Young weightlifters pick up the silverware
A Sunderland weightlifting club is celebrating after major successes at national tournaments.
Weights & Cakes in Nile Street, Sunderland, was only founded in April 2021, by Zoe Chandler alongside the Community Interest Company (CIC), to run classes encouragingthosewhomightnotother wisebecomeinvolvedinsport.
The club boosts the confidence of those least likely to head to the gym – with the promise of a sweet treat as an end-of-session reward.
Seven of the club’s young lifters competed at an interclub competition in Mansfield for novices and kids. All seven childrenmadethepodiumtaking four golds, two silvers and a bronze.
The successful lifters in various categories were Sydney Loxley, eight, who took bronze, Libby Warwick-Snow 10, took gold, Robert Cuddy, 10, won gold, Blake Fobister, 10, took silver, Zach Taylor, 12, also silver, Layton Lamont, 12, tookgoldmedal,asdidJackAllen, 16.
For Sydney, Robert, Blake and Jack it was their first competition. Sydney only joined in November.
Meanwhile,headcoachZoe, 49, competed at the Northern MasterschampionshipsinMytholmroyd in West Yorkshire and won a gold medal.
This means she has now qualified for British Masters Championships in Derby, EuropeansMastersinPolandand WorldMasterschampionships in Florida all in 2022.
Zoe said: “We been going for less than a year and most of them had never been in a competition before.
“It was a great experience for them and they were really, really nervous. But they smashed it and really supported each other. We were absolutely over the moon.”