BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
Courtney Comer and Mahailya Reeves have excelled on big stages in the past, but their most recent competition topped them all, with Reeves winning the overall gold medal and Comer taking the silver medal for Team USA at the International Powerlifting Federation Sub-Junior and Junior World Championships on Sept. 2-4 in Istanbul.
Reeves, 19, who is the only girls high school weightlifter to win four state championships (three for Union County and one for Bradford), captured the win in the Junior 84+ kilogram class on Sept. 4, earning gold medals in all three events: squat, bench press and deadlift. Her 594.5 total put her ahead of silver medalist Regina Meier, 23, of Kazakhstan (465) and bronze medalist Leah Gregory, 23, of Canada (452.5).
Comer, 18, a Bradford High School senior who has two high school state championships to her credit (one each at UCHS and BHS), earned the gold medal in the bench press and finished with an overall total of 427.5 in the Sub-Junior 76 kg class on Sept. 2. That left her trailing Italy’s Asia Franchini, 18, who had a 440 total.
South Africa’s Roechelle van der Merwe, 16, was third overall with a 337.5 total.
Raiford Wreckshop Trainer Bryan Griffis, who coached girls weightlifting at BHS and UCHS, has worked with Comer and Reeves for four and eight years, respectively, said he hopes people realize the magnitude of what was done this past weekend in Turkey. Comer and Reeves have already proven themselves to be among the strongest women in the state and in the nation in the sport of powerlifting. Now, they proved they’re among the strongest women in the world.
“What these two girls accomplished was amazing,” Griffis said.
Reeves set a world record in the bench press for her class twice. She lifted 152 on her first attempt, which gave her the new record by 7 kilograms. It amazed the commentators for IPF’s broadcast of the event via YouTube, with powerlifter Gavin Adin of the U.S. saying, “What’s incredible here is she is extremely close to the world record. It is a 40-kilo gap, but she’s 19. With how young she is, she’s going to get so strong so fast.”
Her second attempt at 164.5 was unsuccessful, but she tried it again on her final attempt and was successful. That gave her a 57-kilogram advantage over Meier.
Russia’s Olga Kuzmina held the previous bench press record, which she set in 2001.
The day for Reeves began with the squat. She opened with a successful attempt of 220, which amazed the commentators for IPF’s broadcast of the event via YouTube. Before Reeves’ attempt, Powerlifter Gavin Adin of the U.S. said, “What’s incredible here is she is extremely close to the world record. It is a 40-kilo gap, but she’s 19. With how young she is, she’s going to get so strong so fast.”
Reeves was successful on all three of her squat attempts, following up 220 with 225 and 230. That put her 37.5 kilograms ahead of Meier.
The deadlift was the final event. Reeves lifted 190 and 200. She was unsuccessful on her third attempt, which was 222.5. If she had gotten that, she would’ve surpassed the overall-total world record of 615.5, which was set by the United States’ LeeAnn Hewitt in 1999.
Reeves’ 200 total in the deadlift placed her 11.5 kilograms ahead of Great Britain’s Chizaram Egbuziem, 23.
Griffis should be used to Reeves winning championships by large margins, but he still can’t quite believe that she won a world championship by finishing 124.5 kilograms ahead of her closest competitor.
“She lives for the big moment,” he said.
Reeves isn’t at her peak level right now because of two bouts with Covid, Griffis said, adding, “In the next year, she ought to make some incredible gains.”
Comer’s day didn’t include any world records, but she proved that her name should be in the record books at some point in the near future. Her opening bench press was 105, which is only 7 kilograms away from tying the current record in the 76 kg class set by Finland’s Susanna Torronen in 1998.
On her second and third attempts, Comer unsuccessfully attempted 110. She got the weight up on her second attempt, but two of the three judges ruled it a no-lift.
Griffis said he couldn’t see anything wrong with the attempt, but he added that you have to give the benefit of the doubt to world-championship judges, who are paid and treat every lifter equally.
“It is what it is,” Griffis said.
As it was, Comer still won the gold in the bench press, finishing 10 kilograms ahead of Franchini.
In the squat, Comer did 140 on her opener and followed that with a successful 147.5. She attempted a 5-kilogram jump on her third attempt, but was unable to get it, which left her in second behind Franchini, whose best attempt was 167.5.
Comer hit her first two attempts in the deadlift with totals of 165 and 175. She then went for the overall championship rather than just trying to win the deadlift itself. She attempted 195 on her third attempt, which prompted Canadian powerlifter Ryan Lapadat, one of the broadcast commentators, to say, “Twenty kilos is an ambitious ask, but you might as well play these cards.”
The lift was unsuccessful, but Comer brought the weight up off the floor and to knee level, which left the commentators in awe.
“Oh, wow,” Lapadat exclaimed. “I tell you what, I didn’t know she was going to get it that far. That was a legitimate attempt despite a 20-kilo jump.”
It impressed Griffis as well.
“I didn’t even know she could move 430,” he said, referring to the weight’s equivalent in pounds. He added, “I’m proud of her. I saw the fight in her.”
Comer finished in second in the deadlift, with Franchini winning with a 177.5 total.
Griffis said that despite earning a silver medal for her country on the world stage, Comer was upset, which speaks to the competitor in her. She enters every meet with the goal of winning. He said he told her, “Not many kids even get this opportunity. You just need to be proud of what you did.”
What will most likely happen now is that Comer will put in the work and determination to walk away with the overall gold medal on her next opportunity at the world championships. Griffis expects to see the same motivation he saw out of Comer when she was the state runner-up in her class during her freshman year of high-school competition. That second-place finish fueled a drive to win it all the next year, which she did.
Though Comer and Reeves put in the work to qualify for the world championships, it was the generosity of others that allowed them to actually compete. It cost approximately $8,000 to cover their total expenses.
Businesses, civic groups and individuals donated to the cause, allowing Comer and Reeves to represent not only their local community, but the United States as well.
“Without the help from the community, these girls would’ve never been able to go. We wouldn’t have been able to raise that money (on our own),” Griffis said, adding, “I’ve never seen this kind of community support and how they stand behind the kids and cheer them on.”
