The Welsh Spring Open returned for 2025 with electric energy and outstanding performances, as athletes from across Wales, other areas of the UK, as well as entrants from over in Ireland came together to compete across two days, and thirteen sessions at the brilliant venue of Llanelli Weightlifting Academy. With over 90 lifters from youth to senior, and to Masters age groups, the event provided a true showcase of lifting talent and development within the Welsh weightlifting community.

The Welsh Spring Open competition worked out very timely in the Weightlifting Wales calendar — providing valuable qualifying opportunities for the upcoming British Championships and Commonwealth Championships taking place this summer, as well as platform competition experience for both novice and seasoned lifters alike. This was also the first national competition to be conducted with the new (8) and (8) IWF bodyweight categories which are coming to force in June 1st 2025.

Llanelli, Wales — Saturday 10th May 2025

The opening of the Welsh Spring Open 2025 brought a full day of fierce competition and inspiring performances to the Llanelli Weightlifting Academy venue, where lifters of all ages and categories took to the platform in six packed sessions. The event not only showcased some of the most promising emerging talent in Wales, but also welcomed a strong international presence and club diversity, with athletes travelling from across the UK and Irish sea from over in Ireland which we were delighted by.

 Group 1 – Women’s 48kg to 58kg

• Hannah Powell (HAWFC, W48) delivered an exceptional total of 133kg (58kg Snatch / 75kg C&J), to take home the first gold medal of the competition. Her consistency and precision stood out from the start.
• Madaline Connelly (Resilience Weightlifting, W53) recorded one of the highest Sinclair scores of the event through lifting 76kg Snatch and 97kg Clean & Jerk to hit a 173kg total—a commanding win in the Women’s 53kg category.
• Catrin Jones (Unattached, W58) put in a sharp and composed performance, posting a 169kg total (72kg snatch/97kg C&J) to claim 1st place.
• Notable mentions:

  • Olivia Bloodworth and Nikole Roberts both performed well in the W53, recording 155kg and 150kg totals respectively, showing their technical promise and progression.

     

Group 2 – Men’s 65kg to 71kg

• Michael Farmer (M71) stole the spotlight with a massive 275kg total (125kg snatch/150kg C&J) and the highest Sinclair score of the entire event. His lifts demonstrated his tremendous ability, which has seen compete on the international stage on multiple occasions for Wales in the past. Aside from Michael, Axl Raguindin (Resilience Weightlifting) had a strong showing with a 227kg total (102kg snatch/125kg C&J) in the M71kg category, earning a silver medal.
• Ryan Blakemore (M65) took gold in the M65kg category with a tidy 78kg Snatch and 93kg Clean & Jerk, totalling 171kg.
• Notable other performances included Gary Sean Harvey (a guest lifter from Dublin) lifted 229kg total with technically sound lifts, providing valuable competitive experience.

Group 3 – Women’s 69kg A Session

• Roberta Tabone (Capital Strength, Dublin) dominated the W69kg category field with a stellar 199kg total (89kg snatch/110kg C&J), achieving the second highest Sinclair among female lifters. Chloe Hood (Unattached) lifted 190kg total (83kg snatch/107kg C&J), showcasing grit in the clean & jerk phase and claiming 2nd place. 

Molly Greenwood (Liftology) completed the podium positions with a 83kg in the Snatch and 95kg C&J for a strong 178kg total, placing 3rd with the bronze medal.

Group 4 – Men’s 79kg to 88kg

• Alex Moseley emerged victorious in a stacked M88 group, lifting a commanding 287kg total (127kg snatch/160 C&J) in winning the gold medal, beating an impressive close behind Oliver Ebenezer who reached a 265kg total (120kg snatch/145kg C&J), showing speed and explosiveness to take home silver.
• In the Men’s 79kg category Ben Addison-Scott (Crazy Strength) put up a 199kg total with clean execution and strong positioning under the bar to claim 1st place from strong competition from Shane Kelly (Capital Strength, Dublin) who just fell short in the Clean and Jerks to end up finishing 2nd.

Group 5 – Women’s 77kg

• Nicola Stiddard (South East London Weightlifting) lifted an impressive 195kg total (87kg snatch/108kg C&J) for her to earn a gold medal. An unfortunate no lift in her final Clean and Jerk prevented Nicola from reaching above the 200kg total mark. Sabrina Butler cleared a 190kg+ total, finishing closely behind Nicola to take silver and 2nd place. In 3rd position, Abby Meenan (Asylum) also impressed with a 181kg total (80/101), showing solid consistency with 6 from 6 in successful lifts.

Group 6 – Men’s 98kg to 110+kg

• The final session of Saturday saw Edward Smale (Atlas Weightlifting Centre) deliver the performance of the day in the M98kg class, lifting a massive 312kg total (143/169) for the top Sinclair score across all male lifters: 373.62. His final clean and jerk was executed with elite composure.
• James Wales (Royal Navy / London Weightlifting Club) also cleared an elite total of 300kg (130/170) in the M110 class to earn gold in this category. 

• With Louis Weston posting 296kg (128/168) to claim the M110+ title over local Llanelli lifter, Brychan Gilson (Llanelli Weightlifting Academy) who showed an excellent performance with a 207kg total respectively to round up day 1.

   

Llanelli, Sunday 11th May 2025 — The second day of the Welsh Spring Open continued the momentum from Saturday with a showcase of youth talent, developmental success, and inspiring lifts across junior, para, and senior women's categories. The energy inside Llanelli Weightlifting Academy was electric as over 50 lifters took to the platform across seven sessions.

