Skip to content

Moose Jaw powerlifters set national records at Canadian championship

Gold medals abound for members of Unparalleled Performance at CPU nationals

Moose Jaw athletes with Unparalleled Performance put together a host of record-breaking performances at the Canadian Powerlifting Union national championships in Ottawa recently.

And with those records came a near-equal number of gold medals.

Perennial world championship competitor Rhaea Stinn was her usual self at nationals, breaking a national record in her 84-kilogram equipped division with a lift of 185 kg in the bench press and, combined with her 235-kg squat and 210-kg deadlift, set a new Canadian record for overall total at 630.0 kg.

Stinn kept at it in the unequipped bench press only competition, as competing in the 72-kg class against five other lifters she put together a press of 120.5 kg to win by 18 kilograms and set a new national mark. Stinn’s performance in the equipped bench press was even more dominant, with her lift of 190.0 kg setting a new national record and winning by more than 62 kilograms.

Kaylee Maruska showed she has a bright future in the sport after setting a slew of records in her sub-junior 72-kg weight class. Maruska set a new marks of 93 kg in the bench and 162.5 kg in the deadlift to go along with a national record of 415.5 kg in the total.

In the unequipped division, Maruska set a national bench press record of 73.0 kg, setting the mark on her final lift. She also claimed gold in the class with a 328-kg total.

Moose Jaw powerlifting coach and long-time national standout Ryan Stinn put on a show in the 120-plus kilogram equipped class, clearing 385 kg in the squat, 275 kg in bench press and 325 kg in the deadlift for a 985.0 total and the gold medal. His total was the third highest for the entire meet.

Stinn also competed in the open equipped bench press competition and finished second behind a familiar face – former training partner and longtime Moose Jaw standout Ryan Fowler, who now lives in Weyburn, won gold with a lift of 250 kg. Stinn attempted and made only one lift of 150 kg and settled for silver.

Aaron Ziffle put together a second-place finish in the open equipped 93-kg class, squatting 315 kg, benching 227.5 kg and deadlifting 260.0 kg for an 802.5-kg total. He missed gold by a mere 20 kilograms.

Competing in Master 1 equipped division, Shantelle Szuch set a national record in her 63-kg weight class with a 180.5-kg squat. She went on to bench 97.5 kg and deadlift 172.5 kg for a 450.5-kg total, also a new Canadian mark and good enough for the gold medal.

Mava Brydges competed in the Master 3 unequipped class and like her teammates put together a record-breaking showing, setting a new bench press Canadian record of 63.0 kg. That, combined with her 97.5-kg squat and 112.5-kg deadlift was good enough for a 273-kg total and the gold medal.

Needless to say, provincial records also took a beating throughout the meet, with the six local competitors breaking a total of 23 Saskatchewan marks during the weekend.

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks