AKC Southeast Championships
Many thanks to Coach Scott Shelter and the AKCÂ for organizing a great event. With some of the best names in Kettlebell Sport in the house, the ICKB Girls did not disappoint. As a matter of fact, this was our most rewarding performance to date. Here’s why:
Results in the respective weight classes:
Heidy – Gold (pro biathlon)
Sara – Gold (pro biathlon)
Surya – Gold (pro biathlon)
Maya – Gold (pro biathlon)
Jess – Silver (pro biathlon)
In addition to these incredible performances, four of our girls earned their CMS rankings tonight, with Valery Fedorenko officially declaring them Candidates for Master of Sport! Congratulations to Jess, Sara, Heidy and Maya for their great achievement.
And by the way, Heidy just happens to be so bad-ass that she also took home the “Best Female Lifter” award, winning an AKC Collectors’ Edition Trophy Bell. (Only eight of these have ever been given out by the organization.)
Finally, I didn’t do too bad this time, taking a gold in the male amateur long cycle. It was an honor to compete next to the one and only — American Champion, Marty Farrell. Standing by him definitely gave me the motivation to last longer and set a new PR.
We couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the year.
Best,
Steven
p.s. Thank you to Susan Reeves and her family for coming out to support us. Susan was also gracious enough to take Maya and Surya to the airport before the event ended so that they could return home early to be with their children. Bless you Susan!
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Some Other Highlights
The crowd gets ready for the competition.
Andrew Durniat going for his snatch record with the 32kg.
The juniors were impressive.
Fellow lifters from Ohio, Connecticut, and North Carolina.
C-Duff, P-Hump, Ross Gilling, and Mike Sherman cranked out some sick numbers!
Matt and Lorraine, heads of the NAKF – North American Kettlebell Federation.
Ken Blackburn of the IKFF ensuring things run smoothly.
In the presence of Kettlebell Greatness: world class lifters Catherine Imes and Valery Fedorenko.
Inside the Waffle House, an Atlanta Icon. We couldn’t resist.
Downtown ATL. The Peachtree.
This was an awesome event with a great turn-out. What a pleasure for me to finally meet everybody on the Ice Chamber squad. I had admired them from afar (most, anyway) and after three meets had great conversations with everyone of you. Thank you, Maya, for your technical instructions, I’ll be practicing today! I look forward seeing everyone again in Columbus! Great efforts! Your practice and skill shows where it counts, on the platform.
Wow, look at you all in such a short amount of time! Truly, impressive, inspiring and making us all so proud. There’s a whole new level to “get up there an do that sh**!”.
Congratulations, you’ve earned every ounce of praise and honors. Thanks Steve for posting this so soon and letting us all know. We were thinking of the team yesterday.
ack!!!! amazing! you guys totally rock, and i am so impressed. this team is rising so quickly among the ranks–it’s out of control. i hope you guys enjoyed some great chicken and waffles, because you definitely deserved it. love you all!
What an awesome job done by all. You guys can’t lose in our book — you only get better. Congratulations! Rylee and I loved all the pictures. And we look forward to our family being reunited when Susan returns. Those Waffle House pictures have got to be treasured memories too. Hopefully one of you got the pecan waffle – a true delicacy!
You are all AMAZING! We have been thinking about you all weekend. We award you heart shaped kettlebells!
congratz everyone!
Congratulations to all! Glad to see that hard work paying off – you are all an inspiration!
WOW — what an incredible Ice Chamber vibe at this great event. I was honored to witness awesome participation from Sarah – Jessica – Maya – Surya – Heidy — and this time Steve. These people REPRESENT IC with every last thing they have in their personal strength arsenal! I brought my Atlanta family — and they were glued to the action — had to translate colors to kilos to lbs for them and watch everyone’s jaw drop.
For all of us that had the honor to participate in the IC Kettlebell Meet here in Albany — add jet lag (and Waffle House delights!) to get a flavor of the nerve factor. But you also have to realize the power of support and friendliness of this group — they have simply adopted everyone as IC people (by far the highest logo count on people at this event was IC!).
