American Open PL Championships
15-Dec-02
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania

Contest write up below. 

MD:  Steve Mann

                 Class     Age       Squat    Bench    Dead    Total
Women
Jo Ann Clough    114       M2

Johanna Andiorio 114       T1        182      99       259     540

Demeter Picciotti123       M1        248      138      292     678

Caitlin Colesanti123       T1

Ellen Yuscavage  132       Open      154      116      270     540

Sheila Sullivan  148       Open      259      132      292     683

Kayla Coan       165       T3        243      127      226     595

Florette Ruggiero181       M2        231      143      281     656

Men
Steve Snyder     114       M1

Kevin Livingston 123       T1        331      176      408     915

Zachary Simons   123       Junior    248      160      298     705

James Kavernos   132       M1        254      226      375     854

James Kavernos   132       Open      254      226      375     854

Jamal Reeves     132       T3        386      248      391     1025

Mike Battaglio   132       T2        276      165      353     794

Jevon Mateo      148       T2        408      231      502     1141

Anthony Gitto    148       T1        259      165      358     783

Ronald Wade      165       M3
Peter Hubbard    165       M3        77       243      160     480

Mike Cagliola    165       Open
Sean DiCataldo   165       Open      535      347      606     1488
Mark Richmond    165       Open      424      402      138     965

Daniel Dickenson 165       T2

Jim Nuzzo        165       T3        281      204      331     816
Adam Martik      165       T3        391      281      452     1124

Ben Moran        165       Junior    358      270      446     1075

Louie Morrison   181       Junior    557      391      579     1527

Louie Morrison   181       Open      557      391      579     1527

Doug Harney      181       M1        468      320      540     1328

Doug Harney      181       Open      468      320      540     1328
Douglas Chin     181       Open      557      364      540     1461
James Smith      181       Open      524      298      551     1372

Eric Everett     181       T2        408      254      408     1069

Lauren Cohen     198       Junior    579      402      590     1571
Michael Campbell 198       Junior    518      342      535     1394
Jacob Carpenter  198       Junior    402      309      397     1108

Jerry Spence     198       M1        485      331      485     1301
Eliot Feldman    198       M1        358      259      408     1025

Eliot Feldman    198       Open      358      259      408     1025

John Fox         198       M2        303      226      386     915

Bill Schmidt     198       Open      557
Ron Zsido        198       Open
Michael Campbell 198       Open      518      342      535     1394
Jerry Dally      198       Open      513      309      557     1378

Derek Baker      198       T3        573      265      639     1477
Laronzick Sheppar198       T3        435      287      502     1224

Warrren Scott    198       T1        430      303      463     1196

David Stevens    198       T3        474      270      435     1180

James Adams      198       Open      369      237      353     959

Randy Boczkowski 220       Junior
Mike Mullen      220       Junior    513      386      491     1389

Michael Del Signo220       M1        650      391      617     1659

Stan Chatis      220       m3        397      309      507     1213

Ron Pearo        220       Open
Robert Hansen    220       Open      540      342      628     1510
Mike Laiberte    220       Open      573      358      534     1465
Rene Moyen       220       Open      474      336      502     1312

Terry Smothers   220       T2        430      237      513     1180
Steven Tomaszek  220       T2        347      171      397     915

Gabriel Naspinski220       T3        474      298      408     1180

Jeseph Dell'Aquil242       M2        342      320      342     1003

Derrick Thorne   242       Open
Eric Pantaieone  242       Open
Richard Camp     242       Open

Ron Mazza        242       Open      601      402      650     1654
Joe Hirsch       242       Open      573      468      612     1654
Lance Reardon    242       Open      639      369      551     1560

Justin Rogers    242       T2        441      276      408     1124

Carl Hammett     242       T3        375      254      402     1031

Sean Culnan      275       SM

Jesse McCabe     275       Junior    529      364      496     1389
Brian DaCosta    275       Junior    507      303      535     1345

Daniel Wiswell   275       M1        568      347      601     1516

Daniel Wiswell   275       Open      568      347      601     1516
Aaron Utermahlen 275       Open
Samuel Tyler     275       Open      579      419      529     1527
Daniel Ratchford 275       Open      562      375      485     1422
Saul Mickelson   275       Open      463      292      463     1218
Tony Forella     275       Open      419      320      452     1191

Joseph Page      275       T2        408      325      557     1290

Adam Bufone      SHW       Junior

Michael D'Amore  SHW       Open      584      424      606     1615
Andrew Miller    SHW       Open      529      502      584     1615

2002 American Open - King of Prussia, Pennsylvania

The USAPL American Open Powerlifting Championships, held on December 15, 2002, was an immense success! The contest was a collaborative effort orchestrated by the USAPL - Pennsylvania Association. Co-meet directors Steve Mann, Mike Shirey, and Kim Newman did a marvelous job in coordinating the efforts on such short notice. This contest was proposed, developed and implemented, as a developmental and intermediate level championship, so that lifters from the state and regional level can gain valuable experience on a national level type platform. Moreover, winners of the open category of this contest are automatic qualifiers for the Men's National Championships that Steve Howard will be directing in South Dakota this year. Also, special thanks go to Larry Maile, Rob Wagner, the USAPL coaching committee, and the USAPL executive committee for pushing this concept through. On behalf of the lifters, thank you!

