In case you missed it, Mattie Rogers had a pretty rough Monday:

[instagram url="https://www.instagram.com/p/BDg28psw1E8/" hide_caption="0"]

[instagram url="https://www.instagram.com/p/BDhFkO2Q1Os/" hide_caption="0"]

As someone who's done this, I know exactly how she felt, and I also know that this isn't really that big of a deal. Videos like this get passed around as an example of what not to do or how not to lift, or why CrossFit is dangerous. I know how ridiculous that is, and most of you know how ridiculous that is, too, but when something like this makes the rounds on the internet as a "fail" video, the context is lost. 


The context isn't the only thing that's lost. Mattie herself becomes some sort of simplified avatar for whatever message a media company wants to send. Women aren't strong enough to lift heavy? Check. Lifting is dangerous? Check. She's doing something wrong? Check. But what about her dedication, her fire, her competitive history? What about the fact that Mattie Rogers will very likely be one of the three women who represent the U.S. in the Olympics this year? Here's what she had to say:

"With the attention brought in from my recent video, I wanted to say a few things. Hi new friends! I'm not entirely sure why the video blew up, it's not that unusual to have weightlifting fails, nor is it THAT funny, but it happened. Whether good or bad (#nosuchthingasbadpublicity), I'm happy to see this much publicity being brought to the sport of Olympic Weightlifting. It is not a main stream sport. It is not a sport many people know about. In fact, I guarantee half the people who watched that video thought it was CrossFit. No, I'm not a crossfitter. No, I'm not a Power Lifter (#IDontBench). Absolutely no hate to either of those, by the way. Support in all sports over here. We compete in the Snatch and the Clean and Jerk only. No, using a spotter for our lifts is not a good idea. And no, our knees and backs will not be "thrown out".... We in fact know what we are doing and are trained to perform the lifts the way we do.

It's kind of sad that THIS of all things gets the worlds attention, but hey can't complain! Having such a large reach not only allows me to bring exposure to the sport, but hopefully educate the average person a little more about what it is we actually do. Olympic Weightlifting in America is not a huge sport. We as lifters get a lot of harsh comments because of our lack of competitive performances internationally. Well, more exposure, more people involved, larger talent pool... All steps in the right direction. @hookgrip @atginsta both have great pages to see examples of lifting from all around the world for anyone looking.

The Olympic Weightlifting community is small in comparison to other sports, but we're growing. Those involved have found their passion and their joy in lifting and competing. It's not for everyone, but for some it is everything. The confidence, mental and physical strength and experiences learned and found within this sport are incomparable. So I'll end my too-long rant with this: be nice in your comments on that stupid video, women are strong af contrary to what some of you believe and welcome to the world of Olympic Weightlifting.... Or my version of it anyway."


[instagram url="https://www.instagram.com/p/BDo_vpQw1IS" hide_caption="0"]