When last we checked in with the Gold sisters, they were waking up in the wee hours of the morning on a regular basis to hit the gym when most high-schoolers were still catching Z’s.
Fast forward a few months and not much has changed.
Well, not much other than the fact that both sisters won a pair of gold medals.
“We’re always competing,” said Celia Gold, a senior at Newtown High School. “We’re very competitive people. And we’re really lucky because a lot of kids have to train alone.”
“We do push each other a lot,” said Romy Gold, a sophomore at Newtown High School. “Everything we do is competitive between us. I love it because I’m always pushing myself more than I would be otherwise.”
Capturing the Gold
The sisters lived up to their name, each claiming two gold medals at the Nutmeg State Open Olympic Weightlifting Champions on Sunday, Oct. 11.
Both got a gold medal for the snatch as well as the clean-and-jerk.
Celia lifted 158 pounds in the snatch and 194 pounds in the clean-and-jerk for a two-lift score of 352. She also brought home two trophies: One for Best Female Lifter and the other for Best Junior Lifter.
“CrossFit people are notoriously supportive and nice,” said Celia, who needed to lift 348 pounds in the two lifts combined to qualify for the American Open. “You’re competing against people, but you want people to succeed. Even if you miss a lift people are encouraging you to get back out there.”
Romy, too, qualified for the American Open by putting up 154 pounds in the snatch and 182 pounds in the clean-and-jerk for a two-lift score of 336.
“I was not expecting to do as well as I did,” said Romy, who needed to lift 327.8 pounds combined to qualify for the American Open. “I wasn’t feeling it the day of, but as soon as I started warming up it was like ‘I want to win now.’”
Along with Coach Kurt Kling, the trio also won the trophy for Best Women’s Team, which is given to the team with the highest combined total at the meet.
Both sisters went in with the main goal of qualifying for the American Open to be held in Reno, NV on Dec. 3-6, so earning a pair of gold medals apiece turned out to be a bonus.
“My goal was to qualify for American Open,” Celia said. “Getting gold was another goal, but it was kind of the icing on the cake.”
“Mentally I just wanted to qualify for American Open,” Romy said. “That’s all I wanted to do.”
Helping in lacrosse
CrossFit and weightlifting aren’t the sisters’ only athletic endeavors.
Both are defenders on the Newtown varsity lacrosse team, and they believe CrossFit has helped them take their lacrosse game to the next level.
“I feel stronger on the field,” Celia said. “In girls lacrosse, there’s a lot of rules with pushing and contact. As a defender, when girls hit me there’s definitely a difference and I don’t have to push back. I can stand my ground more.”
“It’s definitely made me feel more comfortable on the field, especially last year as a freshman making varsity,” Romy said. “I felt like I had an advantage. I could run a lot quicker, and I think it helped tremendously. It made me better player and gave me a better confidence.”
Not resting on their laurels
The sisters enjoyed their win, but they’ve already got the next big competition circled on the calendar: The USA Weightlifting American Open Championships in Reno.
In a typical week, the Gold’s train for 2-3 hours after school at CrossFit RedZone in Newtown.
The countless hours in the gym have led to both being ranked internationally in CrossFit in their age groups — Celia is ranked No. 5 in her group and Romy is No. 7 in hers.
Neither can envision a scenario in life where they’re not hitting the gym with regularity.
“One hundred percent,” Celia said. “I want to do CrossFit until I physically can’t anymore. I love it.”
“One hundred percent,” Romy said. “I’ll be 100 and doing it.”
Celia plans to attend college next fall, and she’ll continue to train with her sister if she stays local. If not, she may need a new gym, but the sisterly competition will still be there even from afar.
“My hope is to find a local CrossFit or come to RedZone if I’m close enough,” said Celia, who wants to go into international relations in college and potentially combine that with CrossFit. “That’s going to stink (not working out with Romy). I hate thinking about it, but hopefully we can stay on the same program and stay competitive from afar.”
Romy will continue to be a regular at CrossFit RedZone. She hopes it’ll still be with her big sister.
“I’m sure we’d be calling each other every night,” Romy said. “You can’t really put a distance on our competitiveness. We’ve definitely become a lot closer because we both want each other to do well.”
Courtesy of: News Times