Barcelona or bust

Years of hard work and 5 a.m. workouts have paid off for Lynn Paskiewicz and Eleanor Mallow. Both women surpassed their goals at the National Masters Weightlifting Championship in Buffalo, N.Y., on April 5, qualifying them for the world Olympic-style weightlifting championship in Barcelona, Spain, in August.

Paskiewicz also brought home a first place medal for her age and weight class.

The national championship was only Paskiewicz and Mallow's second competition. They qualified at a local competition in Lowell last fall. The 2018 International Weightlifting Federation Masters World Championship -- L'Hospitalet to be held on Aug. 18-25 in Barcelona, will be their third.

The masters championship is for athletes age 35 and up, and weights are varied based on age and weight class. Mallow, who works as a systems analyst in John Brown University's information technology department, competes in the 55-59 age category and Paskiewicz, who works as a librarian at Southside Elementary School, competes in the 60-65 age category.

Paskiewicz, 61, needed to lift a total of 70 kg (154.3 pounds) in two events to qualify for the world championship, but actually lifted 80 kg. (176.4 pounds), earning her a first place medal in her age and weight class. She lifted 35 kg (77.2 pounds) in the snatch event and 45 kg (99.2 pounds) in the less technically difficult clean and jerk.

Mallow, 56, needed to lift a total of 76 kg (167.5 pounds) between the two events, but was able to lift 82 kg (180.8 pounds). She lifted 36 kg (79.3 pounds) in the snatch and 46 kg (101.4 pounds) in the clean and jerk.

"You go with the mindset you hope you can get on the board, you are not going to miss all your lifts, then you get on the board and you want more," Mallow said. "And it may not happen, but to actually just do what coach said, you feel accomplished, you feel like 'OK, I can do this and next time I won't be nervous and there will be a next time.' It was surreal."

The national meet was amazing in terms of venue, but Mallow and Paskiewicz faced some challenges because of technical difficulties at the competition that were outside their control, according to coach Michael Spruell, owner of CrossFit Siloam Springs.

"The girls were in the right mindset, even though some things from the meet perspective (that were challenging), they stayed in the right mindset and they were on," Spruell said. "They were just fantastic. They did a really good showing for Siloam."

He explained that many of the women in Paskiewicz and Mallow's age categories don't have the mobility and technique they do and have to modify the maneuvers in order to be able to complete them.

"They were a cut above," he said.

Just qualifying for nationals is a big deal, but very few people ever go to nationals and qualify for world, said Spruell. There could potentially be between 500 and 700 athletes from all over the world, Mallow said.

Background

Paskiewicz and Mallow have not always been champion athletes. Paskiewicz began her CrossFit journey five years ago with the goal of staying in shape so she can care for her seven special needs children. She also has five grandchildren.

CrossFit also gives Paskiewicz a mental break, which helps her feel less stressed and deal calmly with the problems that get thrown at her in daily life, she said.

Mallow, who is raising her three granddaughters, began her journey four years ago with similar motives. Before she began CrossFit, Mallow said she would have been shocked if anyone had suggested she would someday be a champion weightlifter.

"I'd have thought, 'You're insane,' because there is no way I'm getting up off the couch to do anything, then CrossFit completely changed that," she said.

There was a time when Mallow had trouble standing up straight after getting out of a chair. Her workout routine has helped her lose more than 80 lbs. and now her grandchildren have trouble keeping up with her during their workouts.

"CrossFit is for anyone, no matter their age, from youth all the way to whatever (age) -- I think they have a 100-year-old doing some form of Crossfit," Mallow said. "It's scalable to what you're capable of doing."

Paskiewicz' students at Southside Elementary School have been elated by her win and the experience has helped her connect with her students. She has her medal on display at school and every class has asked her about it, she said.

"My favorite thing out of all of this that has happened is Lynn and her kids, not just her kids, but her school kids," Mallow said. "If you think about it, she's setting an example for them now at their age, when they get to be her age, they don't know there is a limit to what you can do."

Paskiewicz' children are also excited. Two of them sent her a note that read '"You are a champion' with all kinds of fun spellings,'" she said.

Mallow's granddaughters, who work out with her on a regular basis, are also excited about her accomplishments, she said.

The next step

Mallow and Paskiewicz said they have learned a lot from their experience at the national competition, and Spruell already has a training program planned to get them ready for the world championship.

They are now working to raise the $10,000 it will take to fund the trip for the two athletes and their two coaches.

"We couldn't have done it without a coach, that's probably the most valuable thing that we learned," Mallow said. "And Michael learned he couldn't do it without a helper."

Coach Liz Kinnaman is planning a fundraising garage sale for 7 a.m. to around noon on Saturday, April 21, at CrossFit Siloam Springs. T-shirts, with the slogan "Barcelona or Bust" and baked goods will also be available at the sale. A GoFundMe page has also been set up for Mallow and Paskiewicz at www.gofundme.com/wmwc2018 and other fundraisers, such as a car wash, are also in the works. For more information, email [email protected] or visit the CrossFit Siloam Springs Facebook page.

General News on 04/18/2018