ANTONETTE Labausa and Joseph “Joey” Tudela returned home with gold and silver medals from the 2022 Guam Weightlifting Open Championship held at the Fudoshin Fitness Center in Tamuning, Guam on March 26, 2022.
Labausa and Tudela competed against 35 other weightlifters representing seven weightlifting clubs.
Labausa took home the gold medal with an impressive 74kg Snatch and a 93kg Clean and Jerk for a total of 167kg.
For his part, Tudela earned a silver medal with a 90Kg Snatch and a 100Kg Clean and Jerk.
Labausa and Tudela will be representing the CNMI in the weightlifting event of the 2022 Pacific Mini Games which the Commonwealth will host on June 17-25.
Tudela joined the Guam competition to get back on the floor after not competing for over two years due to the Covid-19 restrictions.
He said the Guam competition was a good warm up for the upcoming Pacific Mini Games.
“It was a good experience,” he added. “Lots of competitors and it was great to see old friends and lift again.”
Tudela did not expect to win silver. “It wasn’t a good lifting day for myself in terms of made lifts on the platform….” But he said he chose the right numbers and just had to make the lifts.
“It was a good experience in preparation for the Mini Games,” he reiterated, “because it showed me some of the things I need to work on and get the feel of being in a competition setting again.”
Antonette Labausa attempts the snatch during the Guam Weightlifting Open Championship in Tamuning, Guam on March 26, 2022.
Joey Tudela attempts the snatch during the Guam Weightlifting Open Championship in Tamuning, Guam on March 26, 2022.
