Four years ago, Holley Mangold wasn't even thinking about the Olympic Games. The 22-year-old only began competing in Olympic-style weightlifting in 2008, and in 2012 she was named to her first Olympic team.
Mangold competes in the over-75-kilogram weight class.
BASIC INFO
Name
: Holley MangoldAge: 22
Date of Birth: December 22, 1989
Hometown: Columbus, Ohio
Birthplace: Dayton, Ohio
Height: 5 feet, 8 inches
Weight: 340 pounds
Weight Class: 75+ kilograms
Coaches: Mark Cannella and Dan Bell
Team: Columbus Weightlifting
Olympic Games: Mangold will participate in her first Olympic Games in 2012.
MEDIA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/holleymangold
Other: Mangold was featured in an MTV documentary about her life in 2011.
FAMILY AND EDUCATION
College
: Ursuline College. Mangold studied theology sociology and philosophy.High School: Archbishop Alter High School
Siblings: Mangold's brother, Nick, plays center with the New York Jets of the National Football League.
Started weightlifting
: Mangold began weightlifting in 2008.
FAVORITES
Competition Lift
: SnatchTraining Lift: Squats
Food: Steak
Book: Sookie Stackhouse series
TV Show: "Family Guy "
Hobbies: Volunteering, swimming, beach volleyball
Other Sports Played: Football, track and field
Pump-Up Song
: Dog Days Are Over by Florence and the Machine
MORE ABOUT HOLLEY MANGOLD
Football runs in Mangold's family. She's the younger sister of New Your Jets center Nick Mangold, and Holley herself played football in high school. In fact, she was the first female who wasn't a kicker to play in an Ohio high school football game. Mangold played the offensive lineman position on her high school team.
After high school, Mangold went to Ursuline College, where she competed as a member of the track and field team. By 2008, Mangold had switched to weightlifting in order to train for the Olympic Games. Originally, she had been hoping to qualify for the 2016 Olympic team. In order to qualify for the 2012 Olympic team, Mangold lost weight and perfected her lifts much more quickly than anyone expected, she said.
"It feels kind of crazy to say that … I'm going to the Olympics to compete for weightlifting, because just a year and a half ago, people said I was 2016, not 2012," Mangold told NBCOlympics.com. "And a lot of people said it wasn't possible for me to lose the weight that I needed to lose and get as quick as I needed to get and be as strong as I needed to be. It was awesome having a year and a half to just prove everybody wrong."
Sandra Johnson is a longtime Olympic fan. While working for the United States Olympic Committee and living in the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., Johnson had the opportunity to immerse herself in the Olympic Movement. Follow her on Twitter: @SandraJohnson46.
