Nanaimo powerlifter Tyler Ollech (left) placed second in his weight class at the Canadian Powerlifting Union National Championships in Prince Edward Island. (Carl Ollech)

By Dan Marshall

Heavy Lifting

Nanaimo powerlifter finishes second at national competition

Sep 29, 2024 | 6:45 AM

NANAIMO — Local powerlifter Tyler Ollech is rapidly rising up the ranks in the sport.

In early September he finished in second place in his weight class at the Canadian Powerlifting Union National Championships in PEI.

Ollech has only been a competitive lifter for the past two years.

“I’ve been lifting since I was 11-years-old mainly because I was playing hockey. In Grade 11 I really switched into training specifically for strength. I worked on getting bigger and stronger. In 2022 I hung up my skates and turned my sights on powerlifting.”

Ollech played in the VIJHL from 2020-2022 mostly with the Nanaimo Buccaneers and briefly with Lake Cowichan Kraken.

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At the CPU nationals the 21-year-old competed in the 74 kilogram class in the 19-23 age group.

“I felt it went really well,” Ollech said. I was there for two events. On the first day I did bench only and then I did bench, squat and deadlift on the second day. Usually lifting takes about six hours. You get to warm up and then you get three attempts at each lift.”

Ollech was able to break some personal records at the national event and has upped his totals through a handful of competitions in 2024.

“I went to Westerns in March and there I totalled 590 kilos, which is 50 kilos over the qualifying total, and I ended up placing fourth. Then I set my sets on Nationals and totalled 625 kilos which was a significant increase and I was second overall. For the bench only because I came in first it classifies me as overall number one and it qualified me for bench World’s which are in Norway in May of next year.”

One of the other key events for Ollech is the North American Championships in the Cayman Islands in July and August of next year.

The training is intense for high level lifters with Ollech spending four to five days in the gym every week.

“It’s a really different training than when post people go to the gym. I’m in the gym 3-5 hours a day.”

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