Once
again, the Canadian Championships proved to be a very successful event for
Rafal Korkowski. The performance shown on the platform reflected the precise
preparation and training leading up to this breakthrough event. Rafal managed
to improve by 5kg in each lift, and better his personal best total from
305kg to 315kg with a very technical and impressive 6 for 6 competition.
With that total he claimed 3 bronze medals in the Men's 105kg weight category,
behind Akos Sandor of Ontario (370kg total) and Sacha Amede of Quebec (340kg
total), who were respectively, the top 2 overall male lifters of the 2003
Canadian Championships.
"I felt great, training was consistent and the confidence to improve was definitely there. My biggest goal was to place in the top 3 in my weight class. I always come out strong and motivated when the competition is close, thus it was good to see such a great starting list this year", said Rafal.
Rafal's
total of 315kg was a 37.5kg improvement from the 2002 Canadian Championships.
With this result, Rafal was ranked 8th overall in the 2003 Canadian Championships,
his highest ranking ever at the National level.
"I was very surprised when I received the results package, and according to sinclair ranking, was 8th overall. I looked at the names of the top 10 or so athletes and saw that all these lifters had represented Canada at numerous World Championships, Commonwealth Games, Pan Am Games and other international level events. It was a great feeling seeing my name ranked so high among them. The biggest goal since last years Nationals was to gain some weight. This year I weighed 8 kg more than last year, and I could feel the strength and stability in the lifts. The weight didn't overwhelm me, I was very happy with the result and able to get the confidence I needed to further improve at the next competition.", commented Rafal.
Rafal
and his coach Mirek Korkowski were approached by various coaches, athletes
and officials which complimented the style and mechanics of his lifts.
Everyone was quick to say "You make it look so easy!" Rafal's
performance qualified him as the 4th ranked male on the National Team
which will represent Canada at the 2003 University and Collegiate World
Championships held in Pavia, Italy in July. We look forward to seeing
the upcoming results.
Congratulations Rafal and Good Luck!
For full 2003 Canadian Championship Results go to www.ontarioweightliftaing.ca