By Ron Lane
Last week members of Noosa Cross Fit 4566 and Bar Bell Weight Lifting Club, located in 1/15 Lionel Donovan Drive Noosaville, gathered at the club for a presentation of medals and trophies, won by members at the national and state Titles.
The attendance of Noosa MP Sandy Bolton was two-fold. Not only was she invited as guest of honour to do the presentation of medals, but also to receive a big and public vote of thanks for her contribution to the club in obtaining a Queensland Community Gaming Grant.
Speaking of the club with head coach Woogie Marsh, our local Member expressed her total support in promoting a sport for the youth.
“During her visit I could not help noticing her rapport with the kids as she moved around saying hello, a really engaging personality,” said Marsh, a veteran of some 30 years in coaching.
For a club which places such emphases on family first and youth development, it was indeed a very rewarding afternoon.
The presentation of medals by Sandy Bolton, plus the display of new equipment, which was the result of the government grant, speaks volumes for the club’s standing in both competition and the community. It was back in 2015, that Cross Fit started and in 2016 we saw the addition of the Bar Bell Club.
Among the medal winners in the weight lifting was Taj Marsh, who won the U89kg national gold medal in the Youth Category and also backed up, by being awarded the Best Youth Male Weight Lifter at both state and national level. For this young man who has been lifting for 10 years and competing for four, it was a good result.
In the female section, Kaiya Marsh, sister of Taj, won gold in the U15, U59kg division, and a bronze medal in the U59kg Youth Category.
Also amongst the medal winners was Alana Castle who, competing in the national titles in the U15 age group, won the U76kg gold medal and in the U17 category, the bronze. This young lady has now been lifting for just over two years and is indeed, along with Taj and Kaiya, showing great potential.
Following the presentation, Sandy Bolton said, “It was invigorating to catch up with the members of the Noosa Barbell Club and to see the success of our youngsters, Kaiya, Alana and Taj, who took out gold at the nationals. This equipment funded by the Community Benefit Fund will go a long way to assist in their dreams for the 2032 Olympics and enable all ages to join in getting strong and fit for every day life. Congratulations to the NBC team, including coach Woogie Marsh, president Jason and all members for taking Noosa into the spotlight.”
The training sessions for the Bar Bell Club are conducted under the supervision of head coach Woogie Marsh and offers both Olympic weight lifting and power lifting. The Olympic event consists of two competition lifts ,the snatch and the clean and jerk. Power lifting has three competition lifts, deadlift, benchlift and the squat.
For those in the age group eight-16 years interested in joining the club, there is an invitation to drop in for a chat, during one of the Cross Fit Noosa Kids or Teen training sessions. A full explanation will be given and parents are assured that all training sessions for the rookies are under strict supervision.
Speaking on behalf of CrossFit 4566, Richard Kelly said, ‘’We cannot thank Sandy Bolton enough for her tremendous support in obtaining the grants. We thank her most sincerely. The new equipment was sorely needed. Our club is very committed to the policy of family-first and consider the growth of all kids in the community, to be of the utmost importance. Also, we are happy to relate the increase in membership of young girls.”
This is a good indication as to the reputation of the club within the community: also, it tells us that the popularity of the sport of weight lifting and the fitness training available to the teen population, is on the increase. Well done to all involved.
When Wide Bay MP Llew O’Brien, congratulated the 43 local sports stars who will receive grants that will greatly assist them in participating in state and national competition, it was indeed good to see three recipients of these grants, Alana Castle, Taj Marsh and Kaiya Marsh of the Noosa Bar Bell club, among those named. The outstanding support of Noosa’s local MP Sandy Bolton and Wide Bay’s Llew O’Brien should be noted and acknowledged. The financial burden placed on the parents of our athletes is, in many cases, nothing short of disgraceful. After all, they are training with the burning desire to represent this great country.
Following the outstanding success of our team at the Tokyo Olympics, the importance of talent identification from amongst the ranks of our youth, and the role to be played by our dedicated coaches, cannot be emphasised enough.
