The students from Canadore College’s School of Sport and Recreation, along with the Panthers and Valhalla powerlifting clubs, staged the 2019 Special Olympics Ontario Regional Powerlifting Championship on Sunday.
The event, held at the Commerce Court gymnasium, drew teams from Timmins, Sudbury, Ottawa, and North Bay.
The two local female lifters, Karly Tucker and Jackelyn Osborne, were gold medalist in their respective weight divisions. Tucker topped the 63 kilo class with lifts of 70 kilos in the squat, 37.5 in the bench press and 85 in the deadlift.
Meanwhile, in the +84 category, Osborne had best marks of 80 kilos in the squat, 50 kilos in the bench press, and 105 kilos in the deadlift.
In the male portion of the contest, Benjamin Chain of North Bay was the winner in the 59 kilo class. Chain managed 105 kilos in the squat, 67.5 in the bench, and 120 in the deadlift. Chain’s teammate, Kevin Grigg, won silver at 74 kilos. Grigg finished with a squat of 82.5, a bench press of 55, and a deadlift of 90 kilos.
Later in the contest, Dylon Knight of North Bay made all personal bests and took the bronze medal in the 93 kilo grouping. Knight squatted 110, bench pressed 70, and deadlifted 102.5 kilos. The last lifter for the locals was Ben Sheelers of Powassan. Ben lifted in the +120 class and finished fourth by way of a 110 kilo squat, a 75 kilo bench press and 125 kilo deadlift.
The top male lifter in the contest was Andrew Goulet of Timmins. Goulet, the World Special Olympic champion, posted an impressive total of 550 kilos. He weighed in at 87.1 kilos and registered top lifts of 190 kilos in the squat, 135 kilos in the bench press, and 225 kilos in the deadlift. Josee Seguin of Sudbury, the 72 kilo class gold medal winner, won the trophy as the best kilo-for-kilo female lifter.
The North Bay squad is known as the North Bay Blazers. The team trains twice per week at Canadore’s Commerce Court. The coaching staff includes: Phil Dampier James Pearson, Candace - Rose Joiner, Kyle Clarida, and Riley Vallincourt. The next event for the Blazers will be the Chris Thacker Memorial on May 5.
