For Eleni Guerrera, COVID changed her life, ironically in a good way.
If not for the world wide virus and the quarantines that resulted, the Yorktown High School athlete might not have ever discovered power lifting, an individual sport in which Guerrera recently won a national championship in her age group.
In early April, the 17-year-old Yorktown junior (and current tennis player for the school’s spring girls team) finished first in the Power Lifting National Championships of American in Scranton, Pa., in the girls Sub Junior (ages 14-18) 125-pound weight category.
The 5-foot Guerrera squatted 303 pounds, bench-pressed 155 and dead-lifted 370 to break her previous American record. As a result, Guerrera earned both the Best Female Lifter and Best Overall Lifter (regardless of gender) based on the International Power lifting Federation’s (IPF) Good Lift points score of 90.87.
She has qualified to represent Team USA in the Sub Junior and Junior World Championships in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, this August. Currently, Guerrera is ranked No. 1 in the world in her age and weight category by IPF.
“I thought I had a pretty good shot to do well, and it was really exciting to finish that high and win,” Guerrera said. “I did better than I expected. If I win at worlds, that would be crazy-exciting. Placing in the top three would be fantastic.”
Guerrera only began power lifting during the COVID quarantined time frame during 2020. Once she discovered the sport, Guerrera quickly became enchanted with the activity.
“I didn’t understand a real passion about a sport until I started power lifting,” Guerrera said. “I have a passion for this more than any other sport I have played.”
With all team sports shut down during COVID, Guerrera explored different ways to exercise. She didn’t like riding her father’s stationary bike and isn’t big on running. Guerrera eventually happened upon some of her brother’s dumbbell weights and starting lifting.
She immediately loved the exercise.
Once Guerrera received her first COVID vaccine, she started visiting a workout gym and eventually was introduced to and encouraged to try the sport of power lifting. She did and began entering competitions, where success quickly followed. Last year Guerrera won state championships in her age group.
As her love for power lifting grew, Guerrera made some lifestyle changes. She gave up playing on Yorktown’s girls softball team during the spring to join the tennis team instead. The timing of tennis better fits her daily power lifting workout and early-to-bed schedules.
Guerrera plays No. 2 singles and No. 1 doubles for Yorktown. She was a starter on last spring’s Yorktown girls softball team.
Tennis matches end before dark or earlier, while softball games last much later into the evening. She tries to be in bed by 8:35 p.m. so she can awake by 5 a.m. for her preschool power lifting workouts.
“Eleni is very driven about this,” her mother Joanne said. “She is very nutrition- oriented, plans her meals and cooks her own food.”
With power lifting not a mainstream sport, Joanne Guerrera said her daughter receives frequent questions. “Wait a second, you can lift how much,” is a common question.
Guerrera has no plans to give up power lifting anytime soon. She could possibly compete for one of the few college teams that offer the sport, or become a member of a collegiate club team. If neither, she will continue training on her own for many more future competitions at older ages well into adulthood.
“I don’t see an end to this,” Guerrera said.
NOTE: Guerrera’s personal records in the three power lifting classifications are 310 pounds for the squat, 165 for the bench press and 380 for the dead lift.
