RESULTS:

BENCH:    275lbs.

    1ST PLACE 132lb WEIGHT CLASS

    BEST FEMALE LIFTER

Training leading up to the meet went very well. Jen got the cast off her broken ankle 2 weeks before the competition. This allowed her to start using her legs again so she could get back to her normal form. In addition, not doing any heavy leg training for almost 12 weeks leading up to the meet made making weight fairly easy. Where Jen would normally be around 138lbs, leading up to a meet, the loss of leg muscle got her weight down to around 134. Another aspect that really helped enhance her training was the addition of SportPharma , Jen’s favorite nutrition company, as a sponsor. This seemed to motivate her to really do well, in order to show them it was worth their sponsorship.

Jen was a little disappointed after weigh-ins. The 132-pound defending National Champion, that she had defeated at last years Worlds, decided not to show up. It was also apparent that not many people wanted to lift in the 132lb. weight class. Although this was the largest National Bench Press Championships in history, with over 225 competitors, the 132lb. class had fewer competitors than ever. Normally the 132lb. class is the largest, but this year there was only three entrants. Many of the 132 pounders, from the last two years, had decided to move up to 148, where they would have a better chance of winning by not having to compete against the World Record holder.

She quickly put her disappointment aside and decided to take 255lbs. for her first attempt. As usual, the woman announcing the meet found Jen in the warm-up area. She was trying to make sure that Jen knew she had written down 255 and that she hadn’t meant 155. The crowd then initially became quiet when it was announced that a 132lb. woman was going to attempt 255 pounds. Then there was a distinct buzz of people talking about what they were about to see, followed by a loud cheer when Jen made 255 pounds look like a warm-up. In her second attempt, she decided to break the National Single-Lift Bench Press Record. She choose 275 lbs., which was 16 pounds more than the existing record, again no problem.

On her third attempt, she had already won the meet by more than 20 pounds, she decided to try to break the World Single-Lift Record. Jen already holds the bench press world record for three lift / full powerlifting meets, but wanted the single lift meet record as well. 286lbs. was the weight, 5 more than the record set by the Russian at last years Worlds, who by the way just got busted for steroids. The crowd heard the weight announced and that it was going to be a World Record attempt and started going crazy. Jen also got them going even more by chanting and yelling “come on” over and over as she walked to the bench. She unracked the weight, took it down to her chest, and then the weight just exploded to the top. The crowd erupted again, and then there were two red lights from the judges, and the lift was not counted. The call was that Jen had not paused long enough at the bottom, a good call, she had just got to excited and forgot to wait. She was pretty bummed because she lost the record, but more so because she wanted to take a shot at 295 on a forth attempt, which you don’t get if you miss your third. Even with the bad lift Jennifer won the 132lb. class and was also the Most Outstanding Female Lifter of the meet.

Finally, a gold medal at a major competition. Although Jennifer has never finished any lower than third place at any World or National competition, 2001 Bench Press Nationals was her first major win. It has also become very obvious that the 300lb barrier is not far off.

Jen would also like to thank all the friends and family for their support, both for those at the meet and for those who couldn’t make it. Thanks also needs to be given to Dr. Dunaway the Orthopedist who repaired her broken ankle. Jen would also like to give a special thanks to her new sponsor SportPharma, for all of their products, because without them it would be impossible to compete at the World Class Level she maintains.