Needless to say, the concept and contest proved to be quite successful, and the lifters enjoyed the contest, as well as learned a great deal about what it actually takes to lift at national level event. More importantly, to add to the festive atmosphere, Rob Wagner, 2003 world championships bronze medallist, and Head Strength Coach at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, hosted a Powerlifting seminar on Saturday evening at 7:00 pm, that was attended by some 50-60 lifters. This seminar was extremely informative and was complimentary to all who wished to attend. On that note, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Rob Wagner, for his most generous contribution to the sport. Needless to say, the seminar, was professionally done, and exteemely informative. Awesome!

Contest Highlights:

In the Women's classes, master's 123lb class lifter, Demeter Piccotti lifted extremely well, via a 248lb squat, 137lb bench press, and 292lb deadlift, for a total of 677lbs. What is even more remarkable is that Demeter performed these lifts, all at the ripe young age of 48 years old - great job! Needless to say, she was the overall Champion of Champions for the ladies class. Young collegiate upstart, Kayla "King Cobra" Coan from Slippery Rock University, lifted superbly, with solid attempts of 242lbs in the squat, 126lbs in the bench press, and 225lb in the deadlift for a nice 595lb personal record total. Sullivan, Ruggerio, Yuscavage and Andiorio turned in other notable performances. Great job ladies!

In the Men's 114lb/52kg through 148lb/67.5kg weight categories, veteran lifter, Steve Snyder had an off day, and was not able to get a squat in. Steve looked extremely strong with his attempts, but was not able to get low enough. No doubt, he will be back at the state championships to avenge this performance. In the 123lb class, sub-junior lifter, Kevin Livingston from Glen Mills School had a tremendous day. Kevin Squatted 330lb, bench-pressed 176lbs, and deadlifted a huge 407lbs for a grand total of 914lbs. Wow - all at the age of 14 years old. Look out, with thee numbers. In the 132lb class, Livingston's teammate Jevon Mateo lifted confidently, and conservatively to post a nice 1140lb total. Needless to say, these to gentlemen are going to be mighty tough to be at this year's high school national championships. Lastly, masters lifter Jim "chubby chub" Kavarnos from New York lifted quite well, and will won the open class unopposed, and looks forward to his trip to this years national championships. Look for Jim to make some noise at this year's national masters as well.

In the 75kg/165lb class, the anticipated match-up between Mike Cagliola of Pennsylvania and Sean DiCataldo of Massachusetts did not materialize. Mike was not able to get a squat in, which allowed Sean to win handily. Sean went a sold 7-9, via a 534lb squat, 342lb bench press, and a super attempt of 606lbs on his final deadlift. Sean was the best lifter of the AM session, and continues to improve consistently with each individual outing. His next two contests include the 2003 IPF North American Cup that will take place in Philadelphia, in March 2003, and the USAPL Men's National Championships in South Dakota in July 2003.

In the 82.5kg/181lb class, Louie Morrison of Maine, and Douglas Chin from New Jersey battled for the 181 lb open title. Louis is a junior lifter and lifted quite well, finishing with rock-solid attempts of 556 in the squat, 391lbs in the bench press, and 578lbs in the deadlift. His total of 1526lbs, off his well-balanced lifting paved the way to victory in the class. Other notable achievements include Sub-junior lifter Eric Everett of Pennsylvania and Doug Harney from Indiana.

The 90kg/198lb class proved to be just as exciting as the previous classes, with Lauren Cohen winning the junior division with well-balanced attempts of 578-402-589lbs for a total of 1570lbs. Look for Lauren to challenge for this year's collegiate national title. Jerry Spence won the master's category with a sold 1300lb total, and junior lifter Mike Campbell of Rhode Island won the open class with balanced and smart lifting. USA national team assistant coach Jerry Daley lifted quite well, and was one pull from winning this class! Interestingly enough, highlighting this group of lifters was young teen phenom, and this 2002 Sub-junior USA world team member, Derek Baker from Pennsylvania, who pulled a tremendous and clean 639lb deadlift for a new American record deadlift and total. Look for Derek to win this year's nationals, and again challenge for this year's IPF World Sub-junior title in this class. Laronzick Sheppard and Philadelphia's own Warren Scott performed quite well. Look for Warren Scott to challenge for this year's junior national title in Louisiana! Other highlights included former ADFPA and WDFPF world champion lifter, Bill Schmidt, who came to the meet, being coached by long time mentor -- classy Freddy Glassy of Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Ron Pearo of New York won the 100kg/220lb open class, in front of some extremely tough competition. Mike Laiberte from Maine was not too far behind, and with another successful attempt would have challenged for the title. Rhode Island state chairman, Randy Moyen continues to improve with each performance and will challenge for this title next year. Veteran lifter, Mike Del Signore of Delaware, convincingly won the master's division and best lifter award for the heavy session - super job! Mike is a class act, and has any more years of great lifting in front of him. Look for Naspinski to improve and challenge for a title in the future. Dell A'quila lifted quite well in the masters 3 division, and will be a factor in Louisiana at this year's masters National Championships. Mullen continues to improve, and used the double-overhand grip to pull an impressive 490lbs in the deadlift.

