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Risovi flexes her way to victory in Fargo competition
New Rockford native Haley Risovi is very, very strong.
Last weekend, after overpowering her competition in charmingly-named events like the Deadlift Ladder from Hell, Risovi was crowned Women's Heavyweight Champion at Dakota Barbell's Winter Classic in Fargo.
Dakota Barbell is housed inside the also charmingly-named Edgar's House of Pain, a private gym dedicated to developing athletes in powerlifting, strongman and other strength sports in the Fargo-Moorhead area.
Their most recent Winter Classic was just their second, and this year Risovi out-lifted all of her competitors to win the Women's Open.
The title is just the latest for Risovi, who's been competing in powerlifting and strongman events for years. She earned the American Powerlifting Federation's Best Female Lifting Award in 2019, and she has now earned first place in three strongman competitions.
The 2013 graduate of New Rockford-Sheyenne said she first began weightlifting with her father, Jamie Risovi, when she was a sophomore. And once she got started, she never stopped.
"I started lifting with my dad," Risovi recalled, "and I really enjoyed lifting and I just continued doing it, and got fairly strong."
Her strength didn't go unnoticed as she got older, and while attending college, Risovi was introduced to powerlifting competitions, in which contestants get three attempts at the bench press, squat and deadlift.
Risovi's personal bests would put most people to shame. She's benched as much as 231 pounds, squatted 417 pounds and deadlifted 413 pounds - and she's only getting stronger.
After competing in those events for a while and winning the 2019 best female lifting award, she eventually branched out to strongman competitions, which entail any number of events depending on the event organizer.
Risovi's favorite is the atlas stones, which involves lifting large and heavy spherical stones over a bar. Her personal record in the event is 250 pounds.
Risovi's latest strongman competition was in Fargo, where she currently lives and works as a surgical assistant. She's also competed in events throughout North Dakota and the Midwest, including at competitions as far away as Iowa and Minneapolis.
"I'm just a competitive person and want to push myself," said Risovi about why she competes. She also said that, especially for women, there's something special and unique about pursuing strength.
"I think it just makes people mentally tough," said Risovi, "and especially for women, being strong is so important.
"In our society it's like women aren't meant to be strong," she added, "but there's a lot of power in being strong as a woman, and I just want more women to feel that strength and to know what that feels like."
One day, Risovi is hoping to prove just how strong she's become at the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus, Ohio.
The festival is named after Arnold Schwartzenegger, and is an international event that hosts competitions for bodybuilding, powerlifting and strongman. Every year it sees more than 20,000 athletes from over 80 countries worldwide.
"I would really like to compete at that one day," said Risovi.
In the near term, Risovi is looking forward to her next powerlifting meet in Minneapolis on May 6, where she's hoping to, yet again, be among the strongest athletes competing.