Barton Athletic Club in Salford played British Weightlifting’s North West Regional Youth Series on Saturday. The tier 3 event brought over 30 young competitors aged between 11 and 17 together on a participatory level.

Across four different age categories, young weightlifters both male and female took part in various events such as the clean and jerk, and the snatch.

British Weightlifting Chief Executive Ashley Metcalfe said, “From our point of view, it’s about building for the future, the youngsters that are really enjoying lifting on the platform can hopefully be the internationals of the future.

“At any sport, you’re always looking to try identify potential good young talent, I think we’re fortunate that we’ve got lots of strong areas, with Manchester definitely being one of them.” He added.

Barton Athletic Club, which hosted the competition, received £500,000 of National Lottery funding back in 2016, leading to huge improvements in facilities.

John Lightfoot, treasurer of Barton AC said, “We have another competition coming up in November as well as more throughout the North, creating some kind of a circuit.

“It is a growing sport and it’s encouraging to see people take part and have a go” he added.

To locate your local weightlifting team, please visit British Weightlifting.

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