Right before I did this interview, I went back in the article file I keep on my computer and counted how many Performance Menu interviews I’ve done so far. The number is 35, including this one. Then I went back and counted how many of the people I’ve interviewed have been good friends of mine for over 20 years. That number is four…including this one.
 
JP Nicoletta and I grew up together in Olympic weightlifting. We never lived in the same city, but if you’ve ever been a regular on the national scene in this sport, you know what I’m talking about. The people in weightlifting become your family members. Often they grow closer to you than some of your actual relatives. JP is a former national-level competitor who is now giving back to the sport as an official, which is a lot rarer than you think. Many people finish up their platform time in this game and then simply walk. Only the ones who truly care about weightlifting decide to go through the process that leads to officiating, announcing, and doing all the other thankless jobs this sport couldn’t exist without.
 
JP, a true New Yorker who once told me, “There’s a good reason why the Statue of Liberty’s ass is facing New Jersey,” is one of the best guys I know in the sport. And that’s a big statement for me to make, considering I know most of the stories about him, Sean Waxman, and Mark Cannella from the old Van Nuys days in the 90s. It’s hard to believe we all grew up (survived) and developed into actual adults. Here’s a look at a hell of a weightlifter who now gives back to the sport as a prick judge (just kidding, brother).
 
Describe your weightlifting history. When/how did you start? What were the highlights of your career as an athlete?
 
I started lifting at 16 years old in 1992 by dumb luck. As soon as I was allowed to, I joined a regular bodybuilding gym where one of the floor trainers happened to be Nick Curry. Nick is the brother-in law of Artie Drechsler and younger brother of Butch Curry He’s a coach now but back then he was training and working at Gold’s as a side gig. Anyway, I overheard him talking about the lifts one day and after a few minutes of discussion I promptly tried to kill myself with a 135 lb. clean. It crashed, rolled over me, and I hit my head on a weight tree. It was awesome. He shut me down right there and let me know we lived near one of the most (in)famous weightlifting gyms in the country, Lost Battalion Hall. If I wanted to learn, I had to go there and he’d introduce me to Artie.
 
LBH is a special place with a great history. It’s a NYC Parks & Recreation building and the weightlifting program is in a basement that shared space with a boxing and a table tennis program. It’s filthy, it smells, it’s noisy, many of the platforms and plates have seen better days, and there are ping-pong balls everywhere. When I started, former World Record holder Antonio Krastev, who defected from Bulgaria, trained there. I had zero appreciation for what I saw him do regularly until last year, when I went to the 2015 World Championships; a 242.5kg C&J he did on a random Tuesday night in 1993 was the biggest lift I’d ever seen live.

Here’s the story I like to tell about my introduction to Artie Drechsler. At the time, Artie was about my age now (40). When I got there, I saw a bar loaded out to the edge with weights and an older guy, not too big, with neatly trimmed salt and pepper hair squatting it. He was doing a triple with 200kg. It looked huge.
 
He has a pretty standard spiel he goes through when introducing himself to new lifters. I’ve heard it a million times since, but that time I remember nothing he said. Because it was right after he finished his heavy set, his face was purple and there was this huge vein running down his forehead. Staring at him, I zoned out, thinking, “What the hell is this guy’s deal? He has to be insane. As long as I don’t have to explain this to my parents, I’ll be fine.” That was it. I’ve been at LBH ever since.
 
I entered my first competition a few months later and stayed active competitively for 13 years. It took me four years to make Junior Nationals and two more to make Seniors. So when I think about my history as a lifter, the highlights are limited to moments like that and being too stubborn or stupid to quit. I think more about the people I met, the places I’ve been and the stories that have accumulated over the years.
 
Tell us about your years with the Van Nuys Weightlifting Tribe/Phat Elvis Club.
 
I only spent a year or so with that crew in the late 90’s after graduating college. It rocked. The team trained at Van Nuys High School where Bob Takano taught. The place was loaded with talent and they trained like animals. In football, you often hear about a coach’s lineage. Takano’s lineage here is pretty awesome. Mark Cannella went on to form the Columbus Weightlifting Club, create the Arnold Weightlifting Championships and coach at the 2012 Olympics. Andy Tysch, who became an OTC Resident and National Champion, coached at NMU for years. Nghiep Dinh’s team, SENSE Weightlifting, now has a Junior National Champion and Jr. World Team Member. Emmy Vargas, who also became an OTC Resident, has been involved in Weightlifting governance forever. There are plenty others, including my then-roommate Sean Waxman.
 
Living with Sean was high comedy. He either ate something or broke it. Our television was “stolen.” (Ask him about it.) Our featured pieces of furniture were an undisclosed instrument we named Abadjiev and a living room shopping cart that doubled as a garbage pail. By the time I moved out, he had his leg in a cast and somehow used that to break the dishwasher and flood the place. So it got cleaned at least once.
 
In addition, well-known people like John Garhammer frequently came up for weekend workouts and BBQs. The whole experience was one any lifter could dream about it. We trained hard six days a week and we ate, slept, and breathed weightlifting.
 
You’ve made the transition from athlete to official/administrator in the sport. Describe that process to us. What are the biggest similarities and differences between being an athlete and your current role?
 
That transition took a really long time for me. When I was lifting, I hated the officials and couldn’t imagine why anyone would do it. A few years ago, when the USAW started charging for admission to major competitions, I figured it was time. In exchange for having to a wear a suit, I get a full access pass and great seats to any session. It’s a good deal and far more rewarding than I expected.
 
The process starts at the local level and at this point, will take some time. You have to be a local ref and officiate at least four or six local meets over a two-year period (I forget the exact number), and then fill out the application to get on the waiting list to test. They can only test four or five people at any national competition, so the wait is pretty lengthy these days. If someone fills out the application now, I’d be surprised if they got the invitation to test before the end of 2017.
 
The biggest similarity I’ve observed is a shared love for this sport. Officials are extremely passionate about weightlifting. Yeah, there are some disagreeable ones, but not every coach or lifter is fun to be around, either. The officials really give a damn about the sport and its participants in ways that I find underrated and possibly underappreciated.
 
The other similarity is that feeling in the air during a big meet. It’s hard to describe but that feeling I got as a lifter comes back when you are involved, even as a referee. I love it.
 
Describe some of the obstacles you face, or maybe some things that frustrate you in weightlifting. What kinds of changes would you like to see, either personally or with the sport in general?
 
The things that frustrated me the most are the things that, thankfully, I’m seeing real change with.
 
Without fail, my family and friends asked me how “wrestling” was going or worse, they’d ask me how much I benched. It drove me nuts. The sport had no exposure and no one knew what the Olympic lifts were. There is significantly more exposure and knowledge of the sport’s existence today.
 
Another frustration is the doomsday mindset that we can’t compete against the rest of the world. Whether it’s the doping argument, training as professionals or whatever, I hate it when I hear it. We have a robust history to draw from and the growth of the sport along with the increasing pool of talent and the stars we see emerging are moving us in the right direction toward international relevance. Last quad was a step forward and I hope the upcoming quad continues to build momentum for us
 
Finally, the infighting and vitriol amongst coaches and administrators was always tough to see. It’s not as bad as it used to be, but it’s still hard to see great people who share a love for the sport bicker over political crap.
 
What are your plans and goals for your life in weightlifting? How do you see your future in the sport? Do you plan to stay involved in weightlifting for many years?
 
As far as my future goes, I’m a lifer at this point. I coach, and I volunteer. I just want to help and enjoy.
 
What I’ve developed a love for is commentating at events. I’d always wanted to see weightlifting covered professionally on television and be a sportscaster myself. When I get to do it, I try to cover sessions the way I wished they’d have been when I was lifting. I want to present the sport and lifters in a way that makes their family and friends proud to hear about their history, performance, and efforts in a positive way.
 
The opportunity to commentate at the 2015 World Championships (B Sessions, those A session guys were bad) and Nationals/Olympic Trials, as well as other events like the Arnold has been a dream come true. There are some limitations with budget and varying quality of live webcast feeds, but we can continue to improve on the audience value and delivery within those limits.
 
It’s also a blast to do it with people like Dave Boffa, Sean Waxman, and Jonas Westbrook who are longtime friends and fellow competitors for years. The combination of the prep work and our passion I hope adds to the presentation of USAW feeds and I’m working hard to keep improving at that.
 
At the National Juniors in February, I’ll also be testing to become a Cat II International Referee, so I’ll continue along that track. I’ll volunteer at as many events as I can get to. Right now, I don’t have any ambition to travel internationally as a Technical Official, but we’ll see if that changes in time. More than anything, I just want to help others enjoy the sport and stay involved in my own way.
 
Who are some of your major influences, people who have meant a lot to you, etc.? Who are the people you want to acknowledge?
 
This is the area in my life where I’ve been most blessed. I’ve met my best friends and my wife Vanessa through weightlifting. If I had to pick just one person, even Vanessa wouldn’t argue that Artie Drechsler remains the most influential person in my life. His guidance as a coach and mentor, in and out of the gym, can never be fully described or repaid. One thing every lifter should be lucky enough to say is that they had a great coach who made a positive impact on their life. Artie has been that and more.
 
I hope we’re all still in the game together many years from now, JP. You’re doing a tremendous job for this sport. Thanks for doing this incredible interview. It was well worth the four months you took to actually finish it and send back to me.