Strathaven weightlifting star Jodey Hughes says she is at the peak of her powers as she prepares to go for medal glory at the Commonwealth Games this weekend.
The 39-year-old is in Birmingham to compete in the 55kg category on Saturday night in what is a straight final.
Jodey heads into the contest with the experience of a ninth-place finish at the 2018 Games on Australia’s Gold Coast under her belt, as well as two silver medals at the past two British Championships.
And she firmly believes she is in the best condition possible to claim glory at the National Exhibition Centre.
Canadian-born Jodey, who moved to Scotland in 2006, said: “My prep has never been better.
“In training I’m lifting more than I have ever lifted, which is really positive, and I’m taking some really positive steps to get my mental game on for the Games.
“I’ve got a mental coach now and I’m doing a lot of visualisation exercises.
“I haven’t missed a lift in a while and I’m doing some pretty heavy weights right now, so training is going really well.
“I’m feeling better than ever and really confident, too.
“But I’m also at a point where I want to slow down for a moment and take it all in, because I don’t want this to be over.
“It has felt like a really long four years to get here, but the last few months have just flown in and I’m just trying to take in every moment.
“It’s a straight final so it’s one opportunity. It’s all or nothing.
“I basically have six minutes on stage and it’s a minute between the six lifts.”
A double bodyweight clean and jerk is the target for Hughes and she is hoping a strong Scottish contingent in the stands can give her that extra push to achieve it.
The civil servant added: “I’m hoping for a double bodyweight clean and jerk.
“I’m about three kilos away from hitting that at the moment and that’s pretty impressive for anyone to hit double their bodyweight.
”I haven’t done it in training yet but when you are in front of a crowd, and everyone is cheering you on, you have more adrenaline, more energy – there’s just some magic that can happen – so I’m hoping to be able to do that on the stage. I have a big group of people coming down.
"I’ll have about 50 people from Scotland supporting me so it will feel a lot like a home games for me.”
The BBC will be showing live coverage of the Games and Jodey is set to take to the stage at 8pm on Saturday. You can also follow her build-up on her Instagram page @jjodey.
She added: “This is an opportunity for me to showcase the sport.
“I fell in love with weightlifting at the 2014 Games in Glasgow, so I’m hoping I can bring some awareness to weightlifting, particularly for females.
“Everything in me in the last year, I’ve just been focusing on weightlifting and for this moment.
“I can’t wait to get out there on that stage and I’m hoping it will be on the TV so people can see the sport at this level.”
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