POWERLIFTERS PROVE THEIR STRENGTH

Nine USABA athletes competed to qualify for the IBSA World Games in July, came out with trophies, statewide recognition

(Colorado Springs, Colo.) When powerlifter Steve Pena approaches the platform and mentally prepares himself to deadlift more than 400 pounds, he gets motivated by using a technique common to many lifters – he lets out some stress and aggression by yelling.

But unlike the other lifters, who get their adrenaline pumping by shouting phrases such as “let's do this,” or “light weight,” Pena searches for motivation elsewhere – within his cats.

Pena approached the platform last Sunday, preparing to squat and called out to his cats at home, with names like “Simba” and “Himalaya” before he lifted the massive weight of 500 pounds.

It obviously worked.

Everyone has different ways of getting themselves pumped up before a big game or a challenging meet. Just like everyone has strange superstitions and rituals when it comes to sports, or athletics in general.

If calling out to his cats is what helps Pena to lift so much weight, then at least he knows what he needs to do. On Sunday during Pena's competition, he saw results.

Out of five lifters in his weight class, Pena came in second place. He squatted 513, bench pressed 463 and deadlifted 485 (pounds). That's a total of 1,462 pounds that he lifted – split between the three events.

Pena wasn't the only USABA lifter to find success at last weekend's Colorado State Powerlifting & Bench Press Championships at the Rocky Mountain Lifting Club in Aurora, Colo.

USABA entered a team of nine lifters into this state championship meet, where these athletes competed against approximately 90 of their sighted peers. These lifters truly made a name for themselves. Like Pena, another USABA athlete who proved himself on the platform was Omar Sanchez.

Sanchez beat out three sighted competitors and took first place in his weight class. He squatted 518, bench pressed 430 and deadlifted 567 – a total of 1516.9 pounds.

Coach Mark Sampson played a pivotal role by refining each USABA athlete who participated in the meet. He worked with them on the Friday prior to the meet to fine-tune each athlete's techniques – which paid off on competition days Saturday and Sunday, where USABA athletes went up against fierce competition.

Athlete Cody Colchado slapped Sampson on the back and congratulated him for breathing new life into this powerlifting program.

Though Sampson has been involved with powerlifting and athletics for more than 30 years, this was his first event mentoring USABA athletes.

Thanks to Sampson's dedication to the program and the athletes' determination to succeed, the majority of this group will head to Miami, Fla. in July to compete in the International Blind Sports Association (IBSA) World Powerlifting Championships.

Complete results: (in pounds)

Kevin Brousard – age 17, from San Clemente, Calif. – First place in weight class. Squat: 320; bench press: 243; deadlift: 303. Total: 866.

Dennis Cassara – age 32, from Howard Beach, Queens N.Y. – Third place in weight class. Squat: 187.5; bench press: 220; deadlift: 204. Total: 612.

Cody Colchado – age 44, from Linn, Texas – First place in weight class. Squat: 402; bench press: 419; deadlift: 502. Total: 1323.9.

Patrick Donelan – age 20, from Olathe, Kan. – First place in weight class. Squat: 440; bench press: 237; deadlift: 440. Total: 1119.

Asya Miller – age 28, from Colorado Springs, Colo. – First place in weight class. Squat: 264; bench press: 132; deadlift: 331. Total: 728.

Steve Pena – age 34, from San Jose, Calif. – Second place in weight class. Squat: 513; bench press: 463; deadlift: 485. Total: 1462.

Omar Sanchez – age 46, from Weslaco, Texas. – First place in weight class. Squat: 518; bench press: 430; deadlift: 567. Total: 1516.9.

Kris Scheppe – age 28, from North Fort Meyers, Fla. – First place in weight class. Squat: 215; bench press: 143; deadlift: 303. Total: 661.95.

Nick Sinardi – age 59, from Temple Terrace, Fla. – First place in weight class. Squat: 275; bench press: 105; deadlift: 342. Total: 723.

*If you're a current USABA member and you'd like to get involved with powerlifting, please contact the USABA intern at media@usaba.org . He or she is happy to get you in touch with Coach Sampson or provide you with additional information on how to become an active lifter.

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USABA athletes will compete in the Emerging Athletes Camp at the 2008 State Games, an inaugural event that hosts up to 8,000 blind and sighted athletes in 29 sports. The games will be held from July 22 – 29 in Colorado Springs , Colo. For more information, please visit USABA's website at www.usaba.org .

The United States Association of Blind Athletes, a member organization of the U.S. Olympic Committee, is a non-profit organization that provides training for blind and visually impaired athletes for competition in nine sports. USABA members range from blind children developing sports skills to elite athletes who train for competitions such as the Paralympic Games, which continually draws more than 4,000 disabled athletes.