A MOTOR vehicle student has powered his way to double gold in the world weightlifting championships.
Darlington College student Elliot Peacock travelled to Corfu for the World Kettlebell Weightlifting Championships winning gold in the jerk and long cycle categories.
The 16-year-old first year level 2 motor mechanics student has been lifting kettlebells for the past four years and is a member of Tu Nova Gym, in Darlington.
Competitively, the weightlifting contests involve lifting two 24kg kettlebells above the head for ten minutes. It is important to fully lock the arms or the competitors face the danger of receiving yellow cards. If they receive more than two they are disqualified.
In Corfu Elliot, a former pupil at Wyvern Academy, competed against lifters from all over the world including America, Ukraine, Brazil, China, Australia, Poland, Estonia and Greece. He took gold by lifting more than 100 clean reps in 10 minutes, helping his youth team take second place overall.
“It does burn as the lactic acid builds up,” said Elliot, of Darlington. “But I really enjoy it and was so pleased to win the golds. It can be mentally tough as well. You have to balance wanting to win with the urge to put the weights down. I do get nervous and the adrenalin gives me a boost. Once this burns out it is one of the worst feelings. But when I put my mind to it I can be quite good and it’s definitely worth it.
“It’s about technique so you don’t burn your arms out and it’s about stamina. But I wouldn’t have been able to do it without my coaches and my teammates encouraging me. I was so pleased that almost everyone in the 30-strong team placed and we came away with 20 golds, four silvers and two bronzes over the competition. My dad went with me and was buzzing and when we told my mum she nearly burst into tears.”
Elliot also enjoys being able to travel the world. He has competed in the European Championships in Greece and Poland and next year hopes to go to Bulgaria.
His other love is anything automotive and he hopes one day to secure a good job working in a garage servicing and repairing cars.
For more information on opportunities at Darlington College visit www.darlington.ac.uk.
