Beaufort’s own teen phenom, CJ Cummings, has been setting all kinds of weightlifting records over the past several years, and if he wasn’t setting himself apart from the rest before…he certainly is now.
Back when CJ won his first junior world championship in 2016, no American weightlifter had a world title at any level since 2000.
Having now won junior titles every year since, Cummings, also known as the strongest teen in the world, is helping Team USA make up for lost time.
Cummings, who turned 19 years old last week became the first weightlifter in history, male or female, of any nation, to win four junior world titles in a row when he won at the IWF Junior World Championships on June 3rd in Suva, Fiji.
He was previously tied with athletes from Ecuador, Egypt, Russia and Ukraine for three straight and right now CJ is working hard to qualify for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
According to an article by Team USA, while participating in the IWF World Championship last week, CJ won the silver medal in snatch, and golds in the clean & jerk and total. Cummings’ first snatch attempt of 145 was good for the silver, while he missed his second and third at 148 and 150. He started the clean & jerk at 180 – 8 kg. higher than the next-best start in the field – and then missed his second attempt at 185, but bumped up to 192 kg. to break his own junior world record, just set in April.
It was a lift that’s just 4 kg. away from breaking the senior world record that’s held by an Olympic and world champion.
We can’t wait to watch CJ in the Olympics next year. Beaufort will be so proud.
