Sunderland teenager Zach wins at English Championships

A young Sunderland weightlifter has brought glory to his city by becoming English champion.

Zach Taylor, 14, lifted an astonishing 135 kg, or a little over 21 stone, in the under-15s category at the English Age Group Championships in Maidstone in Kent.

St Aidan's pupil Zach is a member of the Weights and Cakes weightlifting club based in Southwick.

The club was only formed in April 2021, but has already gone from, what else, strength to strength. It has had a string of competition successes for girls as well as boys.

But there is more to the club than just weightlifting. It does much to help local people with mental health issues. In 2022 it won the Social Enterprise of the Year award at the Sunderland Echo Business Excellence Awards.

Weights and Cakes is Sunderland’s only affiliated British weightlifting club for children, teenagers and adults.

Founder and head coach Zoe Chandler is delighted with the progress of Zach, from Pallion.

Zoe said: "Interestingly, Zach was the first child to join our weightlifting club three years ago. He won a British Championship last year and this year the English Championship. He's doing really well.

"Zach is one of the most dedicated and hard working of athletes. He has worked his socks off to win this and he definitely deserves it. He comes to every single session - and goes to extra sessions. If he can get in the gym, he gets in the gym.

"He listens and he's probably going to end up in big places."

The next competition for Zach and other young lifters from Weights and Cakes is on home soil.

The Nixon Rowell Memorial Cup is at the Raich Carter Centre in Hendon in May. There, Zach and the other Weights and Cakes lifters can qualify for the next big one, which is the British Championships in Leeds this October.

The competition is named in honour of Nixon Rowell, a British weightlifting champion in 1930s and was born and brought up in Southwick.

The inaugural event in 2023 attracted competitors from across the north of England.

For more information, visit www.weightsandcakes.com.