Worth the Weight
Powerlifting was brand new to Carter Hoffman, but it didn’t take long for him to fall in love with the sport.
It wasn’t until his senior year of high school, thanks to some encouragement from a rival football coach, that Carter decided to give powerlifting a try.
“I played a lot of sports in high school, mostly football. I played lacrosse, which was a club sport, and my coach was actually the football coach at our rival high school in South Dakota. He also happened to be the coach of the powerlifting club team and he asked me if I would be interested in competing. This was February of my senior year, but I ended up competing at state and breaking two records. I loved it immediately.”
Carter, a junior Business Administration major from Clear Lake, then began contemplating the possibility of competing in powerlifting in college. Carter Trowbridge, now Carter’s teammate on the Midland powerlifting team, was already committed to Midland and encouraged Carter to join him. “He actually played for our rival football team, and I got to know him through powerlifting. He told me about the team and Coach (Tim) Anderson, so I reached out and ended up taking a visit to Midland. Once I stepped foot inside the powerlifting facility, that sealed it for me.”
Although relatively new to the sport, he has already established himself as one of the top lifters in the nation. He recently finished third in his weight class in the Men’s Raw division during the national tournament in Atlanta, Georgia.
“It’s crazy how God works because I could have never envisioned myself doing this a few years ago. As I was playing football, I actually enjoyed the weightlifting part of football the most. When I found out I could do this competitively, it was fun, and I found out I was pretty good at it.
“What I enjoy the most about competing is that all the other athletes are so supportive and rooting for you to do well. I’ve met some amazing people.”
He always knew he would compete in some sport in college, but he wasn’t sure where that place would be. While being part of the nation’s top powerlifting squad was enticing to him, Midland presented other benefits that helped sway his college decision.
“I loved the smaller class sizes, smaller campus, and building those connections with professors. I love that my professors value me as a person, not just a student trying to earn a degree.”
He’s grateful he has been able to build upon his faith during his time at Midland and is thankful for the other students he has been able to share that faith with. “The main thing that I love about Midland is the faith aspect. I wasn’t a follower of Christ until I got here, but I have people who have shown love to me, and a lot of fellow believers on campus to help build that strong connection. I love being involved in Cru and leading a Bible study.”
That faith has steered Carter to believe a different calling may await him upon graduation in 2025. “Business Administration will give me a lot of different opportunities, but my goal right now would be to become a youth pastor. I will be doing an internship at a church in Fremont, and I’m looking to see where that leads me. I’m not sure about ministry school yet, but I love the Lord, and if that’s what it takes me to go down that career path, that’s what I’ll do.”
Carter Hoffman is a junior Business Administration major from Clear Lake, South Dakota.
