Originally published on IPF social media on 26th April 2023
What a firecracker of a session we have to kick off the women's competition at the Classic World Championships in Malta. The 47kg class promises drama with the current world champion, Tiffany Chapon facing off against the former world champion and tiny deadlift queen, Heather Connor. Here are the top 5 nominations:
Tiffany Chapon France 428.5kg
Jessica Espinal USA 408.5kg
Heather Connor USA 405kg
Vicky Kijumnuayporn AUS 395.5kg
Aurélie Nguyen CAN 390.5kg
Chapon has taken the powerlifting world by storm in the last couple of years. She burst onto the scene at the 2021 Classic Worlds in Halmstad, winning comfortably in the open class at 20 years old and claiming the best lifter trophy last year as well. She holds the world records in squat and total and she is definitely favourite to win.
It won't be plain sailing though as two-time world champion and deadlift world record holder Connor is looking for a re-match. She stumbled a little at last year's worlds and didn't manage to bring her deadlift superpower into full effect.
She brings a challenger with her though - Espinal beat Connor at US nationals in February. Still a junior herself, she is improving fast and put up a 412.5kg total at a local meet in October last year. Something of an unknown quantity, she has never travelled abroad to compete before so it remains to be seen what she can do here.
Speaking of unknown quantities, we also have Kijumnuayporn. She's nominated a scant 10kg behind Connor and, looking at the improvement she has been making in the last year, she could be challenging for a podium place but she's going to have to keep an eye on the current junior world champion, Nguyen who is also stacking kilos on her total at the moment.
With potentially the biggest field of 47s we've ever seen at 17 lifters, we couldn't ask for a better start to what promises to be a World Championships to remember.
Streamed live on the Olympic Channel and our Facebook page at 1pm CET on Sunday 11th June.
Whose team are you on? Let us know in the comments.
Graphic by @strength.journal
Post a Comment