Snatch

The snatch is considered the more difficult of the two lifts because it is done in one continous motion. It is really nothing more than rapidly lifting the weight overhead and lowering your body underneath it in order to catch it. The bar is placed horizontally on the platform in front of the lifter's legs and is gripped palms down. In one forceful motion, it must be pulled from the platform to the full extent of both arms over the head. There must be no break in action and the lifter cannot turn over his wrists until the bar has passed over the top of his head nor can he extend his arms unevenly or incompletely. When dropping under the weight, a squat or split of the legs may be used. The squat style is used most often as in the above photos. After catching the weight at full extension of the arms, the lifter must rise to a standing position with both feet on a line parallel with the shoulders. The lifter's back is straight or slightly arched. The angle of his back remains the same until the bar is slightly above the knees. At this point, he is starting to stand more erect. The bar should now slide along the thighs for a couple inches. The muscles of the upper back take over as he shrugs his shoulders. He drops under the bar and catches it at arms length, as shown in the last picture. This is a very solid position. All he has to do now is stand up using the power of his legs. The arms must stay straight. The barbell is pulled off the platform slowly and under complete control. It accelerates on the way up. If the bar is "jerked" from the platform, the lifter's hips will rise too soon. That puts you in a bad position. It is important to keep the angle of the back the same for as long as possible. If the lifter's hips come up too soon, the bar will not be in the best position for the final shrugging position. The bar will end up being too far out front and difficult to catch when in the low position. 1. Keep the back straight. 2. Keep the angle of the back the same for as long as possible. 3. Let the bar touch the thighs; don't bounce it off the legs -- it will be too far out front. 4. Shrug as high as possible. 5. Drop into a low position, under control, to catch the weight. 6. Stand and hold the weight for the referee's count.