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Weightlifter prepares for 2023 world competition in Poland

Originally from Williams Lake, Brittany Klingmann began weighlifting during COVID
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Brittany Klingmann, formerly of Williams Lake, is training to compete for Canada at the 2023 World Masters Weightlifting Championships in Poland, August 2023. (Chris Taylor photo)

A woman who will represent Canada at the 2023 World Masters Weightlifting Championships in Poland this August hopes to make her hometown of Williams Lake proud.

Brittany Klingmann, who lives in Halifax, N.S., said she met a qualifying total at provincial championships in November 2022 to move onto the worlds.

“I lifted a total of 135 kg and I believe the qualifying standard is 85 kg, so it is quite a bit lower.”

Two years ago the 40-year-old started weightlifting and fell in love with the sport.

She had found a cross-fit gym in Halifax that met her exercise needs and it turned out to be a great way of meeting people.

The gym had weightlifting on the side and it appealed to her.

“Some of my former sports of particularly golf and soccer and the intricacies of figuring it out really drew me to weightlifting,” she said. “I always admired weightlifting as a kid. I would watch it and be fascinated and think ‘wow, that is a lot of weight.’”

Now that she has been doing it she has a new appreciation for how much weight those Olympic athletes actually moved.

There are two kinds of lifts - the snatch and the clean and jerk.

Starting out for the snatch she was lifting 25 kg, with the bar alone weighing 15 pounds and with the clean and jerk she was learning with 35 kg.

Now her best snatch lift is 63 kg and her best clean and jerk lift is 80 kg.

In competition it is the best number from both that is combined to give you a total.

The 135 kg she achieved at provincials was a combined 58 kg snatch and 77 kg clean and jerk.

When she competes in Poland, Klingmann will be part of a Canadian team, with the top 12 athletes in each age group and category.

At the championships she will compete in the 55 kg to 59 kg weight class, ages 40 to 44.

It will be her first international competition.

Last year she competed at nationals in Moncton, N.B. and got a silver medal.

Currently she is training five days a week for an hour-and-a-half sessions.

“You do all sorts of accessory work to make sure your body is strong and mobile.

Her coach, Cody Steeves, out of Peak Weightlifting lives in Dieppe, New Brunswick so Klingmann does virtual sessions with him.

She met him through the national competition and different teammates.

Klingmann and her husband Scott Klingmann have a daughter Ari, 9, and a son Nia, 6.

She works full-time as a physiotherapist for Young Kempt Physiotherapy and said it is a challenge to balance everything.

“Being active with my family is really important. We do a lot of hiking, biking, swimming in the summer and skiing in the winter. We are generally active as a family.”

One of her best friends and training partners lives with them.

“She’s a university student and she’s been an instrumental pillar of support for the family.”

Growing up in Williams Lake she figure skated before golf and soccer took over.

After graduation in 2001 from Columneetza Secondary she left to go to university and a decade later returned to Williams Lake and got her first physiotherapy job at Pro Physioworks.

“Williams Lake has strong ties for me, given my family is still there and I spent the first eight years of my career there.”

Her parents are Shelley Gillis and Gary Gillis.

Occasionally she does online coaching sessions remotely and has worked with people in Williams Lake, a connection she continues to enjoy.

Anyone inspired to follow her progress can find her on Instagram @brittklingmann or if they want to donate toward her fundraising efforts for the trip to Poland the bkweightlifting@gmail.com.

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monica.lamb-yorski@wltribune.com

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Physiotherapist Brittany Klingmann began weightlifting two years ago. (Chris Taylor photo)


Monica Lamb-Yorski

About the Author: Monica Lamb-Yorski

A B.C. gal, I was born in Alert Bay, raised in Nelson, graduated from the University of Winnipeg, and wrote my first-ever article for the Prince Rupert Daily News.
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