Competitive teen dancer becomes nationally ranked weightlifter
Throwing dumbbells that weigh more than she does is never something Bella Thompson-Hill saw herself doing.
« I love it because it makes me feel good, » Thompson-Hill said. « It makes me feel strong. »
The 17-year-old has been a competitive dancer all her life, but when she began to be done with the sport, Thompson-Hill made the unlikely choice to switch full-time to CrossFit and weightlifting. It was 21 months ago.
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« The first two weeks were really tough for me, » Thompson-Hill said. “I had never touched a bar in my life. My hands were pretty raw.
Thompson-Hill is part of CrossFit 306’s high performance teen program. Once she started training consistently for 2.5 hours, four times a week, it didn’t take long for her talent to grow. natural shines.
« She listens carefully to all the cues and feedback we give her and she really tries and applies, » Thompson-Hill coach Jason Cain said. « She’s also incredibly hardworking. »
In just her second year in the sport, Thompson-Hill qualified for the National Junior Weightlifting Championships held in Quebec in early June.
Representing Team Saskatchewan, she entered the competition ranked first in her weight class.
« I hit 89 (kilograms) and that’s when I knew I had won, » Thompson-Hill said. « I was pretty thrilled. I was like, ‘Let’s go and do 92 (kilograms).’ I had more lift left and it went very well.
His 92-kilo clean and jerk and 71-kilo snatch earned him a combined score of 163.
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This score was good enough for a national gold medal and provincial and national records. Thompson-Hill’s success comes as no surprise to his coach – who was also at the nationals.
« You don’t become a Canadian champion by skipping workouts or skipping reps, » Cain said. « She does whatever we assign her to do every day she arrives. »
Thompson-Hill’s potential in weightlifting is limitless as she is still years away from reaching her peak in the sport and only started less than two years ago.
She has big dreams but always remembers why she lifts in the first place.
“I would love to compete internationally one day,” said Thompson-Hill. « Honestly, I just do it because I like it a lot. »
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