Record year for Warrington weightlifters as GB athlete guides club to international success

WARRINGTON’S strength-training community has recorded a standout year in 2025, with one local club sending weightlifters to more than 20 competitions – including national and international events – and returning with over 50 medals across the season.

AMG Lifting Lab, based just off Winwick Road, saw 25 different weightlifters represent the club this year at 15 regional, six national and three international competitions, with athletes competing as far afield as Malta, Portugal and Norway.

The gym is led by GB athlete and coach Andy Griffiths, who said the scale of the year only became clear to him earlier this month.
“It wasn’t until I actually sat down and looked back over the year that it really hit me how much we’d done,” he said. “From the number of competitions to the range of people in the club’s community, it’s been a huge step forward for everyone involved.”

Griffiths competed at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and also coached fellow GB Athlete Amy Salt, who represented Wales at the same competition – experience he says has helped shape the club’s coaching standards.
“Having worked in that environment, you’re very conscious of doing things the right way,” he said. “So seeing people of all ages and abilities competing this year, and doing it safely, has been particularly satisfying.”
Across the 2025 season, AMG athletes secured 18 national medals – including four senior medals and 14 podium finishes in the under-23 and junior categories – as well as one international medal.
Much of the club’s success has been driven by younger athletes progressing rapidly through the ranks.
One example is local 14-year-old Grace, (pictured with Andy top) who entered her first competition at the start of the year and, by the end of the season, had become British Under-15 Champion.
“At the beginning of the year, competing wasn’t something I ever expected to be doing,” she said.
“The coaching and support made a huge difference. I just focused on improving each session, and everything grew from there.”
Another emerging athlete, Imogen Burrows, also made significant progress this season, winning her first British Under-23 title and qualifying for her first English Senior Championships.
Griffiths said stories like these reflect a wider shift within the sport.
“Some people still have an image of strength training that doesn’t reflect reality,” he said. “What we’re seeing now is people of all ages gaining confidence through structured coaching and real support.”
That trend is mirrored across England, with stats showing a rise in the number of young people and adults taking part in weight-training.
AMG Lifting Lab is an independent, coaching-led strength gym based in Warrington, formerly British Weightlifting Club of the Year and the only club in the North West on the British Weightlifting National Talent Academy programme. The club works with athletes of all ages and experience levels, from juniors taking part in their first competition to senior lifters competing nationally and internationally.
Training focuses on technical development, safe progression and long-term confidence, rather than unsupervised gym sessions.
Following a landmark year, AMG plans to continue expanding its pathways for both junior and adult lifters in 2026, with a particular focus on structured beginner programmes.
“The medals are a great outcome,” Griffiths added, “but the real success is seeing local people walk into the gym nervous and stepping out by the end of it healthier, more confident and with the support of our club’s community.”