Zoe Newson
Zoe Newson (born 24 March 1992) is a British Powerlifter. She is a two-time bronze medalist at the Summer Paralympics and she won the silver medal in her event at the 2021 World Para Powerlifting Championships.
In 2012 Newson posted a European record at the IPC Powerlifting British Championships and took bronze in the under 40:kg cl* for Great Britain at the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London.
Career history
Newson was born in Ipswich in 1992 and was educated at East Bergholt High School. Newson, who was born with growth hormone deficiency, tried out powerlifting for the first time in 2006, joining the Suffolk Spartans club in Colchester in 2007. Newson entered a local compe*ion in 2007, lifting near 40:kg, but by January 2008 she had improved this to 47.5:kg, taking second place at a Paralympic compe*ion in Cardiff. In May Newson lifted a personal best of 60:kg and repeated this feat in June at the British Finals to make her British Champion in her cl*.
2009 saw Newson drop weight to take her into the under 40:kg cl*, and in Cardiff she lifted 70:kg to take first place. She bettered this again that summer with first place at both the World Dwarf Games and the British Finals, lifting 75:kg in both. In November she travelled to Bangalore to compete in the IWAS World Games, taking silver in both the junior and senior events. In 2010, she took first place again in Cardiff, now lifting 80:kg. Her progress continued throughout the year, lifting 85:kg, now double her own weight, at the British Finals and breaking the junior European record. In July Newson was invited to attend the IPC Powerlifting World Championships in Kuala Lumpur, finishing 1st in the junior event and 4th in the seniors. She finished the year by qualifying for the England team for the 2010 Commonwealth Games, her lift of 85:kg placing her just outside the medals in fourth place.
In 2011, she took first in Cardiff, the British Finals and the IWAS World Junior Games. She then took a break from competing to train in preparation for qualifying for the 2012 Summer Paralympics. With a personal best of 88:kg at Cardiff, Newson only entered the events that would ensure her position in the Great Britain team was secure. In February she qualified for the team taking the only position in the women's under 40:kg category. On 30 August, despite having her second lift chalked off, she equalled her personal best lifting 88:kg to take the bronze medal.
In 2021, she won the silver in her event at the 2021 World Para Powerlifting Championships held in Tbilisi, Georgia.
References
External links
- Zoe Newson at Paralympic.org
- Zoe Newson at the Commonwealth Games Federation