AGRICOLE –  snatch and clean-and-jerk junior records in the 58-kg division

THELERMONT – clean-and-jerk and snatch best in the 75-kg category

SEYCHELLES weightlifting ventured into new territory on Saturday March 13 as local lifters showed that they can perform to their very best in any venue, breaking six records and establishing another three at the Baie Ste Anne Praslin community centre.

Patrick Nanty, principal secretary for Sports and Culture in the Ministry of Local Government, Sports and Culture; Ulric Mathiot, director for sports programme in the National Sports Council; Mitcy Larue, Member of the National Assembly for the district of Baie Ste Anne; and district administrator Margaret Rose were among the spectators who had thronged the district administration to watch some of the country's best individual athletes in action.

Like last year, female lifters took centre-stage in style in the Association Cup and three of them – Clementina Agricole, Julie Matatiken and Janet Thélermont – rewrote the record books.

Julie Matatiken, 23 and a triple Indian Ocean Islands Games (IOIG) gold medallist in the 48-kg category in Mauritius last year, won the best female lifter cup with record lifts in both the snatch and clean-and-jerk.

After lifting 55kg in her first snatch attempt, Matatiken, who missed beating her old record of 60kg in her second try, finally got the record in her third with a lift of 60.5kg.

In the clean-and-jerk event, Matatiken, who told Sports Nation that she "expected old records to fall Saturday and that she achieved them with ease", added .5kg to her old best of 70kg to bring the new mark to 70.5kg in her second attempt.

Matatiken, who failed her third clean-and-jerk attempt at 72.5kg, finished with a total of 131kg.

Fifteen-year-old Clementina Agricole, winner of an IOIG gold medal in Mauritius, also heaved the barbells well once more.

After her display of strength to shatter the 53-kg junior and senior categories snatch as well as clean-and-jerk records belonging to former Sportslady of the Year Sophia Vandagne last year, Agricole, competing in the 58-kg this time, pulverised three more of Vandagne's records on Saturday.

After lifting 60kg at the second attempt, the teenager bettered Vandagne’s best snatch mark of 65kg with a lift of 65.5kg in her third try.

Agricole, a secondary four student of the Plaisance Secondary School, lifted 80kg in her first clean-and-jerk attempt and then asked for the bar to be loaded at 85.5kg and she succeeded in lifting the big weights.

Happy with her performance, Agricole made a pass on a third lift to take a seat among the crowd and watch the others compete.

"I'm happy with my performance today and I got the records I wanted," Agricole, who finished with a total of 151kg, told Sports Nation.

Sportslady of the Year 2002 Janet Thélermont had said late last year that she would move to the bigger 75-kg category and with a body weight of 71.6kg, she took to the platform to establish three records in this new division.

Praslinois female lifter Thélermont, triple IOIG 69-kg gold medallist in Mauritius, triple silver medallist of the Eighth All-Africa Games in Nigeria, and silver medallist of the Afro-Asian Games in India, needed all six lifts to set the new marks.

Policewoman Thélermont, 25, showed those present that she had nerves of steel. After failing her first snatch attempt at 95kg, she asked for 100kg which she again failed to lift. Her third try at 100kg was good and it represented 30kg more than the national standard.

In the clean-and-jerk event, Thélermont lifted 115kg in her first try but with an additional load of 10kg it took her two tries to establish the record at 125kg for a total of 225kg.

The best male lifter award went to Sportsman of the year Steven Baccus with a total of 300kg (130kg in the snatch and 170kg in the clean-and-jerk).

Kathsia Thélémaque, 15, won the best junior female lifter award with a total of 97.5kg (42.5kg in the snatch and 55kg in the clean-and-jerk), while Stephan Clarisse won the best male junior lifter award with a total of 157.5kg (70kg in the snatch and 87.5kg in the clean-and-jerk).

The following are the remaining results : Naira Uzice, 48-kg, (100kg in total, 47.5kg snatch and 52.5kg clean-and-jerk), Safiyah Jumaye 75-kg, (100kg in total, 45kg snatch and 55kg clean-and-jerk), Ian Rose, 62-kg, (160kg in total, 70kg snatch and 90kg clean-and-jerk), Daryl Padayachy, 85-kg, (145kg in total, 60kg snatch and 85kg clean-and-jerk), Elvis Siméon, 85-kg (250kg in total, 120kg snatch and 130kg clean-and-jerk), Elvis Jeanne, 94-kg, (260kg in total, 110kg snatch and 150kg clean-and-jerk), Frank Accouche, +105-kg, (260kg in total, 110kg snatch and 150kg clean-and-jerk), Terrence Dixie, 69-kg, (0kg in total).

G. G.