Strength in numbers: UTC students can now lift alongside one of the world’s best female weightlifters

UTC junior Olivia Reeves practices her lifts at Tennessee Speed and Strength. Photo by Angela Foster.

You probably had no idea that a leading 2024 Olympic weightlifting qualifier may be strolling beside you—or even taking a class with you—at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Thankfully for you, Olivia Reeves is not as intimidating as she sounds.

Reeves, a junior sociology student from Hixson, ranks second in the world in her weight class and broke seven world records in her last competition in Qatar in December.

She has also medaled in three world championships, won gold in the Pan American Games in a weight class above her own and is five Olympic-qualifying competitions in with only two more to go.

In her spare time, Reeves wants to help put UTC on the map in the weightlifting world.

The idea began with students Connor Callaway and Emily McKinney, who started the UTC Weightlifting Club.

“When I first got started, there weren’t many resources readily available,” said Callaway, who first attempted weightlifting as a high school student in the Memphis area. Despite training in CrossFit multiple times a week for strength and conditioning, he admittedly was not very good at the Olympic lifts.

Not discouraged, Callaway decided to pursue weightlifting in earnest after graduating high school and quickly fell in love with the sport. He wants to share his passion with other UTC students.

“With my organization, I want to change that by making weightlifting much more accessible, especially for students,” said Callaway, a senior majoring in computer science. “There’s a lot of students at UTC who could feel unfulfilled with their high school sports career, looking for a new sport to try, or even just looking for something new who could benefit from learning the Olympic lifts.”

McKinney, who has known Callaway since elementary school, played competitive lacrosse at Houston High School in Germantown, Tennessee. She did not begin weightlifting until 2022 when Callaway introduced her to the sport.

Like Callaway, McKinney grew to love it.

“It is a challenging yet extremely rewarding sport that makes me want to get better every day,” said McKinney, a junior exercise science major with a minor in nutrition.

Emily McKinney and Connor Callaway are the founders of the UTC Weightlifting Club (photo courtesy of Emily McKinney).

Callaway and McKinney now train with Steve Fauer, owner of Tennessee Speed and Strength gym and Reeves’ coach.

Fauer, who has owned the gym for 27 years, previously worked as a strength coach at the University of Nebraska, Vanderbilt University, Lee University, McCallie School and with the 1996 Team USA Olympic women’s crew team.

He was always interested in starting a club for college students, but clubs at UTC must be student-generated. When Callaway and McKinney came to him with the idea, he opened his gym for all UTC Weightlifting Club members.

“I’m all for it,” Fauer said. “Whatever promotes the sport and brings people in and gives them something to do.

“Most of the kids that come through these doors have no idea what they’re getting involved in,” he added. “We work with them from the ground up. Just because you’re a college student doesn’t mean you’re any different from a 12-year-old that walks in the door.”

Fauer encouraged beginner students not to feel intimidated, as even the strongest people who come in may have no idea how to lift. He said the only piece of equipment you need is a good pair of shoes, which he keeps stocked in the back.

“With the help of Steve, we want to introduce students to the sport and develop a community or team that can practice together and eventually compete,” McKinney said. “Our goals for the club are to begin practicing regularly and gain more student interest.”

Reeves also said she would love to see the UTC Weightlifting Club compete against other schools.

“There are a lot of national competitions that happen that are kind of a big deal to make it there,” she said.

Reeves wants people to know that weightlifting is vastly different from bodybuilding and powerlifting. She said many people, especially former athletes, will join a gym and do not know how to work out and maintain their strength.

“This offers a way for people to work out safely,” Reeves said. “Once you know the lifts, you can do it yourself.”

Her younger sister, Haley, began weightlifting alongside her in 2015. Haley, a sophomore business management major at UTC, also is a club participant.

“I think there’s so much room for growth and potential,” said Haley, a national-level medalist in youth women’s weightlifting. “A lot of people just don’t know about it.”

Haley and Olivia urged anyone interested in weightlifting to sign up for the club, regardless of their experience level.

Club meetings take place from 4:30-6:30 p.m. every Thursday at Tennessee Speed and Strength, located at 6111 Heritage Park Drive in Chattanooga (Suite B-100). Information can be found on the club’s Instagram page.