An Okanagan teenager has lifted her way directly onto the international stage.
Penticton’s own Bronte Lauze will be representing Canada at the world powerlifting championships, in Australia next week.
The 17-year-old has been turning heads since she began her powerlifting journey just last year.
And while her lifts are breaking provincial and national records — perhaps even more impressive — is how she got here.
“I was a ballet dancer — and I got diagnosed with an eating disorder in the spring of 2021,” Lauze told Global News.
That’s when her brother decided to introduce her to Gym Eternal in Penticton, which is when the 180-degree sport and body transition began.
“Honestly just feeling strong, after having spent years, very weak and brittle after years of dealing with my eating disorder,” said Lauze, who competes in the 75-kilogram weight class.
“The empowerment from the strength really just pushed me.”
The sport pushed her into uncharted territory in only a matter of months.
“In January of last year, my manager came up to me and asked me how old I was and how much I weighed and said you’re breaking Canadian records,” recalled Lauze.
“So in June, I competed for the first time, qualified for worlds and broke some records and then I went on to in the Canadian nationals in August.”
The sport has created a quiet confidence in the local teen. It’s also given her strength to not only move weight, but to also battle the eating disorder she was diagnosed with.
“That’s been one of the hardest things for me actually – learning how to eat at that high capacity,” said Lauze. “Because I didn’t even comprehend that was something you could do and still lose weight.
“So to be eating the amount that I’m eating now has been quite difficult.”
When Lauze isn’t packing in 2,700 calories a day to fuel her success, she’s focusing on funding by working at the gym to help pay for her trip Down Under to the world championships.
“Next year, I hope to break a world squat record,” said Lauze. “And in the future, I want to get into pro shows and as far as I can possibly take it.”