Finally sorting out a comp recap from Masters Worlds in Ulaanbaatar!

I had a couple of personal goals in mind, firstly an ideal total to reach or exceed, and secondly to break through my annoying comp bench ceiling. My comp bench is always much below my gym bench, and for the last couple of years I’ve been stuck below 70kg. So this time I wanted to at least hit that (ideally exceed).

This was my first international comp as part of Team GB, and it was a great learning experience, with thanks to all my other teammates and to the GB coaches.

I had a good amount of days to adjust to the timezone and climate, I’d tested out a couple of sessions in the hotel gym, and food and sleep were also on point.

You can see my lifts here.

Squat
115kg ⚪⚪⚪
122.5kg ⚪⚪⚪
125kg x
Not the heaviest I’ve squatted, but not far off, and I could pinpoint one or two factors that might have contributed to my missing the 3rd attempt. This was my first squat fail in a comp!

Bench
67.5kg ⚪⚪⚪
70kg ⚪⚪⚪
72.5kg x
Satisfied to get the 70kg, and at peace with missing the 72.5kg, that was just strength on the day. I gave it all I could. 70kg+ in the gym is a regular thing these days and I’m excited to get back to work with my coach Bobbie Butters and get this lift moving!

Deadlift
145kg ⚪⚪⚪
150kg x⚪⚪
160kg x
On deadlifts I got a real fun taste of the strategy that goes into international comps, with the judgement calls made by the coaches. With my 2nd deadlift I had secured the second place, and at the very last minute it was decided I would attempt 160kg – which if I had got would have put me in first. The team effort to maximise placing took precedent over my own individual PB aspirations. 160kg was not coming up. But it was exciting! And I was proud of what I managed to do in an international context. 

Total: 342.5kg (= to my total from British Masters)
Squat: Bronze
Overall: Silver

Huge gratitude to everybody who supported me along the way to competing in Mongolia. I had a fantastic adventure, also managing to see 3 Buddhist temples, a dinosaur museum, a shaman, a puzzle museum, the giant Genghis Khan statue, a Soviet monument, and climb a small mountain. You can see a few pics below, and more highlights on my Instagram profile. It’s been a trip of a lifetime and an honour to represent GB.