Morris and Simkins find gold at 2010 Ontario Winter Games

GRAVENHURST, ON - Junior weightlifters from across the province met Friday here for the 2010 Ontario Winter Games weightlifting competition. The local Norsemen and Valkyries squads sent a total of nine lifters including five males and four females. Apart from winning four golds, four silvers, and a bronze, the top performances, in the male and female divisions, were from two individuals from the local contingent.

The first lifting session of the day included all the male classes from 46 kilos up to, and including, 62 kilos. Kempton Morris of the Norsemen had a record breaking day and won the gold medal in the 56 kilo class. Morris succeeded with 63 kilos in the snatch and 77 kilos in the clean and jerk to break two club records, one for the snatch and the other for the total. As an added bonus, by virtue of his 140 total, Morris also qualified for the Ontario Senior Championship. The silver in the same class went to teammate Jake Staples with a 122 kilo total.

Additional medal winners for the Norseman were: Zach Gebhart with a silver in the 51 kilo class and Sean Patterson with a bronze in the 46 kilo division.

The next session included all the female divisions from 44 kilos up to the over 75 kilo class. The gold in the lightest class went to 13-year-old Bronwynn Sheppard of the Valkyries. Bronwynn made all six of her attempts and broke all her personal records, finishing with a 57 kilo total - via 24 in the snatch and 33 in the clean and jerk. The silver medal in the 44 kilo class went to her younger sister Zara who registered a total of 42 kilos. The next medalist for the locals was 15-year-old Shannon Claridge in the 53 kilo class. Claridge, a West Ferris secondary School student, lifting in just her second contest, totaled 57 kilos.

The star of the show on the female side was the 63 kilo class gold medalist - Courtney Simkins. Indeed, Simkins had the highest total and registered the highest snatch and clean and jerk of all the females, regardless of weight class. The 16-year-old St. Joseph-Scollard Hall student made all of her attempts finishing with 62 kilos in the snatch and 80 in the clean and jerk for a total of 142.

Another local athlete, Stavrula Liritzis, who attends York University and now competes for the Toronto Weightlifting Club, was the gold medal winner in the 69 kilo class. Liritzis did 61 kilos in the snatch and 66 in the clean and jerk to finish with a mark of 127 kilos. The 75 kilo champion was Ayesha Sabayle of Variety Village with a 130 kilo total. Sheila Paulin, of the same team, won the +75 kilo gold with a total of 127 kilos.

The last session of the contest featured Logan Baker of the Norsemen. Baker, like his teammate/schoolmate Courtney Simkins, won the gold medal in his division and had the highest lifts of all the male athletes. Lifting in the 85 kilo class, Baker registered 105 kilos in the snatch and 135 kilos in the clean and jerk for a 240 total. The silver medalist in the same division was 19-year-old Richard Gonsalves of the University of Toronto team with a 231 aggregate. To put Baker’s performance into the proper context – the super heavy weight champion was 18 year old Alex Mateas of the Ottawa Capital team. Mateas weighed in at 134.40 kilos and made 100 kilos in the snatch and 132 kilos in the clean and jerk for a 232 total.

The coaches for the local lifters were Mark Haaksman for the Norsemen, and Kayla Rose for the Valkyries. Ray Hamilton, Glenn Ogletree, and Larry Sheppard acted as coach mentors and contest officials.

Submitted to BayToday.ca