Group 7 – Youth Girls (Under 12/Under 15) W44–W58

• The first gold medal handed out on the Sunday day 2 went to local Llanelli member, Zuzanna Trojakova (Llanelli Weightlifting Academy, U12 W44) who impressed with a 95 total score, showcasing composure well beyond her years.
• Macey Williams (Unattached, U12 W48) produced a successful 6 lifts from 6 to take gold.
• Hattie Lawton-Jones (Liftology, U12 W53) lifted very confidently showing outstanding progression in her lifting technique as she went on with each of her lifts.
• Nia Goodway (U15 W53) followed this session with a 82kg total to earn a gold medal.
• Arianwen Williams (Llanelli, U15 W58) rounded out the session with a composed 73kg total and promising technique.

Group 8 – Youth Boys (Under 12/Under 15) M56–M98+

• Casey McKee (SAW, U12 M56) was successful in all of his 6 lifts showing really good technique throughout to take top spot.
• Jac Esen (Llanelli, U15 M98+) topped this category, lifting 163kg total (73/90) and demonstrating elite development potential.
• Atoningly  Lucas Phillips (SAW) and Zach John (SAW) both lifted the exact same 6 lift sequence back-to-back to reach a 85kg total in the M56 (U15) category, which showed the excellent consistency and coachability from both.
• Harri Jermine-Jones (Llanelli, U15 M79) lifted 110kg total (47/63) with smooth overhead positioning and strong back-end control.

Group 9 – Youth Girls (Under 15/Under 17) W58–W69

• Nyarai Hector (Llanelli, U17 W69) was outstanding with a 151kg total (66/85) to earn gold, highlighting why she has competed on the international stage before for Wales. Cari Adams (Llanelli, U17 W69) posted 119kg total with excellent rhythm and tempo to get silver, while Sarah Spalding (Resilience, U17 W69) followed closely with 114kg for a bronze on the podium.
• Sienna Jones (Evolve, U15 W63) delivered a crisp 105kg total (45/60), taking the top spot in the W63 class.
• Hazel Williams (SAW, U17 W58) was impressive with 96kg total (41/55) who finished ahead of Priya Liley (Llanelli, U17 W58) with a total lift of 86kg (36/50), securing second in this category.
• Also with taking a gold home with her was local Llanelli club member Emily Hatfield, with a 71kg total in the W63, Under 17 category.

Group 10 – Youth Boys Under 17 (M60–M98+)

• Noah Ellson (HAWFC, M60) delivered a class performance with a 171kg total (73/98), earning a gold medal on the podium.
• Llewellyn Waits (Unattached, M65) continued with his immense progression with a massive 201kg total (86/115) and Sinclair of 298.39, thrilling the crowd in attendance with his final Clean and Jerk attempt in particular.
• Trystan Thompson and Mascen Evans also topped their categories with totals of 166kg and 160kg respectively, showing sharp competition at Under 17 age group levels.

 Group 11 – Women’s Senior W63–W69 (Group B)

• Bethan Watkins (G6 Weightlifting) led the W63 class with a 178kg total (78/100), producing the day’s top Sinclair at 234.12 among senior women. Charlotte Whalley (Resilience) followed with 166kg for silver, while Janine Dovey (SSC Weightlifting) edged out competition for bronze medal position with a clean 165kg total.
• In the W69 Group B, there was some good quality lifting with Hayley McClelland (Evolve) posting a 126kg total (55/71), and Celyn Millership with a 115kg total.

Group 12 – Para Powerlifting 

• Para-lifters Sara Jones (Llanelli, W41 youth) and Evelyn Thomas (SAW, W67 youth) performed well in their para-powerlifting bench press to earn a best lift of 47kg and 71kg respectively.
• Elsewhere in this group, Ashleigh Hellyer (SAW, M80) delivered a performance with a focused and inspiring way by lifting 64kg for his best lift to earn gold.

Group 13 – Women’s W86–W86+

• To round up Day 2 and the final session of the competition, Ella Beard (Maidstone Weightlifting) dominated W86 with a powerful 182kg total (81/101), showing high-level execution and explosive lifts.
• Grace Morris (SAW) captured the W86+ title with a massive 178kg total (75/103) and Sinclair of 190.90, showcasing great progress on the platform. Beth Calder (Crazy Strength) lifted 150kg to take 2nd, also showing strong consistency across attempts.

The 2025 Welsh Spring Open proved to be more than just a competition —it was a celebration of commitment, coaching, community, and the thriving Weightlifting Wales culture. From breakout youth stars to national-level veterans, every lifter contributed to an unforgettable two days of competition.

This event once again highlighted the depth of talent across Wales, as well as further afield, with clubs such as Llanelli, Evolve, SAW (Strength Academy Wales), Resilience, CUBC, etc, fielding emerging lifters on their journey through their weightlifting journeys and pathway. The growth and enthusiasm among young athletes, combined with the professionalism shown by seniors and para-lifters alike, capped off a memorable weekend.

Weightlifting Wales extends sincere thanks to all clubs, lifters, coaches, technical officials, volunteers, loaders, event staff, and spectators, for helping create such a successful event. A big thank you also goes to the venue, Llanelli Weightlifting Academy for helping provide such an outstanding facility to host such an event. We look forward to building on this momentum throughout the rest of 2025!

The full list of results can be found either through Sport 80 or on the uploaded scoresheets from the two days on the Welsh Spring Open 2025 events page on the Weightlifting Wales website Welsh Spring Open May 2025