Coral Shores and Marathon sent their strongest athletes to Frostproof on April 4 for the FHSAA 1A Region 4 championships in boys weightlifting. When the chalk settled and the final weights were tabulated, a trio of Keys athletes made the cut to the big show. Marathon’s Tanner Ross and Chase Leird and Coral Shores’ AJ Johnson are headed to states to compete in Lakeland on April 20.
Though no Keys athletes won a regional title, which is an automatic ticket to the state meet, Johnson, Leird and Ross had high enough totals to qualify for at-large spots. Johnson, who is in the 219-lb. category, will compete in both the Olympic and traditional events. In the Olympic event, Johnson has the capacity to crack the top 10. Leird will represent the Fins in traditional lifts at 119 pounds and Ross will have a shot at a medal in Olympic lifts in the 199-lb. class.
Leird was third in the traditional event and likely would have been a double qualifier had he not scratched his three attempts at the snatch lift, negating any chance to move on in the Olympic event in which he was more heavily favored. Johnson was second overall in Olympic lifts and third in traditional. Ross finished fourth in Olympic.
Other standouts at regionals include Marathon’s Matthias Martinez-Velez, who was second in traditional and just 5 pounds from a regional title at 139 pounds. Damian Staciewicz was third in traditional and tied for second in Olympic lifts in the 154-lb. class. At 183, Max Childress finished second in traditional lifts and third in Olympic. Though runner-ups and athletes finishing as deep as fourth or fifth often get an at-large bid, this year’s competition in the northern portion of the state was exceptionally strong. Fortunately for Martinez-Velez, Staciewicz and Childress, all have at least one more season to earn a trip to states.
