working on Olympic Lifting in two Crossfit clubs. She started out
at the Sutton club, a BAWL licenced club run by Bulletin contributor Phil Nourse. One of hers
is the White Noise club at Staines the other is Locker 27. Am I the only reader to remember a
lifter called Les Wellum, who was a BWL coach and a circus acrobat along with Tony Kaspers
of the one- time Teddington PC club. Les tried to teach Olympic lifting in a Staines school but
was not very successful. I guess the increasing number of women doing what I like to call “Real
Weightlifting” will open more doors for Olympic lifting. Thinking of Les reminds me of the
occasion when Tony disarmed a knife brandishing nutter in the dressing room at Teddington
Lifting club. The culprit went on to murder a woman in what became known as the Thames
Towpath murder.
Tamas Sieler a Hungarian Olympic lifter currently works in UK. He was intrigued to see two
BWLA members testing themselves on the Straight Arm Pull Over, and more amazed that
there are still 31 official lifts in UK. A missing one is the Turkish Get Up. I know this is featured
in some Crossfit clubs. Tamas asked if I know why it is called Turkish Get Up…seems it was a
required test for Turkish wrestlers to be considered for the Turkish Olympic Games wrestling
squad. Tam then lay down and demonstrated how to get up to standing with a dumb bell
overhead. I have heard of it being done with a barbell too! If anyone is keen to see this feat
done with technical confidence and expertise, but not with extreme weights, please advise
and I will try to include photos with a subsequent Bulletin! Or if someone wants me to send
videos I will seek a 5 year old to help me with that! A further development is the likely
affiliation and use of the Olympic lifts art Reeds School. This is a very sporting school where
Tim Henman studied.
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Mike Pearman addressed a meeting of Regional coaches. He is one of the BWLA’s most
experienced coaches and lifters, who runs the Brunel Uni. club. Known for his work with
seniors and internationals he is a keen student of the development of the sport. Looking at
the London SE stats for last year (a big sample of the national numbers) he notes a decline in
the youngest groups. This has happened even though the BWLA Executive tries hard to
increase participation. Over all age groups there is healthy total growth even ignoring the
“weightlifters” who are really ‘big arm’ devotees, or simply fitness seekers. Of the Olympic
lifters many are at University or College and will disappear once their tertiary education is
over: or so we can suppose. To reach a high level in Weightlifting takes about 7 years, so
starting at 18, first year at Uni, to be followed one hopes by full time work, leaves little hope
of a 7 year training history being achieved. Zoe Smith has logged up about 5 years, Jack Oliver
around 7 and Zoe came to us with a solid past as a gymnast. Rebeka Tiler is still very young
and if she remains injury free she can get to even higher levels, but recruiting at above 18 is
not a recipe for international success.
The summary and conclusion must be that we need development work in schools and more
work with undergraduates aiming for teaching careers. Some will graduate in sport science
but maybe only a few will opt to participate in the sport upon graduation.
The current cohort of students doing competitive weightlifting is a good omen, but in reality
there are few Unis like Brunel and St Marys with a strong weightlifting programme and,
frankly, there are some with not much idea of how to train for the sport, and that includes
teaching staff! Another problem is that, as graduates start teaching careers, they will be years
away from PE Department Head and may wait years for a say in budgets and policy. Clubs
need to play a part in improving our prospects. In the long established clubs there is a body
of first class coaches, even if their scientific knowledge is at a lower level than esteemed
professional Strength and Conditioning experts.
Our Leeds leaders are well aware of these issues and no less concerned than me and Mike.
Things may improve. Remember; Mike does not have all the data and matters may be better
than we think, but the more the mass of the membership and the executive consider these
issues the better. If Mike’s general view is not supported by the situation nationally then he,
and I, will be happy to cover the issue in more detail in a future Bulletin.
Weightlifting Myths. The latest I heard was about a body builder joining a lifting club who
took off his trainers to start to squat. Asked why bare feet he responded: it’s safer. Nothing
could be more wrong. Maybe the rational use of bare feet or ballet pumps for Powerlifting
has crossed into Bodybuilding without analytical thought! Obviously to become shorter
through discarding shoes makes sense in dead lifting….the bar has less far to be lifted. But
getting strong for Olympic lifting and for safety reasons: no! It is not a good idea and it flattens
the feet. I’d welcome other examples of irrational gym matters for publication.
