25th November 2009 Double Honours in India
The IWAS World Games held in Bangalore, India is currently playing host to 43 countries taking part in 11 sports and as part of the powerlifting event Zoe Newson took to the stage in the Koramangala Indoor Stadium. Zoe weighed 
in at 38.6kg and managed to successfully lift 80kg a new personal best in spite of the searing heat, the 82.5kg despite being comfortable in the gym was simply to much on this occasion. This lift of 80kg as well as being a new British Junior and Senior record will also qualify as a new European Junior Record an achievement which Zoe narrowly missed getting at the British Finals in June this year.
The competition was fierce as Zoe faced Zhe Cui from China who placed second at the Paralympics in Beijing last year. As the day went on Zoe was able to secure herself second place in both the junior and open competition a position she was pleased to have achieved at the age of 17. Zoe is now supporting the other lifters in the GB squad one of which Kyron Duke managed to secure a first place within the junior competition on this the first day of lifting.
Zoe and coach Louise also in India would like to say a huge thank you to those that have supported them in this trip especially Optua and the Suffolk Disability Sports Academy who have offered financial support without which attendance at this event is unlikely to have been possible.
Christmas Event
On 20th December the Spartans will be hosting a Christmas event at East Bergholt Sports Centre. The event will incorporate a competition and this will be open to anyone to attend and for those that don’t want to compete there will be the opportunity to simply try the sport in a taster session so join the Spartans for some festive fun and celebrate 2012 day.
Spartans Duo off to Foreign Climes
Both Zoe and Louise have been invited to attend the IWAS World Games that are taking place in India next month. The pair will fly out as part of a 7 strong team representing Great Britain in this multisport event and hopefully perform well. With the Commonwealth Games in India next year this might not be the last time the trip is made but we will have to wait and see what is in store for this club next year. This trip has not been funded and therefore the Spartans are trying to raise the money needed to make this trip. Anyone willing to offer financial assistance should contact Louise on 07984 452872.
Awards Time
It is that time of year again and this year Zoe has been nominated for the Suffolk Sport ‘young sports personality of the year’ award for which the ceremony will take place on 18th October in addition coaches Louise and Daniel have been nominated for a Team Ipswich award for which the awards ceremony will take place on 30th September.
26th September 2009
Showcase Time
We will be attending the Optua Showcase Day at Mid Suffolk Leisure Centre on 26th where people from all over Suffolk will attend and take part in a range of activities. As a result of supporting this day and offering Powerlifting the Spartans session will not take place at East Bergholt on Friday 25th but all members of the club are welcome to attend at Stowmarket.
Leaving Us
We are sad to say goodbye to Spartans member Alice who has attended the sessions for 18 months as she is now off to University. Everyone at the club wishes her all the best and she has promised to come back and visit when home from her studies.
22nd July 2009
Ministerial Introductions
David Miliband visited Ipswich today to view our readiness 
in the run up to London 2012. Suffolk Spartans were invited to attend the event with Optua and it’s Suffolk Disability Sports Academy. Hosted by Karen Pickering the audience were invited to ask questions of the MP around sport and in particular 2012 and David praised the region for it’s determination to take full advantage of the games he also said that ‘the Olympics are the biggest opportunity the British people have to grab the initiative for generations to come.’
David Miliband also took a tour of several sports invited to attend the event including the Powerlifting meeting both Chris and Louise from the club.
1st May 2009
Dwarf Games
Zoe was once again in action but this time in Belfast at the World Dwarf Games. Zoe managed a final lift of 75kg at a bodyweight of less than 40kg this goes to show the improvement that Zoe has and continues to make. Zoe will hope to attend IPC International competitions next year and attempt to break the European Junior record.
6th June 2009
British Record Smash
This year's British Finals were as exciting as ever but with a lot more at stake this time around. Chris was up against stiff competition and equaled his best previous lift, narrowly missing out on an increase and placed second in the group overall. Nathaniel increased his previous best by an additional 2.5kg and retained a first place within his group.
Zoe had an eventful competition up against 3 other lifters. Despite nerves playing a part this time around Zoe managed to break not only the junior but also the senior British records by a significant margin. She then attempted a European Junior Record and while unlucky on this occasion she has her sights firmly set on this in the future.
17th January 2009
!! What an Improvement !!
All three spartans competed in Cardiff again this year and it has demonstrated the improvements that all have made. At the IPC Powerlifitng Championships Nathaniel lifted 95kg and Chris managed a personal best of 115kg both showing an improvement of 10kg each since the same competition last year. With this being Zoe's first year of lifting she showed how much can be done by increasing her personal best lift in January 2008 of 47.5kg to 70kg a year later. This increase of over 30% in a year shows why Zoe is going to be one to watch in the future.