Zoe Smith Team GB Weightlifter

Video Diary 1

Video Diary 1

Zoe Smith is a British weightlifter. Already a bronze medallist at the Commonwealth Games in 2010, Zoe competes in the 58kg division and is aiming to be a part of Team GB come the 2012 Olympics. Zoe talks about how she got into the sport as a youngster and what is in store for her in the coming months.

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Zoe Smith Team GB Weightlifter

Event Date: 30/03/2011

Olympic weightlifting, also called Olympic-style weightlifting or weightlifting, is a sport in which participants attempt a maximum weight single lift of a barbell loaded with weight plates. The two lifts competed are the clean and jerk and the snatch. Clean and press was another weightlifting technique, discontinued due to difficulties in judging proper form. The compound word "weightlifting" is also often used to refer to weight training. In comparison with other strength sports which tests limit strength (with or without lifting aids), olympic weightlifting tests ballistic limits (explosive strength) with smaller weights, such that the lifts must be executed faster and with more mobility, because of a greater range of motion during the lifts. While there are relatively few competitive Olympic lifters, the lifts and their components are commonly used by elite athletes to train for explosive and functional strength.