Odds and Sods : facilities
What facilities exist for Olympic Lifting in UK? I would love to have the chance to find out via
a rigorous evaluation of the quality of the weights, bars (male and female), ceiling height,
adequacy of the floor and willingness to allow O. Lifting in gyms and schools, with Leisure
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Centres being considered as sport centres!. I think we and Sport England etc. would be
amazed to find how few pass muster! Crossfit has a welcome impact on the deficiency but
often they do not have quality bars and rarely have light learners’ bars: 5 k and 10k for
example. I guess the situation in schools is worse and if so, it’s a shame. School PE
departments influence young people to take up a sport. We need teachers on our side!
Maybe an equipment supplier would be interested to pay our far flung coaches to find out all
the above: it would help the supplier and bring some cash to clubs and coaches!
Technical (and food) Titbits. Kazem Panjavi works with many young people and I
noticed a characteristic of his method at the LSE juniors. He teaches a very very slow first pull
followed by what he calls a jump, a transition or an explosion. The benefit of this is easy to
spot. His lifters get better and while the first pull gets faster the line remains almost perfect.
It really works and was displayed by under 13 lifter, 7 year old Seesi Dhanda (43.70) 17 23
40, at the LSE Juniors held in the magnificent Performance Centre of famous school: Harrow.
Not only was the lifting skilled but so was the Iranian meal cooked by Kazem’s wife.
Verbal cues to lifters: Some time ago ex lifter and SBS officer Prof Dave Collins discovered
that brain activity switches off when a very strong stimulus is about to take place, like a karate
chop or a clean. Leading from this he argued that verbal clues were not going to affect the
activity either positively or negatively, the lifter will not hear them. So cues, if heard, might
have a negative effect if the lifters attention is distracted and if the cues are technically
incorrect! A poor cue will be for example, a long list of technical instructions.
However Dave thought that cues can help if they have been rehearsed in the gym, are given
at the right time and are associated with successful lifts done in the gym.
An example of this in action is Giles Greenwood who gives very simple cues at high volume
with almost no technical content. Mainly just “Strong”. His lifters do well!
What about incorrect cues? Maybe they are neither good nor bad: good if not registered. But
here is one example of a technically dubious cue that if used in training may lead to failed
lifts. The cue “squeeze” seems to have arrived from Powerlifting. When the bar is on the chest
prior to a jerk the grip should not be a squeeze. The fingers should be relaxed. If not a reaction
to the hard grip will tighten the elbow flexors which oppose the straightening of the arm. \the
grip can be tightened after the bar is flying up!
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Venues
One of our big worries is the lack of promoters for Olympic lift comps, surely related to the
fact that there are so few affordable venues. It was then, on 22 Nov, quite a nice surprise
that Kaz found the perfect place for a medium size event. We are certainly going up the social
ladder. It was Harrow School: the one that produces prime ministers. It has a conditioning
room with machines and free weights plus an adjacent lifting area. Kaz built a platform
overnight and hey presto here is a new venue with room for expansion. There are other
possible places but paying the facility fee, taking all the equipment to them and ensuring that
the floor is protected is no easy task.
We’re in the Army now! So goes the old song!
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We in the SE have had several attempts to get a productive outcome from occasional
enquiries by the army barracks at Aldershot. They have also been approaching the UK S and
C Association but in the end we gained nothing. I heard from another BWL coach that an army
officer was impressed by a critique of Powerlifting and Weightlifting on the basis that the
latter is more likely to produce fast moving troops who can take cover quickly behind
machinery and other bullet proof obstacles. It is also very encouraging that BWL has arranged
courses for the Navy at Portsmouth. Probably this will become a venue for courses run by
service personnel trained by BWL coaches. I look forward to the possibility of lifting weights
on a rolling and pitching ship! Whatever happened to those machines that depended on
hydraulic resistance?
Regional Squads Some lifters are missing out on invitations to these squads. If you are up
to 18 with good totals in the bag then, at least in London and S East, you should be on a squad.
Contact your regional secretary if not. In the London region, for that age group, contact
rich.kite@britishweightlifting.org. If living elsewhere contact Dan Wagner at British
Weightlifting (see their web site). Of course if you have been approached you must respond!
Drugs again: Dangerous supplements!
