One of the hardest workers in New Zealand weightlifting, Hayley Whiting, is celebrating a breakout performance that will likely book her ticket to this year’s Commonwealth Games.
The Ashburton lifter, now based in Mount Maunganui, has put herself in the box seat for selection after a big win in the women's 87kg class at a recent international event held in Auckland.
It was effectively a two-horse race for the Commonwealth Games spot, between Whiting (29) and long-time rival Kanah Andrews-Nahu (21) who represented New Zealand at last year's Olympics.
The thrilling arm wrestle went down to the wire and saw Andrews-Nahu leading late. She set a personal best and New Zealand record with a final clean and jerk of 122kg. Needing an extra three kilos to steal the win, Whiting extended that New Zealand record with a lift of 125kg. She won by one kilo - a total of 223kg which is also a national record. To put that into context, Whiting had never even attempted a clean and jerk of more than 120kg in training.
"I was just so relieved and just so happy,” she told 1News.
“I dedicated all this time and it paid off.”
It marked a significant breakthrough for Whiting who "has a reputation of under performing".
"When the pressure would go on, in the past Hayley would melt," said coach Ray Everest.
Hayley Whiting from Ashburton has toiled away for six years, sacrificing plenty along the way. (Source: 1News)
Whiting picked up the sport of Olympic weightlifting while doing CrossFit in Dunedin where she earned a Bachelor of Physiotherapy from the University of Otago. She started lifting seriously in early 2016 and represented New Zealand on multiple occasions despite not having a coach until she met Everest in 2018.
The pair initially worked with each other remotely - Whiting then living in Christchurch and Everest in Mt Maunganui. But from 2018 to 2019 Everest says little to no progress was made in terms of numbers on the platform, prompting a blunt conversation that saw Whiting move to Mt Maunganui in early 2020.
"Something had to change,” Everest recalled.
“Or this journey was over between me and him,” Whiting said.
Since then the pair have made significant improvements. In 2018 at their first New Zealand National competition together, Whiting clean and jerked 109kg. The 125kg she registered in her most recent competition was almost unthinkable when they first met.
While she is yet to be officially announced in New Zealand's Commonwealth Games weightlifting team later this month, it should be merely a formality. As the top-ranked woman in her class in New Zealand, she has a real chance of winning a medal.
Whiting says the ability to break through the mental barriers that held her back in the past comes from "growth in all areas" of her life. She sacrificed financial security in Christchurch to move to Bay of Plenty where she didn't know anyone. She also lived with Everest, as well as his wife and kids whom she had never met.
Finding her feet in the Mount, she started her own physiotherapy studio which provides income as well as flexibility to train six days a week.
She is also now "part of the family" - forming a close bond with the Everests. She says the close-knit relationship with her coach is key to performing under the pressure that would have overwhelmed her in the past.
At her age, Whiting feels her window may be closing but if recent results are anything to go by, she is primed to make the most of the opportunities she has left.
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