Morris might be one of Team USA’s biggest stars. It’s evident he’s eager to continue showing why.
Written by Robert Zeglinski
On Apr. 23, 2023, Hampton Morris shared an Instagram video of himself attempting a 175-kilogram (385.8-pound) clean & jerk during a rigorous training session. The strength feat is 14 kilograms (30.9 pounds) more than Morris’s Junior World Record in the 61-kilogram weight class. He succeeded in the clean and just missed the jerk, failing to secure an overhead lockout. According to Morris’s post, he had a body weight of 64.8 kilograms (142.8 pounds) at the time of the lift but plans to cut down to his usual 61-kilogram (134.5-pound) status by the time he officially competes again.
The weightlifter notched his record mark of 162 kilograms (357.1 pounds) during a Senior gold-medal winning performance at the 2022 International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) Pan-American Championships in Bogotá, Colombia. That lift remains Morris’ all-time competition best.
Morris’s most recent training clean & jerk is connected to his preparation for the 2023 IWF Grand Prix I. The contest takes place on Jun. 8-13, 2023, in Havana, Cuba, and is a qualifying event for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. A sterling performance there would be a sizable step forward for Morris to work toward earning his first-ever berth on Team USA’s Olympic weightlifting roster.
At the time of this article’s publication, Morris has three Senior gold medals in the 61-kilogram division to his name. He scored all of them at the last three iterations of the IWF Pan-American Championships (2021-2023). Morris is also in possession of a 61-kilogram gold medal from the 2021 IWF Junior World Championships and a 61-kilogram gold medal from the 2021 IWF Youth World Championships.
Even considering his age, the weightlifter is one of Team USA’s more decorated active competitors, boasting seven victories in international contests dating back to the IWF Pan-American Youth Championships in 2019. In that same time frame, the only instance Morris has ever fallen short of the top of the podium was a silver medal from the 2021 IWF Junior Pan-American Games in Cali and Valle, Colombia.
Here’s an overview of all seven of Morris’s international profile wins:
Hampton Morris (61KG) | International Victories 2019-2023
- 2019 Pan-American Youth Championships — First place
- 2020 Pan-American Junior Championships — First place
- 2021 Youth World Championships — First place
- 2021 Pan-American Championships — First place
- 2022 Junior World Championships — First place
- 2022 Pan-American Championships — First place
- 2023 Pan-American Championships — First place
What’s clear from this ledger is that Morris, still just 19, is already one of the biggest names in American weightlifting and otherwise.
A big few weeks await Morris as he tries to take the next step in his already prolific weightlifting career. Morris has proven himself on an international stage and evidently has the prerequisite strength and athleticism to thrive amongst the globe’s elite. The next step is doing it at the Olympic Games. That, too, might be an outright inevitability.
Featured image: @hamptonmorris on Instagram
About Robert Zeglinski
Robert is a seasoned and adept editor and writer with a keen, passionate penchant for the writing craft. He’s been a leader in newsrooms such as SB Nation, USA TODAY, and WBBM Newsradio, with various other content and art production teams, and first made a name for himself in his hometown of Chicago. When not knee-deep in research or lost in a stream of consciousness for a thorough piece, you can find Robert inhaling yet another novel, journaling his heart out, or playing with his Shiba Inu, Maximus (Max, for short).