| Rejuvenated Haworth committed to weightlifting ... for now |
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January 11, 2009 Savannah Morning News
The inaugural Cheryl Haworth Classic turned out to be a party.
Just not a retirement party. Weightlifting remains Haworth's job. Five months removed from her third Olympic Games, she's still training, still drawing a stipend from the U.S. Olympic Committee, and still competing. Watch video from the Cheryl Haworth Classic. She even lifted Saturday in her namesake event. But don't consider her committed for the 2012 Olympics just yet. "Committed?" Haworth said. "Strong word. Too strong right now." Strength on the weightlifting platform comes only through commitment. The London Games are more than three years away, but weightlifting's physical demands make training an ongoing process. The lifter builds strength. Her body breaks down. She heals. She comes back stronger than before. Rinse. Repeat. Commitment and time are all that's required. But Haworth's focus is on the months ahead, not years or Olympic cycles. She's committed to training five days a week and competing in this summer's Pan American, National and World Championships. Beyond that, she's reserving the right to retire. "I've been to the Olympics three times," she said, "and I know going to a fourth doesn't have to be the goal." A step at a time Haworth approaches her future more cautiously than a barbell full of weights. She's guarded because she is one major injury away from leaving her shoes on the platform, signaling her retirement. She's already had both elbows surgically rebuilt and struggled through rehab for a torn spinal disc. Those injuries likely cost her two Olympic medals: A gold in the 2004 Athens Games and a silver last August in Beijing. And at age 25, she has no more patience for comebacks. Haworth wants another medal, though, and she'll chase it as long as her body allows. She admitted as much to her family during a sightseeing trip while still in China for the Olympics. "As bad as I did, with no leg strength, I was 11 kilos away from silver at a weight I've lifted before," her father, Bob, recalls Cheryl saying. "There's another medal out there waiting for me." Bob Haworth believes so, too, even as Cheryl talks openly about her future beyond weightlifting. She wants to go back to school to get a master's degree in public administration. She's trimmed down thanks to a conditioning program originally designed for military combat units, known as CrossFit. "She's feeling good and thinking about life outside the gym," Bob said. "But you watch: If she medals at the Worlds this November, she'll announce for 2012." Back to the basics The medals on Cheryl Haworth's mind Saturday went around someone else's neck. She presented awards to lifters as young as age 6, including a few of her cousins, at the Classic's end. The event reminded Haworth of the small meets she first competed in as a 13-year-old newcomer to the sport. "It's not always about performing with tons of money, glory and medals on the line," she said. "Sometimes it's about going out on that platform with your teammates and getting after it. It's rejuvenating." A rejuvenation party is more fun than a retirement bash anyway. |