Editor's note: Today is International Women's Day. In the week leading up to it, SaltWire Network has beensharing stories, all written by women, focusing on this year’s theme: "A challenged world is an alert world, and from challenge comes change." Each day, we will tackle a different subject area as we celebrate women's achievements, raise awareness, and encourage our readers to take action towards equality.
ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Maria Htee’s goal was the same as many other women who first join the gym.
“I wanted to be skinny, to look like those women on magazine covers,” she said.
“I grew up with the mentality that women were supposed to be like that, skinny and weak.”
Today, Htee turns heads, but not for the reasons she had initially thought — instead, it's for her strength.
The 32-year-old from St. John’s is a world champion powerlifter, with three world records under her belt.
"You have the option of being weak or being strong, so why would you choose to be weak when you can be strong?" — Maria Htee
Powerlifting was something she’d never thought she’d do, but when she first started her gym workouts about 10 years ago, she was surprised at how strong she was. After three years competing in bodybuilding, she switched to powerlifting and had huge success.
Htee has won gold medals at both the 2019 IPF world championship and Commonwealth powerlifting champions.
She currently holds world records for her 178.5-kilogram (393.5-pound) squat and 473.5 kg total (1,044 lbs). She also holds the Canadian record for her 197.5 kg deadlift and recorded a bench press of a whopping 105 kg (231.5 lbs).
International Women's Day 2021: Building an equal future in Atlantic Canada
She was ranked the best classic female lifter of all time in Canada.
Not bad for a woman who stands 4-foot-11 and weighs just 130 pounds.
Changing perceptions
As a personal trainer at Goodlife Fitness, Htee is amused by the comments she gets from clients.
“I get comments from the women like, ‘Oh, I want a butt like you, but I don’t want legs like you,’” said Htee, winner of the 2019 Sport Newfoundland and Labrador senior female athlete of the year award.
"And the men come in who heard about me (from the news) and when they see me, they’ll say, 'Oh, I wasn’t expecting you to be that small'. I’d say, ‘Well, sorry for not meeting your expectation, but I’m pretty sure I can lift more than you.'
“It’s a very good feeling when I walk into the gym, I know I’m stronger than most men there. I can do anything they can.”
H'tee is all about breaking down misconceptions when it comes to female athletes.
“A lot of people still have a certain way of thinking about what women are supposed to look like," she adds.
Htee admits it’s disheartening seeing men get most of the attention in many sports, including powerlifting, especially when it comes to attracting sponsorship opportunities. However, she’s encouraged by the new generation of female powerlifters.
“I see these young girls lifting at the gym and it’s just amazing what they can do. So, I hope things will change in years to come," she says.
“The good thing about powerlifting is you can start at any age, really, but I think when girls start earlier, they find out earlier just how strong and powerful they can be.”
With more younger females lifting weights and trying powerlifting, she hopes not only will society’s attitude about women in the sport change, but women’s attitudes about themselves will also shift.
“Women don’t have to be skinny and have what many think is ‘the perfect body,’ like a magazine cover. We’re all built differently and I will never fit into that (image),” she said.
“So, I hope things will change and women don’t have to feel like they’re not good enough — even in the weight room. I always say, 'You have the option of being weak or being strong, so why would you choose to be weak when you can be strong?'”
Big strides in hockey
Women are garnering plenty of attention in other typically male-dominated sports as well.
In hockey, Sarah Davis was the first female player from Newfoundland and Labrador to compete for Canada in a world championship in 2015, while more recently, Shailynn Snow, Maggie Connors, and Abby Newhook are getting plenty of attention on the national scene. More females are also excelling at the coaching and administrative levels of the sport.
“It’s just unbelievable how far female hockey has come in the last decade,” said Jack Lee, who has been Hockey NL president for close to 10 years. “Female hockey is not an afterthought anymore … These women are skilled players and the quality of play has grown so much.”
In the last decade, he said, the number of female hockey players in the province has jumped from 600 to more than 2,200.
“We wouldn’t have the grown in our sport if it wasn’t for female players,” said Lee, who predicts there will be a female league in the coming years.
“They’re really making things happen.”
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