Taking home bronze
Tyler Ramsay proved he can compete with the best junior powerlifters in the world.
Tyler Ramsay proved he can compete with the best junior powerlifters in the world. Ramsay, a Tyne Valley native now living in Summerside, won a bronze medal as part of Canada’s three-member team at the International Powerlifting Federation’s junior and sub-junior world championships in Orlando, Fla. The event ran from Aug. 27 to Sept. 3, and Ramsay competed on Sept. 2.
“I wasn’t going in with any expectation of getting a bronze,” said Ramsay, who entered the meet ranked seventh out of the nine lifters in his category – junior 120-kilogram class. “Just the way everything started to play out at the start of the competition, we saw we had a chance.”
Nearly flawless performance
Ramsay went on to put on a nearly flawless performance as he was successful in eight of his nine lifts.
He had a squat of 337.5 kilograms, a bench press of 232.5 kilograms, a deadlift of 302.5 kilograms and a total of 872.5 kilograms.
All lifts were personal bests for Ramsay, and it was after he opened with squats that he realized he could compete for a medal.
“I noticed after the squats were done I was ranked third going into the rest of the competition,” said Ramsay, 23. “There was a scoreboard in the
back, and you could see where everybody was placing.”
This is Ramsay’s last year of eligibility as a junior. He is looking forward to moving up to the senior open category next year. “I’d like to make some waves in that as well,” added Ramsay, who qualified for the international competition at the 2017 nationals in Quebec. Ramsay was introduced to
powerlifting while attending Westisle Composite High School in 2009, and he began lifting with the P.E.I. Powerlifting Association in 2010. “My brother (Chad Ramsay) started going to the gym, competing and he had some success early on,” explained Ramsay. “He played a big role in getting me into the gym, and ultimately starting powerlifting.”
Camaraderie
One thing that stood out for Ramsay was the “camaraderie” amongst competitors.
“A New Zealand lifter and I were competing against each other the whole time (for third place), but at the end of the competition he came over and congratulated me, shook my hand,” recalled Ramsay.
“It’s neat how respectful
people are after such a fierce competition.
“We traded our team shirts as friendship, and it’s really neat to see how the different nations come together. That was one thing that stood out in my mind.”