Livingston's Ben Hahn, Emily Olson, and Cole Bartz go for Gold in Butte on Saturday

Hahn nabs a state record and wins his Division at the Montana State Powerlifting Championships.

Cole Bartz, Emily Olson, and Ben Hahn at Adonis Strength & Fitness Gym at the Montana State Powerlifting Championships on Saturday in Butte.

By: Jeff Schlapp

The Montana State Powerlifting Championships were held on Saturday at the Adonis Strength & Fitness Gym in Butte, and Livingston’s Iron Horse Powerlifting team competed in the event.

It is a sight to behold if you're like me and have never been to a powerlifting event, let alone the state championship. The championship involved three core lifts: the bench press, deadlift, and squat. That’s it.

Who could lift the most weight. It doesn’t get any more basic than that.

The winner in each class would be determined by the total weight in the three events at the end of the competition.

Livingston Iron Horse Powerlifting team member Emily Olson before her first event in the Montana State Powerlifting Championships on Saturday in Butte.

The original members of the Livingston Iron Horse Powerlifting team, Ben Hahn, Emily Olson, and Cole Bartz, worked hard to prepare for the event. Bartz worked out daily at Rocky Mountain College in Billings, and Olson and Hahn were at the Railyard Fitness Center in Livingston every day at 5:00 a.m.

At the State Powerlifting Championships, the contest was divided into age brackets (a 13-year-old boy and a 63-year-old were competing).

Talk about a fish out of water—holy cow, did I ever stick out like a sore thumb. Even the spectators were in great shape. I was amazed at the strength of those competing. Many women were mothers to young kids who entered the championship, including Olson, a young mother of three.

This young man came to watch his dad and perhaps dream of the day when he could set a powerlifting record at the Montana State Powerlifting Championships on Saturday in Butte.