November 12, 2024
East Ridge High Freshman Molly O’Hara Shatters School Weightlifting Records In Debut
By Kyle Coppola
East Ridge High Freshman Molly O’Hara Shatters School Weightlifting Records In Debut
CLERMONT, Fla. — Well… that didn’t take long. While we knew Molly O’Hara was going to dominate at this sport, we just didn’t know where she would stack up at the High School level. Well know we know and she has put all of Florida on notice. Molly is going to be the one to beat this year in the 119 weight class.
(Competitors look on in Awe at Molly who is just a freshman and would go on to break all three East Ridge High Weightlifting records as a freshman in the 119 weight-class.)
In a fantastic first outing, Molly O’Hara broke the school record in all three lifts for the 119-pound weight class. It was one of the most anticipated female weightlifting debut’s in recent years and it did not dissapoint. During the meet against South Lake High School, O’Hara’s broke the East Ridge High weightlifting record in the Clean & Jerk, Snatch, and Bench Press. In doing so, it’s instantly catapulted her to the forefront of high school weightlifting talent in the area and in the state.
While the exact numbers remain under wraps and the offcial numbers won’t be brought to light until later this year, the magnitude of O’Hara’s achievements speaks volumes. With her powerful lifts and commanding presence, she has set a new standard at East Ridge and ignited excitement around her future and the team’s chances headed into 2024/2025. O’Hara’s performances literally left everyone in awe, including many of her teammates and competitors. And who could blame them? Molly is going to be a must see athlete over the next four years.
(It’s not often you get a freshman weightlifter who’s an instant favorite to be a district or state champion but Molly is not your average freshman weightlifter.)
Molly is a special athlete. She competes in CrossFit and is among the top 14 year olds in all of Florida. She is also a talented bowler, weightlifter and softball player. To break records in all three lifts at her very first high school meet is a testament to her talent and her dedication. Molly’s been lifting since she was around three years old and hasn’t stopped since.
I am very intrigued at just how much she will be peaking with later in the season. While the exact amounts of weight are sometimes closely guarded secrets in Weightlifting competition until districts, regionals and states, it’s worth noting that East Ridge is coming off a District Championship that they won earlier this year in February. Things are looking up for the Lady Knights to defend the title in 2025!
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
