Banbridge Cycling Club celebrate season of success at Annual Presentation

Dromore weight-lifter Jamie Hill has two new NI U18 records to his name.

The 18 year-old this time saw off senior competition to take the top prize at the Northern Ireland Weightlifting Championships and broke two NI records in the process.

It was his first competition for five months, after he was forced to sit out both the British Championships and European Juniors when he sustained a wrist injury in a car accident.

“It was very frustrating to have to take such a long break from training and competing,” he said. “My injury is now fully recovered and its great to be back to my old form. I look forward to competing again.”

Jamie’s time on the sidelines has done little to curtail his prowess as he got straight back to winning ways at Ulster University, Jordanstown, once again qualifying for the British Juniors with his outstanding totals.

Competing in the 77kg class, Jamie successfully lifted his first snatch at 92kg, converted a 96kg and then decided to try for 100kg. If he could manage it, that would be a competition snatch personal best and also would beat the previously held NI snatch record for Under 18s.

It had been sitting at 99kg for the past number of years but was finally broken as Jamie lifted it with ease, much to the delight of the crowd and the competitor’s onlooking coach.

Next came the clean and jerk section, where once again Jamie successfully lifted his three attempts.

He started at 112kg, progressed to 117kg and with the current record standing at 120kg, he decided to try for 122kg to bag a record double.

Once again, to the delight of everybody, Jamie successfully lifted it and also now holds the clean and jerk record for the 77kg weight class for under 18 males.

He also qualified comfortably for the British Juniors in 2016 with his total combined lift weights.

All in all, it was an excellent comeback result as Jamie completed six successful lifts, smashed both snatch and clean and jerk under 18 NI records and secured the qualification total to represent Ireland in the British Juniors next year.

Now the Dromore lad is aiming to once again nail down his selection for the European Juniors next year and he hopes to get a good run at his training, uninterrupted by injury, in order to increase both of his totals in the snatch and clean and jerk.