| Maximina Uepa | |
| Headercolor: | lightblue |
| Birth Date: | 22 September 2002 |
| Birth Place: | Denigomodu, Nauru |
| Sport: | Weightlifting |
| Event: | –64 kg, –71 kg |
Maximina Uepa (born 22 September 2002) is a weightlifter from Nauru. She won the bronze medal in the women's 76 kg event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham, England.[1] She is the current Nauruan women's record-holder in the 71 kg category for overall, snatch and clean and jerk.
Uepa was born on 22 September 2002 in Denig, Nauru.[2] Her father, Jezza Uepa, and her brother, Maxius Uepa, are both successful powerlifters.[2] Jezza Uepa won the 120kg+ class/super heavyweight class in the IPF World Powerlifting Championships in 2019.[3] In 2015 she was the youngest competitor at the Commonwealth Youth Games, aged twelve years old. She competed in the 58kg weightlifting category.[4]
In 2018, she was flagbearer for Nauru at the Summer Youth Olympics.[5] She was recognised as Nauruan Sportsperson of the Year (Female) in 2018.[6] She was a bronze medallist in the 63kg category at the Pacific Mini Games in 2017, only beaten by Mattie Sasser (gold) and Amanda Gould (silver).[7] In 2019 she moved from the 63kg to the 71kg category.[8] She is the current Nauruan Olympic record-holder in the snatch, clean and jerk and overall; this record was set at the 2019 Pacific Games,[9] where she also won two gold medals.[10]
In August 2022, Uepa won the bronze medal in the women's 76 kg event at the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham, England.[11] She dedicated her medal to weightlifter Reanna Solomon,[11] who died from COVID-19 in July 2022.[11]
| Event | Record | Date | Meet | Place | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 71 kg | ||||||
| Snatch | 87 kg | 7 December 2019 | Pacific Cup |  Noumea, New Caledonia | ||
| Clean and Jerk | 113 kg | 7 December 2019 | Pacific Cup | Noumea, New Caledonia | ||
| Total | 200 kg | 7 December 2019 | Pacific Cup | Noumea, New Caledonia | ||
| 63 kg | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Snatch | 85 kg | |||||
| Clean and jerk | 95 kg | 5 December 2017 | Pacific Mini Games | Port Vila, Vanuatu | [12] | |
| Total | 170 kg | 7 April 2018 | Commonwealth Games |  Gold Coast, Australia | ||