By Michelangelo Jacobus

“ONE day I was in the gym and it hit me; I realised that what I really liked was the rush I got from lifting weights, thus I started pushing myself to lift heavy. I love lifting heavy weights much more than I had preferred body building.”

This was how this week’s “Sports Personality”, a record setting powerlifter was born; Runita White at 22-years-old has set out to conquer powerlifting in the 84+ Kg category on Guyana’s local powerlifting scene.

In an interview with Chronicle Sport, the former Marian Academy student revealed that she started working out at the Flex Gym in Thomas Street, Kitty where a childhood friend gave her a crash course about the basics of gym.

Having been told about bodybuilding, powerlifting and cross fitting, White set her mind on bodybuilding as she wanted to “lose weight and have a nice slim figure”.

After losing weight, one day at a gym session she realised that she loved the adrenaline rush that accompanied the successful lifting of heavy weights and so it almost became an obsession; something that she would do continually at gym.

“I was training myself until Martin Webster came over to Flex Gym one day and I saw him lifting; I asked him to train me and he agreed so I switched over to Buddy’s gym where I currently train.”

White recently competed at the Guyana Amateur Powerlifting Federation’s (GAPLF) Novices/Juniors Championships on February 4, where she set new records in the Female Junior Raw 84+kg category. She blew away her competitors amassing 313.511 Wilks points and lifting a total of 383.5kg.White finished first by squatting 145kg, bench pressing 62.5kg and deadlifting a national record weight of 175kg.

Touching on her first time in a competition, White noted “I was nervous at the beginning but after my first two lifts I got into it, I’m still on a high right now, I’m so excited about it.”

“I had the mindset before the meet that I wanted to break the deadlift record, which I did. It’s an exhilarating feeling to know that and I set my mind to break the record and I did.”

With an eye on the future White indicated that she will be participating at the GAPLF’s Intermediate Championships come May 27.

The powerlifter recently completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications at the University of Guyana and will be going for her Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the School of the Nations.