Andrew "Bud" Charniga

Bud was born on Oct. 7, 1950, to housebuilder Andrew Charniga Sr. and homemaker Margaret Salvatore in Youngstown, Ohio. He was the second of four siblings.

Bud first became interested in weightlifting in his early teens and started competing at a young age.

The family moved to Michigan in 1966 where he and his siblings enrolled at Franklin High School in Livonia. His strength was renowned, and Bud rejected requests to join the football team. That strength placed him among the top shot putters on the track team and on the varsity wrestling team.

Yet, weightlifting ultimately became his passion. He became a national-level lifter, competing in the 100 or 110 kg categories. He won the U.S. Junior Nationals in 1970 and went on to compete at several Senior Nationals, winning a silver medal in 1981. His best snatch was 160 kg in national competition.

While still in college, Bud traveled to the Soviet Union with fellow American lifters for several weeks. He brought back every Soviet weightlifting publication he could find. Upon returning to the U.S., he set about learning Russian, so he could read and translate the resources he’d found, which included the works of scholars like Ilya Zhekov and A.S. Medvedev.

Bud obtained a B.S. in Exercise Science from Eastern Michigan University and an M.Ed. in kinesiotherapy from the University of Toledo.

In 1982, he founded Sportivny Press, by first self-publishing translated training manuals and then his own works. Bud continued his writing through an online editorial presence with his website.

Known for his frank and often humorous writing style, Bud challenged conventional wisdom in his articles and online publications. He covered topics such as doping, injuries, and training methods. His unfiltered views and sharp competition reports gained him many friends – and often as many detractors. Some of his articles would later be published in the European Weightlifting Federation Scientific Magazine.

Bud inherited a strong work ethic from his father, a home builder who grew up on a farm during the Great Depression. His influence fueled Bud’s entrepreneurial spirit, leading him to establish Dynamic Fitness Equipment in 1985.

His mother, too, was no stranger to hard work. During World War II, she proofread blueprints for the B-24 Bombers at Ford’s Willow Run plant.

In 1986, Bud met Linda Wysocki, who was working full-time for Northwest Airlines and part-time at a tennis and health club in Dearborn where Bud was a member. Linda volunteered with Bud in hosting a very successful 1987 National Championship in Michigan. They married in 1989 and had three daughters, twins Kelly and Catherine, shortly followed by Jackie.

With Linda, they maintained a presence at annual National Strength and Coaching Association Conferences and various local and national weightlifting competitions. After the birth of three daughters in less than two years and always working full-time, Linda needed to step back from the business, which continued to grow.

Bud then approached his friend Todd Lyons to join as his business partner. The business became the sole supplier of Eleiko weights and Adidas weightlifting shoes in the Western Hemisphere and operated out of their respective homes in Livonia, Michigan, and Seattle, Washington. They later worked with weights suppliers DHS in China and Trial in Italy. Many of their clients included strength and conditioning coaches at colleges and universities throughout the country, including Rice University, Michigan State, the Air Force Academy, and countless others, as well as professional sports teams.

Outside his literary pursuits, Bud's contributions to the sport include training and coaching generations of lifters. He had an open-door policy; anyone who was interested in learning weightlifting could come over to the house to train in the garage free of charge.

More than most in the sport, Bud championed female lifters, the training of whom was the subject of many of his articles and his book, “A De-Masculinization of Strength.” In 2008, Bud started coaching his daughter, Kelly, who won a silver medal at the 2014 Senior Nationals and represented the U.S. at the 2013 Jr. World Championships.

Bud followed weightlifting wherever it was and spared no expense to capture important moments in the sport. On his own, or with his family in tow, Bud attended hundreds of local, national, and international competitions across the Americas, Asia, and Europe. He was also an invited speaker at several national and international coaching conferences and meetings.

Bud and Linda instilled the importance of a good education in their three daughters, who all attained advanced degrees. Bud was very proud of Kelly, a postdoctoral researcher at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, France, Cathy, a pharmacist invaluable to her Nashville, Tennessee community, and Jackie, a journalist for the Detroit Free Press.

Bud is survived by his wife, Linda; their three daughters Kelly, Catherine, and Jackie; his siblings Ronald, Richard, and Merri Jo; and his beloved dogs, Toast and Reina.

A visitation will be held Saturday, February 1, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at Harry J Will Funeral Home, 37000 W. Six Mile Road, Livonia, Michigan 48152, with a funeral service beginning at 12:00 PM. A live stream of the services will be available. He will be laid to rest at Holy Sepulchre Catholic Cemetery.