Ella Nicholson Earns Third World Title, Continues Perfect Medal Streak
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by Preston Fekkes
You’ve probably heard the name Ella Nicholson if you’ve been following weightlifting for the past few years. Ella burst onto the scene when she became a youth world champion at her first international meet in 2023. She has since become a two-time junior world champion and earned an impeccable 18 medals in 18 medal opportunities over her six international meets. She has never missed the podium when representing the United States. Along the way, the 18-year-old has set six American records across the youth, junior, and senior level.
Nicholson played several sports growing up, with stints in swim, basketball, gymnastics, and track. Her mother, Jeannine, was a Division I swimmer at Bowling Green State University, but Nicholson’s aim was at one point to compete collegiately in lacrosse. Heading into high school, she began going to Root 18 CrossFit in her hometown of Medina, Ohio. Initially, she saw CrossFit as a way to get in better shape for lacrosse, and competed at the gym for a couple years before Trey Vaughan became her coach. Things started to shift in 2022, as her performance at the USAW National Youth Championships qualified Nicholson for the 2023 IWF Youth World Championships in Durres, Albania. She decided to shift her focus to the barbell leading up to Worlds – and it paid off. Nicholson set an 11 kg competition PR by lifting 101/121/222 in what was her first international meet and sixth overall competition. Not to mention, she won the world title. Nicholson earned 76 kg gold in the snatch and total, and silver in the clean & jerk. She was hooked.
“I didn't really know what to expect going into Youth Worlds. Then I won and was like, ‘Oh, I'm pretty good at this and it's fun to win, so I'll keep doing it’,” Nicholson said. “Then I realized I don't really like cardio, so why would I do CrossFit?”
A few months later, Nicholson won the 76 kg national youth championship by 56 kilograms. She was ready to prove herself on the next level at the 2023 IWF Junior World Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico. At 17 years old, Nicholson set a four kilogram PR by lifting 105/122/227, and earned a gold medal in the snatch, silver in the total, and bronze in the clean & jerk. By the time the 2024 Pan American Junior Championships in Palmira, Colombia, rolled around in June, Nicholson had put up a 242 kg total in competition. Although she didn’t reach that in Colombia, the Pan Ams were the first international competition that saw Nicholson sweep gold. She lifted 110/125/235 to outpace competition by 21 kilograms. With her second Junior World Championships coming up just three months later in Leon, Spain, Nicholson had redemption on her mind.
“I felt the best I'd ever felt going into the 2024 Junior Worlds. I was really confident and excited,” Nicholson said. “I wasn't happy with my performance at the last Junior Worlds. It felt like I needed to prove to myself that I could do exactly what I wanted.”
In Leon, Nicholson proved her ability to more than just herself. She didn’t settle for just historic junior numbers – the 18 year old set a 76 kg senior American record with a 113 kg snatch. She swept gold and finished an astounding 12 kilograms ahead of second place. Nicholson’s 244 kg total was also a junior American record.
In the midst of just her third year in the sport, Nicholson has truly found a passion for weightlifting.
“I love weightlifting. I love feeling strong. I just love lifting weights and if I didn't love it, I wouldn't do it anymore,” Nicholson said. “That's really the big part of it. Trey and I – we joke, we dance, we sing. It's just fun to us and that's why I think we've had so much success in the sport so far.”
Vaughan has known Nicholson since she first joined Root 18, and describes her as having an ‘it’ factor that separates her from most athletes.
“We do have our battles. We’re both competitive, so not every day is sunshine and rainbows. We scream and yell, but she still comes to work every day and wants to be the best. She doesn't want second, and she doesn't want third. She wants gold and that's it,” Vaughan said. “To have somebody who shows up every day ready to do what it takes to get a gold is all you can ask for as a coach.”
Following the 2024 Junior World Championships, Nicholson was set to make her senior international debut at the 2024 World Championships in December, but an injury kept her from competing. Not to be dismayed, she made a strong recovery and traveled to Lima, Peru, in May to defend her world title at the 2025 Junior World Championships. In what was a tighter race for gold than the previous year, Nicholson made only her second snatch before nailing the heaviest clean & jerk opener of her career at 126 kg. She missed her second attempt at 130 kg, but was able to grind out the final attempt and reclaim her junior world title by one kilogram. Her 106/130/236 earned gold in the total and clean & jerk, and silver in the snatch.
As Nicholson and Vaughan continue to progress through this Olympic quad, they’re going to keep the mood light, and the weights heavy.
“Let's make some noise, have some fun, and put some pressure on some of these big dogs,” Vaughan said. “Let’s learn to see where we have to go, and just be out there with the best of the best.”
“I feel pretty confident with what I'm doing right now. I’m excited for this quad and to make a run at LA 2028,” Nicholson said. “The ultimate goal is to go to the Olympics at least once, maybe more. Who knows?”
