Front row L-R - Kierstyn Davis, Colton Sewell, Nathan Sewell

Back row L-R - Marty Schnorf, Kari Davis, Mark Davis

 Four lifters from Westfield, Illinois, representing the Charleston Parks and Recreation Dept. Weightlifting Club, all won medals at the recent National School Age WL Championships in Orlando, Fla. The club finished with one first place and three second places in this competition for lifters ages 17 and under.

 The club also had Kari Davis selected to represent the United States in the Pan American 17 & under WL Championships in September. That meet will be held in Lima, Peru, in Sept. It will be the 3rd international competition for Davis. She was the United States' only winner last year in the 13-15 year old Pan American Championships in Leon, Mexico.

  Nathan Sewell was the club's first lifter in this meet, and he finished a close second in the 13 & under 77 lbs. class. Nathan was only 9 years old, and made lifts of 68 lbs. in the snatch and 93 lbs. in the clean and jerk. Nathan only weighed 71. Nathan finished second to the same lifter  he finished 2nd to last year, 12 year old James Swords of Houston. Nathan will be in the same age division 3 more years (he recently turned 10).

 Colton Sewell finished 2nd in the 13 & under 135 lbs. class with lifts of 121 in the snatch and 159 in the clean and jerk. Colton only weighed 127 and would have won the next lower weight class by 60 lbs. if he was 2 pounds lighter. Colton had the winning lift overhead but was turned down by the referees for pressing the weight out. He cleaned the 165 lbs. needed to win but was turned down on the jerk.

 Kierstyn Davis finished 2nd in the girls 14 & 15 137 lbs. class with lifts of 112 lbs. in the snatch and 139 in the clean and jerk. The girl who won her class, Jessica Beed, of Okla., will accompany Kari Davis on the trip to Peru.

 Kari Davis won her 3rd straight National School Age Championships with lifts of 165 lbs. in the snatch and 220 lbs. in the clean and jerk. She will be the # 2 ranked girl on the trip to Peru. She missed 230 lbs. on her 3rd attempt which would have made her the # 1 ranked girl on the team.

 " I was hoping to make that final lift, "Kari said. I had made it before but I had to follow myself 3 times in a row and that made it a little tougher.  I am looking forward to the trip to Peru and representing the United States again in international competition."

  "Mark Davis has been doing most of the coaching of these four," Marty Schnorf, coach of the local club said. "Two of them are his daughters and the other two are his nephews. We are always looking for new kids who would like to travel the country and the world and compete, but they are not always easy to find. Anyone in Central Illinois interested in joining the club or finding more out about the club should e-mail  charlestonweightliftingclub@yahoo.com or contact the Charleston Parks and Rec. Dept. There is no charge to join. Lifters from the club will compete in Peru, San Francisco, Arizona, Atlanta, Chicago, Columbus, St. Louis, Indiana, and at the Illinois State Fair, among other places, within the next year.

 The meet was held at Disney World, and will be held near Atlanta, Ga., next year. The kids all enjoyed Disney world while they were there. The meet itself was at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex.