Written by By Staff Writer
Kimberly Lyles is the first black woman to ever compete in the women’s World Combat Powerlifting Championships. She is also one of only a handful of female powerlifters competing for gold medals.
Standing just over 5’5″ and weighing about 165 lbs., Lyles is targeting a medal in the 85 kg category at the Sept. 15 competition in Muju, South Korea. Her goal is to compete with all her competitors in the group in which she is seeded fourth and win gold.
She says that although she is not the first black woman to compete, she is the first to do so with the gold standard in the group.
To achieve success, she has worked diligently to hone her powerlifting skills, honing her strength, speed and squat mechanics. After achieving a first place finish at the 2011 World Powerlifting Championships, Lyles wanted to improve and be the best.
“It’s definitely a competition between myself and the other girls,” she said. “They have a lot more history than I do, and a lot more connections. I really love the Olympics because that’s where the world is looking for gold. You get the stereotype that you’re going to turn into Arnold Schwarzenegger with a wig on, but that’s not how it goes.”
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She said training for powerlifting is an all-encompassing skill.
“It comes with all the other physical attributes a woman needs,” she said. “You have to be incredibly strong, fast, athletic and athletic. My little sister has the eyes of God. Even she can see the competitive angle in me. It makes my morning drive easier, knowing that I’m working my butt off to be the best.”
Lyles’ drive to win is in part inspired by the seven brothers who grew up with her, including five martial arts instructors.
“When they grow up, they’re going to be the next household heroes,” she said. “I want to look up to their fathers and grandfathers, and everything that they’ve done. The age I’m at now, the kids on their way are already figuring it out.”
While she still doesn’t fully understand her strong physique, Lyles said she is finding a balance between competing at a high level while leading a full-time, family life.
“I’ve finally realized how important it is to take every moment that you get in life, to understand what it means and to know when you have that experience, you’ve earned the right to take that feeling with you to the next moments,” she said.