Issue 38 of the UK S and C Association’s Professional Strength and Conditioning Journal
features an excellent piece on this. The authors are scientists at Liverpool John Moores
University. They highlight the high level of banned substances found in supplements,
including those claiming to properly tested, some even ‘approved’ and carrying the ‘Informed
SPORT’ logo. Athletes and Coach/Practitioners are warned to avoid products claiming to
promote extreme muscle and strength gains and great fat loss. Herbal supplements are very
worrying. They sound innocent, but plants are often the source of active drugs so great care
is vital. They will work sometimes, but if so because they contain banned substances.
Independent retailers and internet sources are also very suspect, Stick to products
participating in a recognised Quality Assurance programme. Keep records of batch numbers
so you have access to evidence that you tried to avoid the chance of positive results for drugs.
Do not share products like a big box of protein powders in a changing room for all to use! Do
not recommend or prescribe supplements, as even ‘InformedSPORT’ don’t guarantee
products are ‘clean’. Remember it is not reasonable to expect coaches and advisers to be up
to date on current information about contamination. If you are in a country where animals
are fattened up with drugs like clenbuterol buy your meat from Britain! During the 2011 FIFA
world u17 cup over half the dope control tests were positive for that drug! Then 35% of
samples of meat from the hotels were tested and found to be positive! But the above is not
advice I would give! My advice is take nothing!
The authors highlighted one of the points this bulletin often covers: products can easily
become contaminated if packing lines include runs of known illegal additives. It used to
happen to me when I was quality controlling frozen peas and diced carrots!! There were
always some of the latter in the former and vice versa!
I know of no publication that deals adequately with sampling statistically. There is plenty of
evidence that many products are contaminated: mostly Indian, Chinese and Dutch supplied!
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The drug survey company HFL (Now called LGC3) screened 120 samples from packers who
were controlled i.e. have addressed the above issues, and uncontrolled brands (no explicit
anti- drug measures). 35% of the samples were positive for at least one banned substance,
from Anabolic Steroids (17.5%) to stimulants (20.8%). Controlled products had 12.8% with
traces in 55.2 % of uncontrolled products! In 2013, screening of 114 products including
Protein Powders and Energy supplements from leading UK brands revealed 10% positives
with Anabolics or stimulants! Some of these claimed to have been deemed clean due to
testing by an independent lab.. Hands up if you know which labs are independent and
recognised as competent by anti- drug authorities!
There is evidence of incompetence! In 24 samples of which 23 were contaminated, the drug
found was not the one declared by the maker! Hard to believe isn’t it?
Is the risk worth it? Remember, coaches and nutritionists are subject to the same
punishments as athletes: 4 years suspension and access to athletes forbidden if the prescriber
is found complicit in trying to promote drugs or even by accident.
Missing from this paper is the British Standard system (used to be BS 6001) on how to sample
in order to have reasonable confidence that given levels of contamination will be detected by
sampling. Now long retired from Quality Control I no longer have the guide book on this
subject, but anyone interested can approach the British Standards office or HM Stationery
Office. But in this context I am sure that the sampling level will be so high that it will be
unaffordable. I have heard young UK weightlifters being confident that by being honest and
seeking reassurance from bodies like InformedSPORT they will be OK. This is like starting a
fire with a can of petrol. It is a risk too far! InformedSPORT does not offer 100% security.
Bulletin bias
Some readers may have noticed that the bulletin tends to report on the London South East
region more than the rest. It is true, but not deliberate. I can only comment on what I find out
and I am short of correspondence from the great North, East and West, not to forget the
Celtic fringe! Please send your comments and suggestions. Remember I cannot, in all
conscience, print anything sent anonymously! Something I would like to print is a report on
the current state of Masters Lifting, which seems to be in rude health. I’d be really happy to
publicise the contacts for readers who may not know that Masters Lifting exists! Another issue
that would benefit from an airing is the rapid apparent growth of women’s Olympic lifting. I
have heard some interesting and provocative opinions about this!
Here is another offer, a special from the Weightlifters’ Supporters Fund.
Please ask if you need further information. Pay the Fund with your order.
190k IWF accredited Olympic set £1895. Normal price £2795. Plus VAT (20%) and delivery
185k IWF accredited Olympic set £1895. Normal price £2795. Plus VAT (20%) and delivery
The lower weight is for the same discs but with a 15k woman’s bar. Collars are included in
each set.
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