In the 110kg/242lb class, Ron Mazza of New York, and Joe Hirsh of Glenside, Pennsylvania battled all the way until the last deadlift, with Mazza winning this class with an impressive pull of 650lbs. Joe Hirsch benched impressively with a solid 468lb on a third attempt, but could missed his first two squats, which cause the upset. Not too far behind in third place, was Maine state chairman, Lance Reardon, who squatted impressively, but lost ground in the bench press, which he could not make up by the time the deadlifts rolled around. Great job guys - very good competition, and sportsmanship between these three lifters!

In the 125kg/275lb class, lean and trip, Sean Culnan, down from a previous 340lbs, came in at a svelte 275lbs, and could not get a squat passed. He appeared off-balance and not yet comfortable at this weight. Once settled in, he will go on to again challenge for the national title - Go get them Sean! Junior lifter Jesse McCabe of Slippery Rock University lifted well and will be ready to go for this year's national collegiate championships. He battled Brian DaCosta, and won off well-selected attempts, by coach Jason Beck. In the open class, teammates Samuel Tyler and Daniel Wiswell of Maine battled all the way down to the last deadlift, with Tyler just edging Wiswell by a scant 11lbs. Daniel Ratcheford and Saul Mickelson, placed 3rd and 4th respectively -- Super competition in the class.

Finally, in the 125kg+/SHW class, Mike D'Amore of Allentown, Pennsylvania pulled the last deadlift of the meet, with 611lbs, to win the SHW, and a ride to the national championships this year. Andrew Miller of Maine, who benched impressively with a 501lb attempt for a large sub-total lead, had to go to his last deadlift in order to get one in, which left the door open for D'Amore to pull the winning deadlift. Interestingly enough, this was a competition PR by some 40lbs for Mike, and was more than he has ever deadlifted before. The power guru himself, Fred Glass, coached Mike to the win -- Congratulations gentlemen, great lifting!

Finally, a contest like this does not come together unless you have an administrative staff that makes things operate efficiently. Special thanks go to the following people for volunteering their time. They are; Steve Mann as the director of operations, Jeff Hill, who did a marvelous job of announcing, Seth Abrams for handling the admissions, to Kim Newman, Don Wilson, Sean Hanley, Theresa Kunsman, and Jeff Finkelstein for scorekeeping at the table, and to Niko Huslander for jumping in to spot and load. Moreover, I would also like to acknowledge Mike Shirey and his colleagues of the Collegeville Police department who did a magnificent job of spotting and loading all day. There were no injuries, and no misloads at all - Great job gentlemen!

Special thanks to referees; Bill Clayton - IPF Cat II, Larry Maile - IPF Cat II, Ray Benemerito - IPF Cat II, Jules Pelligrino - National, Eric Steiner - National, Steve Mann - National, and Theresa Kunsman - State officials. All did an excellent and consistent job. Last but not least, I would like to thank the Slippery Rock University Powerlifting Team and Chris O'Brien for assisting with the breakdown and loading of the equipment at the end of the show. Needless to say, it is much appreciated! I would also like to acknowledge the assistance of Ryan Stills and John Maccanelli, who traveled all the way from Wisconsin to assist with the contest. Ryan will be next year's American Open contest director, so give him a shout, and see when it will be held. Wisconsin during December must be beautiful!

During the awards presentation, Steve Mann was presented with a plaque by Kim Newman for his last two years of service as State chairman for Pennsylvania. Steve will be stepping down at this year's state championship, to pursue both his professional and family obligations. Under Steve's leadership, he resurrected USAPL Powerlifting in the State of Pennsylvania --Wonderful job and we will miss you a great deal

Most important and key, this competition would not have been possible without the direct sponsorship and kind contribution by Kim Newman of MoveIt Fitness, who funded a large part of the contest. She provided door and cash prizes to the competitors. Much appreciated, and thanks you for your significant contribution.

Last but not least, I would like to take this opportunity, to a special thanks to Peter Thorne and Inzer Advance Designs for their sponsorship of this event as well - Much appreciated!

To close, I would like to take this opportunity to send my thanks to all the lifters, for their support of this contest. We enjoyed having you, and look forward to seeing you at the USAPL Pennsylvania State Championships on Saturday and Sunday, March 1 & 2, 2003. See you there!

Robert H. Keller
Chief Technical Officer and Co-Director
2002 USAPL American Open Powerlifting Championships
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

----------------------------------------------------------------------- Results Legend Open: Can be any age. Junior: up to 23 (Dec 31) M1: Master 40-44 T1: Teen 14-15 M2: Master 45-49 T2: Teen 16-17 M3: Master 50-54 T3: Teen 18-19 M4: Master 55-59 Teen: 14-19 (exact age unknown) M5: Master 60-64 Collegiate: Age unknown M6: Master 65-69 SM: Submaster 35-39 M7: Master 70+ Master: 40+ (exact age unknown)
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