At Washburn Rural High School, powerlifting is not a school sanctioned sport, it is just a club. A club that lifts not just for a class during the school day, but once December hits, they lift every single day before or after school. This “club” also leaves the school at 7 a.m. on Saturday mornings to travel to powerlifting meets and compete.

I think powerlifting should become a school sponsored sport because it is more than just a club at this point in the program. When it first started, it was not popular which makes sense as to why the school would not spend money for five students to compete on the weekends.

However, it is not just five students anymore. Every weekend where the club sponsor Tyler Pfizenmeier can find a meet for his students to lift at, the bus is filled with 20-30 high schoolers who are dedicated to lifting and bettering themselves everyday.

As the program is growing, the school should pay more attention to it and start considering powerlifting as an actual sport. It is also a co-ed sport which takes away the issue of being required to have the same number of male and female sports.

Due to having various strength and conditioning classes offered at the school, all the needed equipment is already set up and therefore would be no extra cost to the school since regular maintenance on it is needed anyway. Since the students register for powerlifting meets through the school, they are required to have a uniform. This is just a t-shirt, sweatshirt, and sweatpants with the school’s name or logo on it, but this cost comes out of the students’ pocket.

Last year alone, I spent over $100 on my powerlifting uniform. This factor alone can contribute to a lot of students not wanting to participate due to money issues or simply not wanting to spend that much for a few wears.

The other expense for powerlifting is the meets. Each meet costs anywhere from $20 to $30 a student. This can also be pricey for some families and cause high schoolers to steer away from powerlifting.

Powerlifting is a very popular activity and therefore should be sanctioned by the school. I think that if powerlifting was an actual sport offered at the school, it would bring the numbers up greatly, getting even more kids involved in lifting.

This sport is individualized but also brings people together at every meet because you physically cannot do it without the help of your peers. It helps high schoolers learn how to make goals and stick with them as well. This is an important characteristic in life and powerlifting can help students acquire it by showing how exciting it can be to accomplish something you have worked hard for.

Not only does powerlifting keep student athletes, or even non athletic students, in shape, it also creates a new environment for students to meet others and create bonds. Powerlifting is an important part to many student’s lives and should be offered by the school so more people can experience the satisfaction of improving their strength.