Lifting body and mind
At the end of one rugby season a teenage Lester Keene and a mate decided to keep in shape with gym sessions.
They came across a group of weightlifters in the old Trafalgar Centre gym and Keane thought “let’s give that a go, that looks quite good”.
“I didn’t go back to rugby.”
Keene was 14 when he took up the Olympic sport. Now 59, he won his age category at the national masters championships in Christchurch in November. His brother Ed and fellow Nelson lifter Sean Barton also won their categories.
In between, Lester Keene has represented New Zealand, notably at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland. Ed has also represented New Zealand.
The brothers have been the backbone of the Nelson Weightlifting Club as coaches and mentors for many years, although Ed moved to Christchurch before Christmas.
Lester Keene says the appeal of the sport lies in the the ability to measure your progress. The work you put in is rewarded with better lifts.
Technique plays a key part, particularly for those new to the sport who who start off using just a broomstick. Keene says a correct technique avoids injuries and gets better results.
But he says the biggest component is mental.
“If you step out on the platform thinking I don’t know if I can do this, you won’t do it. But if you step out and say I’m going to have a crack at it; I want that bar over my head there’s a good chance you can do it as long as you have the training to back it up.”
The Nelson club is based at The Hub in Vanguard St, a no-frills space shared with a functional fitness gym.
There are currently about 20 weightlifters in the club which has three trainings a week. Keene says age or ability is no barrier, and while the ideal shape for a weightlifter is short legs and a long back, “anybody can do it.
“We can work around whatever ability you bring to the gym.”
Liberty West, 23, said she felt the welcoming, friendly atmosphere at the club from her first day of training last year.
Keene had been honing her technique using a broomstick for the first month or so before moving on to weights. Her personal bests for the two weightlifting disciplines of snatch (lifting the bar from ground to overhead in one motion) and clean-and-jerk (from floor to shoulders and then overhead) have steadily increased.
“You are not competing against anyone, just yourself,” she says
“I come here to feel good and it’s a real confidence boost.”
Keene says the growth in confidence and achievement among the young people he has coached is one of the best parts of the role. Rising international lifter Litia Nacagilevu is one of his current protégés.
Keene coached her father Joni when he was a Nelson College student.
Joni encouraged his daughters into weightlifting to improve their condition for netball and rugby, and Litia has gone from strength to strength.
This year she won the national junior and senior title in the 87kg class, and represented New Zealand at the World Youth Weightlifting Championships in Peru where she finished seventh.
She is now training for the world junior championships in Uzbekistan in June this year.
Keene says the progress of lifters like Litia helps keep him motivated to continue competing, even though he has hung up his weightlifting shoes three times. “Every time I say that’s it, I’m just going to coach, but I just can’t do it.
“I also want to show them what you can be capable of. I’m not saying I’m perfect, but if you watch someone with a good technique and pick up on what they are doing that’s going to help.”
He is already eyeing setting a new record in a new age category at next year’s national masters championships.
Fellow national masters winner Sean Barton joined the club three years ago, and “got addicted”.
“It’s an awesome club and the support is very positive. Everyone wants you to succeed but at the end of the day it’s just you versus yourself.”
The Nelson Weightlifting Club meets Monday-Thursday from 5pm at the Hub in Vanguard St, and on Saturday from 9am. Youth weightlifting classes will also start this year, Monday to Wednesday from 4pm. Contact the club through its Facebook or Instagram pages.
By Warren Gamble, Nelson Mail
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