At 16 years of age Louis Thomas is already a Welsh Champion as the latest talented young weightlifter off the conveyor belt with Strength Academy Wales but he is also a more than useful rugby player with Haverfordwest RFC and also played football with Camrose AFC.

Louis is also living proof of the tangible benefits of being involved in sport because three years ago he was a lot heavier than he is now, played prop for Sir Thomas Picton School and suffered from asthma.

Great advice given by ‘Sir’ – and taken by Louis!

Then his mum Yvette went with him to a parents' evening where his teacher Jonathan Dodd suggested that training at SAW might help - so Louis went to Simon Roach to give it a try, took to it straight away and now plays on the wing rather than in the front row, and it has certainly helped with his asthma!

His weight dropped from 75kgs to 60kgs as he built up his training at SAW to five sessions a week and he is so motivated that he also pops in on Saturday mornings so that he can work on his 'Glut/Ham raisers' (I think it is something to do with building upper body muscles!)

Rehab helped by weightlifting

"My weight has gone back up to 70kgs now but that is muscle I have put on so there is no worry there,” Louis told us, “and being so much fitter is a real help in rugby because now that I have finished playing junior rugby I have to move into the youth section at Haverfordwest, where I will be playing on the wing against some players who will be two years older than me."

Louis also missed out 18 months of rugby because he sustained a nasty knee injury against Crymych which kept him out of the game, with an MRI Scan showing serious cartilage damage that needed an operation - but again weightlifting certainly helped with his rehab once he was given the all-clear to get back to training.

Warm welcome and a steady start

When he started out at SAW he was made very welcome by all the other weight lifters and especially by coaches Simon Roach and Osian Rowlands, who taught him the basics of the 'Snatch' and 'Clean & Jerk'; the two components of the sport.

"We started out with the 'Clean & Jerk' just using a bar without any weights attached', "said  Louis, "with the emphasis on getting the bar up to the chest, pausing there and then jerking the bar overhead, with arms locked.

"That wasn't so bad but the 'Snatch' was much harder because the bar has to be raised overhead in one movement, which requires far more technique.

"But I worked hard and gradually I improved in both, with weight added as my skill levels increased - and although I am lifting heavier weights in the 'Clean & Jerk', as everyone does, if I am honest I prefer doing 'The Snatch' in training and in competitions."

Successful start after conquering nerves

Louise took part in his first competition at STP School, which was the Welsh Schools' Championships, and readily admitted that it was the most nerve-wracking thing he has done in sport.
"Simon had given me confidence during the two previous weeks but nothing can prepare you for that moment when you walk out on to the mat in the full glare of the spotlight and with everyone's eyes on you.

"But I remembered what he had told me to do and my lifts of 50kgs (clean & jerk) and 37kgs (snatch) were enough to gain the gold medal in my age and weight category so it was brilliant." 

Ups and downs of sport

Louis gained more experience at other events around Wales at venues like SAI Swansea, Will Power (Pontypool) and Evolved (Carmarthenshire) and it is worth noting that in the intervening time he has increased his PBs to 90kgs (clean & jerk) and 73kgs (snatch) for a combined total of 163kgs which gave him deserved victory at Gemau Cymru at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff; an amazing improvement of 76kgs since that first competition!

But it is fair to say that there are inevitably disappointments on the way, like the British Schools' Finals in Leeds where he did quite well to finish in fifth place but was a little down on his personal bests but at least had the consolation that he was competing against boys a year older than he was and can be back there for the same category next season.

Rugby enjoyed by Louis

On the rugby front, Louis started out as a seven year old with Llangwm at Pill Parks and when he joined Sir Thomas Picton School he was roped in to play as a prop, as he did with coaches Brennan Lay and John Williams when he joined Haverfordwest RFC and played in a good team that included the likes of Matthew Roach, Jacob Lay, Jordan Williams and Jake Morgan.

"We reached the age group finals for two seasons but lost to Crymych, as we did in a semi-final last year when we lost but everyone agreed the two best teams in the county ended up in the same half of the draw.

Looking forward to youth rugby

"Now I'm moving into youth rugby at Haverfordwest where we have excellent coaches in Andrew Thicker and John Williams and early training has been very tough but there is a great team spirit.

"Older players like Kyle Williams, Elgan Roberts, Ryan Palmer and Carl Hamer are leading the way but are also a great help to us younger players as Peter Williams joins the other coaches for some skills sessions.

"When we went on tour to Ireland we played Youghal on their own ground and absolutely smashed them and although we lost 7-5 in a battle against a very physical team from England I was pleased that at least I managed to grab our try. It was a great experience and I learned a lot from it."

And finally . . .

But it is weightlifting that currently occupies a lot of Louis's time and one of his ambitions is to follow pals Niamh Roach and Chloe Hood in representing Wales for a team which goes to Austria every year. They went this year and Louis is hoping to emulate them in 2017.

His training is tough but he relishes the challenge and appreciates the efforts of his team mates alongside coaches Simon Roach, Justin Head, Naomi Pearce and Jimmy in giving him every encouragement, as does Niamh as the loudest participant in training sessions!

"They have all been a great help, as has my mum Yvette and I can't thank them enough," he told us - but forgets to mention his part in the atmosphere engendered there with his wholehearted commitment, enthusiasm and modesty which mark him out as a special youngster at the Strength Academy Wales!