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Despite a huge weight on her shoulders, Rodney College student Kayla Wray has stamped her mark on the Auckland Weightlifting Championships this month.
The 16-year-old placed third in the junior girl’s 75kg section after lifting 44kg in the clean and jerk, and 39kg in the snatch.
“I hoped to get a place going into the competition so I was happy with the result,” Wray says.
She puts her success down to a strict lifting routine and good positional grip on the bar.
“It’s all about having a process you can repeat consistently and I have definitely found my best grip on the bar now, which makes a huge difference.”
Her rise in the sport has been fast. She started lifting just eight months ago and had only participated in two events before the Auckland competition.
“I started doing cross-fit about 18 months ago, which is a mix of activities involving strength, cardio and gymnastics.
“My coach introduced me to my current trainer Tina Ball, who wanted to work with me on weightlifting after seeing me do a couple of practice lifts.”
Her training routine involves up to six sessions of strength work a week and practice lifting at either Fit365 Mangawhai or the Strength HQ facility.
“My personal best lifts in training are 50kg in the clean and jerk, and 42.5 kg in the snatch.
“I get the opportunity to work with David Liti, the top super heavyweight lifter in New Zealand, so his advice is really valuable”.
Wray says that as the only weightlifter at Rodney College, getting started has taken a lot of self-motivation. Two wrist injuries have slowed her progress.
“It’s been a lot of hard work over the past eight months, but I have aspirations to compete at the Commonwealth and Olympic Games.”