WAY TO GO!!!!
Steven, Maya, Jessica, Sara, Heidy and Surya – you are totally awesome! Congrats on the big lifting and special congrats to Heidy for sweeping all the ladies and taking home the AKC Bell!
And a HUGE thanks for the Ice Chamber shirt – I felt so out of place hanging out with Cate, Ken and Marty thu and fri before the meet totally drooling over their Ice Chamber swag! You are the best! I hope to make it out to Cali to train with you sometime, no doubt I’d learn a few things, awesome lifting!
Scott
Wow, wow, wow! WOOOOO HOOO! You guys are amazing. Thank you for sharing the memories, the pictures, and the stories! Any chance you brought home some waffles along with your medals?
I’m elated. I’m most proud of the fact that the girls worked so hard to perfect technique. Their performance this time really shows a level of maturity. The team displayed guts and integrity, and it was appreciated by all those that watched. It has been a nerve-racking week: lack of sleep, traveling across the country, cutting weight, formalizing a strategy, etc. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t have it any other way. The obstacles and challenges of it all is what makes the experience unforgettable. Now that we’re all home, I would like to have a little celebration for the team in the near future. I think they all deserve some R&R before the season starts again in the spring.
Thank you to everyone at the IC for supporting the girls so that they can continue to excel and compete. You all make a huge difference
To Scott, Cate, Matt, Lorraine, Ken, Eric, VF, all the judges, support staff, competitors, and the AKC:
Thank you for a great meet! It has been a phenomenal year. We appreciate all you do to propel GS in the US!
To the Ice Chamber Gang, you are the greatest! BTW thanks for letting me bogart in as part of your team! Really looking forward to seeing everybody at the Arnold.
Yet again, we admire your love and dedication to this great sport. Have a safe journey home!
STUDS!! Everyone of you. Congrats on another fantastic competition and showing us all how to really work for it. You all are amazing.
Steven, Maya, Jessica, Heidi, Sara and Surya – what a great weekend and top notch k-bell meet! The IC crew kicked some serious k-bell ass in Atlanta….you guys smashed it!
It was so wonderful seeing you all again, we had a blast! Congratulations to you all on your phenomenal performances across the board, you have all come so far in such a short time, it’s unbelievable. Your numbers are a testament to your commitment, dedication and the sheer hard work you have all put it, should be very proud. I feel privileged to have been able to witness your great achievements!
I would like to extend extra congrats to Maya, Jess, Sara and Heidi on achieving your CMS ranking’s, what an amazing achievement! Bask in the glory girls, you’ve earned it….Outstanding!!
Steven and Maya thank you so much for the IC stash, you are too generous! We really appreciate it and shall wear our t-shirts proudly!
We look forward with excitement and great anticipation to seeing you all in Columbus in the new year!
Merry Christmas to you all from Team Edge!!
You all are A-MAZ-ING! Yowza!
What a testament to Steve and Maya’s great coaching, and all the ICKC women’s determination…best team ever.
I sure hope Heidy has a strong mantle…all those KB trophies are going to take some serious holding up. =)
And Patty H – missing you at 0600!
Sweet! Ditto to what everyone has already proclaimed – it is truly an honor to train with such great athletes. It shows that you all put your hearts into the sport!
To the whole Ice Chamber Crew,
Congrats on your successes !! Enjoy all the attention you get for the clinic you guys put on in Atlanta !! I will see you all soon..
Happy Holidays,
Chris
This was an awesome event. Some crazy lifting going on by all. Always a pleasure seeing the old faces and meeting the new ones. KB lifters are so cool – no head cases! All fabulous people!
As for you Scott – I don’t remember you asking any stupid questions but you did take off with my pen every chance you got. It was a pleasure working for you at this meet with the incomparable Matty M, Ken and Cate – I hope you enjoy being my slave from here on out!
L
To the Ladies and that true Gentleman representing IC in ATL- you are all AWESOME!!! I cannot wait to see everyone in Columbus…there will be some MS’s earned, I can feel it!
