Adams reinvigorating LSUS college weightlifting using program's national brand

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Adams reinvigorating LSUS college weightlifting using program's national brand

SHREVEPORT - Aaron Adams puts his hand on in the upper middle of a weightlifter Hanale Kauha'aha'a's back, imploring him to remain over the bar during the entirety of his deadlift.

Adams bounces around the USA Weightlifting Development Center at LSUS, assisting 12 high school weightlifters during an intensive week-long camp in late July designed to give campers a taste of the college weightlifting life.

The former LSUS weightlifter is reinvigorating the college portion of a renowned weightlifting program at his alma mater.

Officially taking over the college team with zero active weightlifters one year ago, Adams hit the recruiting trail and wrangled 12 student-athletes in his first class (seven females, five males).

He started by contacting well-known weightlifting coaches, leveraging LSUS's brand in the sport built by Dr. Kyle Pierce, a recent inductee into the International Weightlifting Hall of Fame for his coaching and ambassador work.

"To be able to pick up that torch and carry it along as a former athlete, that means a lot," Adams said. "Everyone knew that LSUS had a weightlifting program with a rich history, I just had to explain that it's still going and how we're rebuilding and restructuring.

"Our goal isn't to make great weightlifters, it's to make great kids who happen to be weightlifters."

Adams' initial goal was eight weightlifters.

Because Olympic-style weightlifting isn't a common high school sport nationwide (Louisiana favors powerlifting and wrestling), most of Adams' initial recruiting class hails from Florida. Eight of the 10 incoming freshmen call the Sunshine State home, which is also Pierce's old stomping grounds.

Adams, who knows what it's like to come from afar as a New Jersey native, competed on three junior world teams and in three senior national championships en route to setting four different national records in the 136-pound weight class (at the junior and collegiate levels).

Pierce attracted more than 70 college weightlifters from outside Louisiana to compete at LSUS, but academic duties as well as extensive travel and presentations as the director of international relations at USA Weightlifting meant he couldn't dedicate as much time to the college program as he wanted.

"It's important to have someone like Aaron who's been successful in this program to take it on," Pierce said. "The original focus on the program was youth and community-oriented, and I'm really enjoying the continuation of that mission.

"It's nice to see someone with the time to devote to the college program take it and run with it."

Another LSUS weightlifting alumni Kela Kauha'aha'a has played an invaluable role as an assistant coach in the program's rejuvenation.

Those 12 weightlifting campers that immersed themselves in LSUS life? All 12 are likely future LSUS weightlifters that could come starting in 2025 or later, meaning rapid program growth beyond this year is expected.

Two campers have competed on junior world teams with one slated to lift in the Junior World Championships in Spain this September.

Adams blended LSUS's reputation in the sport with an active social media presence (@lsusweightlifting on Instagram) to attract the next generation of lifters.

Even with the majority of weightlifters coming from out of state, the community-focused portion of the program did lure one Shreveport native to the LSUS college program as a graduate student.

Logan Lewis first encountered LSUS weightlifting as a Byrd High wrestler who was getting stronger ahead of his senior season.

After lifting off and on in Louisiana Tech's powerlifting program, he saw LSUS's Weightlifting program, and its biology graduate program, as a great opportunity.

"I knew I wasn't going to wrestle in college, but weightlifting was something I could compete in and enjoy," said Logan, who plans on going to dental school. "Coming back to LSUS now, there's an energy around weightlifting, and it's something I wanted to be a part of."

Lewis pointed out the introduction of the Human Performance Lab, where LSUS student-athletes can dive into biometrics such as body mass index, metabolism rates, and balance testing, as another draw.

Adams, who manages the lab, said the lab is a plus in attracting weightlifters, particularly for kinesiology students but also for anybody interested in improving physical performance.

He'd also like to attract in-state powerlifting athletes to increase the program's local impact.

"Weightlifting is building on a similar skillset that's only slightly different," said Adams, who wrestled in high school in addition to weightlifting. "We'd love to be able to get more local kids in the program, and we're building relationships with local powerlifting programs."

Olympic-style weightlifting isn't a sanctioned sport in the NAIA or NCAA, putting LSUS weightlifting into a club sport status of sorts similar to LSUS Bass Fishing.

But Adams said the program has an important partner in LSUS Athletics.

"(LSUS athletics director) Lucas Morgan has been amazing in offering support and resources to help us build what we want to build," Adams said. "They aren't treating us like a club sport, and a lot of that is based on what (Pierce) has done in the past and the bright future we have in attracting quality students and quality lifters to this school.

"(Pierce) has brought in and developed world team members and Olympians, and I think we have the potential to do that again."

Weightlifters aren't currently offered athletics scholarships, but a combination of academic aid and scholarships along with LSUS's affordable tuition makes his program competitive from an education cost standpoint.

LSUS is the only weightlifting program in the state (other schools feature club powerlifting programs), but there is competition regionally and nationally for the country's elite lifters.

The Southeast features schools like East Tennessee State, Lenoir Rhyne (Tenn.), and Mars Hill (N.C.) while Lindenwood out of Missouri is a national favorite.

"There are a few programs that offer weightlifting scholarships, but LSUS is the only school that offers guaranteed academic scholarships if you meet the criteria," Adams said. "Based just on the lifters we're bringing in this coming year, we'll be a competitor on the national stage.

"We've had a lot of our weightlifting alumni that are really excited about what we're doing, and we think we can build a program that's going to compete for national championships pretty quickly here."