Hold the cap and gown, because Ashton Rouska is lifting well beyond his collegiate years. The 22-year-old finished his undergraduate powerlifting career with his best-ever performance at the 2019 USA Powerlifting Collegiate Nationals on Sunday.
Rouska, who we have been following since his teenage years (when he casually made a deadlift personal record of 765 pounds), is now adding more impressive accomplishments to his resume.
Rouska finished in first place at the 2019 USA Powerlifting Collegiate Nationals in the -231 pound (-105 kg) weight class, with a 1930.14 pound (875.5kg) total at 205.9 pounds (93.4kg) bodyweight. In most of his competitions he has lifted as -93kg athlete, but this time around he weighed in at 93.4kg and competed as a -105 kg athlete.
Although he was competing against athletes heavier than him, he still managed to set new national records. He now holds the heaviest raw total by a junior athlete with 1851.8 pounds (840kg). According to USAPL’s official data base, this beat the previous record, set by Michael Davis in March, by 13 kg.
“My favorite performance,” Rouska wrote on Instagram following the meet. Rouska is no stranger to breaking records in college. He has broke several USAPL collegiate records, including six Texas State Raw Records in 2018. He holds the Raw Junior record in -93 kg weight class in squat (317 kg), deadlift (355 kg) and total (862.5 kg) — and that squat and total are also open records.
Check out his most recent performance at the 2019 USA Powerlifting Collegiate Nationals below.
What’s next for Rouska? He said on Instagram, “all you need to know is I will always go where the competition is waiting for me.” Rouska has been lifting since he was 13 years old, and in an interview last year with Total Body Training talked about how his confidence has been shaped through his training and dedication to powerlifting. The Texas native is certainly beaming with confidence after Sunday, and is humbled by his constant support group.
Feature image courtesy of @ashh117 Instagram page.