Steve- I think I forgot to say “Thank you for the O-dark thirty ride.” My apologies…
Heidy- Hope that bell arrived in one piece!
Scott- good job stealing L’s pen! Now it’s time for the Wizard to disappear back behind the curtain.
Lorraine, you and your team run a tight ship and I think I speak on behalf of all the lifters when I say how grateful we are that you, Matt, Ken, and Cate took such great care of us. We are able to put our best feet forward because of your hard work. Thank you to all the judges too, especially Ken Love, Nico, and Martin. Scott, thank you for being a wonderful host–love your gym!
The performances were top notch: C. Duff, your jerk set was off the chain. I was on the edge of my seat. P-Hump, your technique needed no help from me. Great job! Mike Sherman going 10 minutes on all events was something special too. Dang! Ross Gilling, really REALLY impressive, your progress is freaky! How did you do that in less than five months?
…and of course Marty, teaching us all that even after you reach kettlebell greatness, there is always more to do. Incredible athleticism with tremendous heart, you’re a world class lifter on and off the platform.
…and last but never least, my darling Steve on your birthday… I am so grateful to you. What an amazing athlete and coach you continue to be for so many here. I am honored to share life with you. You deserve another gold medal for being the Best Teacher of the Year (and another for being the Best Husband).
Wow, you guys all rock!! I’m very proud of all of you! Good job Steve and Happy Birthday! Good job, Bearbers, Jess, Surya and Mighty Maya! Heidy you are absolutely unbelievable! You look so cute and humble w/your custom bell standing next to the great Valery. Love the waffle hats! Can’t wait to hear what’s up next.
ditto everything everyone else has already said- congrats- you all rock!!!
and happy b-day Steve…
Congratulations Ice Chamber Team.
Everyone has come a long way in a short amount of time! Steve, good to see you again and it was great to see you PR ing. Be patient and the numbers will come.
Maya, Jess, Surya, Sara and Heidy way to go. You guys were on the money. Happy birthday Steve! You guys are good people and that is rare. It reflects in your lives and in your lifting. I’m happy to know you all.
Marty
How exciting for you all. Great Job IC…way to represent!!! Looks like the amazing impression you have had on us is going national, by all these comments!
Happy Birthday, Steve!
What a terrific birthday gift and a wonderful KB anniversary. I would say that I can’t believe how far you’ve come in such a short time, but I would be lying. Of course I can believe it! You are an amazing group of athletes and coaches. It’s a privilege to be taught and inspired by you all.
Congrats to the IC team and Happy Birthday Steve. I could just feel that everyone did a good job. You can never loose with a good team, good coaching, and a positive attitude. That is one thing I have learned being a part of the IC team.
I am so proud to be a part of such an amazing team. I am always inspired by you guys as well as our entire IC community!
Happy Birthday Steve!! It is an honor to have you as a coach, mentor and most importantly friend!! Cheers to you on your special day
Congrats to all of you – you are all sooooo amazing!!!
Happy Birthday Steve!
Hope to see you all soon, I am missing out on so much and can’t wait to get back to working out with such an inspiring group of people!!!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Happy Birthday Steve!
Maya and Steve,
Great job! As a Grannie-Mom these are the moments that we get to shine too (thanks to what you continue to do as our adult children). So I can’t explain in words how proud I am of you two. You bring on what I call Happy Tears. I’m inspired and in awe over what you have accomplished, including being the best parents ever! You make me proud and humble. Happy Birthday Steve, my favorite son-in-law!
Congratulations to all of you girls–Jess, Surya, Heidy, Bear-Bear, and Maya!!!
Peace Love and Happiness,
Grandma
Looks like a great meeting and wonderful CMS-, 138-, youth-, and other, results!
Also very good idea to get special hats for the team.
Happy B-day Steve aka the bestest KB coach around. Hehehe
What a great experience!! I am still smiling thinking about the events of the day.
Congratulations to all of you! Your hard work is an inspiration.
Wow Steve, if this is what you do for your birthday this year, what do you have planned for next year?