Valerie flexes muscles
AS the oldest competitor in the Pan Pacific Masters Games fitness challenge, Valerie Silver wants everyone to know one thing – she’s not a freak.
The 69-year-old from Logan had no trouble outshining her opposition in the intense weightlifting and agility challenge.
Ms Silver, a dancer for many years, wanted to do powerlifting and heavy exercise when she was younger, but “just wasn’t allowed”.
“If you were a young woman you couldn’t go into the gym and do squats. You’d just get ‘oh, you right love’?” she said.
“But young women now are expecting equal treatment in gyms so they get it, but there’s still some resistance for strength training.”
Each week Ms Silver drives to a Varsity Lakes gym, where she does squats, deadlifting, tyre flips and more before heading to the ice baths and then her job as a crisis counsellor.
After the Pan Pacific Masters Games come to a close she’ll compete in Brisbane’s Strongest Man and Woman, the Oceanic Championships and the Strongman Tractor Pull Championships.
Fitness challenge events at the Pan Pacs include weightlifting drills, throwing a medicine ball and skipping.
“You shouldn’t be focusing on my age because it makes me into a freak, and maybe the people my age who don’t exercise are the freaks and I’m normal,” Ms Silver added.
“Because if I can do it that means it can be done, and that means it’s normal. Women’s bodies are intrinsically strong yet this world dictates what is appropriate for women to be doing.
“Women say to me they don’t want muscles but muscles are the new sexy.”
Kim Setiu was another fitness fanatic at yesterday’s challenge but she was content to watch her husband Bill do the heavy lifting.
She livestreamed every one of his competitions. The pair own Mana Strength and Conditioning at Carrara.
“Competing’s not for me but I’m the number one cheerer,” Ms Setiu said. “I love that feeling of getting excited, getting nerves.
“I think I carry that part for him and then he goes out and does a good job.”
Mr Setiu said: “She’s been my biggest fan since I used to play rugby a long time ago, so I always listen out for her voice in the background.”
About 16,000 atheletes are competing at the Pan Pac Games across the Gold Coast this week. They are joined by 20,000 family and friends. Competition finished his weekend.