Rural Missouri - June 2023 - 9

by Zach Smith | zsmith@ruralmissouri.coop
mid the roar of the crowd and the music, Charlie
Phillips takes the stage. Grasping almost a
quarter-ton of weight between his hands, the
26-year-old straightens his legs and rises on the
cheers as if carried on a cloud. The only thing bigger than
the plates on his barbell is the smile on his face.
Doctors once thought Charlie would never walk. In
June, he'll test his strength on the world stage representing
Team USA at the Special Olympics World Summer
Games in Berlin. Two decades ago, many doubted this
outcome, but there's never been a doubt in Charlie's mind.
" Right now, I'm just sticking with the program, " Charlie
says of his training schedule for the Summer Games. " I'm
treating every day like it's a competition, but this opportunity
is once in a lifetime. "
Charlie was born with incorrectly positioned organs and
hypotonia, a condition in which his muscles lacked tone.
The future powerlifter spent his early years in and out of
hospitals undergoing a total of 21 surgeries and medical
procedures. Doctors suggested increasing his physical
and occupational therapy, convinced he would ultimately
require a wheelchair for mobility. For eight hours a week,
Charlie's mother, Tina Schoonmaker, and his therapist
worked with the 4-year-old boy on basic movements.
" He was so floppy, he was like a little doll, " Tina recalls,
" and then overnight it was just like something clicked in
his head. One day he pulled himself up, the next thing we
see him scooting across the table and when we went to the
doctor, Charlie walked for him. It was a sheer miracle. "
That innate determination is what took Charlie to the
USA Games in track and field at age 11 - less than six
months after he joined Special Olympics Pennsylvania.
Bullied by classmates and unable to play his favorite
sports with other kids his age, Charlie found an environment
where his winning personality and boundless energy
would thrive. He stuck with the program when his family
moved to Oklahoma and eventually Savannah, Missouri,
participating in track, speedskating, basketball, soccer and
flag football. He continues to show his appreciation for the
organization by volunteering as an athlete leader for the
Special Olympics Missouri North Area Office and as an
ambassador for the Polar Plunge.
When Charlie takes the platform in Berlin this summer,
it will mark almost eight years since he discovered the
sport entirely by accident. When a Fall Classic competition
at Villanova University was postponed due to lightning,
Charlie and his dad, Ray, happened upon the gym where
the powerlifting competition was being held. The young
athlete was transfixed, instantly curious about the sport.
When he became old enough to compete at the age of 18,
Charlie Phillips deadlifts nearly 500 pounds during a Special Olympics
Border Wars competition between Kansas and Missouri.
A
he was determined to be the best he could.
" He's really hungry to do a good job, " says Charlie's
trainer JP Price, powerlifter, strongman and co-owner of
Strong Barbell Club in Kansas City. " There are ups and
downs in lifting: There are some that go great and others
that don't, but he handles it well and always has a positive
attitude. He's a very uplifting person. "
Powerlifting is a specific class of weightlifting in which
competitors are given three attempts each at squat, bench
press and deadlift. Lifters compete individually in each and
for the overall high score.
Among the three, Charlie doesn't hesitate to name his
favorite. " Deadlift, " Charlie says. " That's the heaviest I
can pull. " His personal records, as of this writing, are 501
pounds on the deadlift, a bench press of 292 pounds and
squatting 410 pounds. He hopes to top those numbers in
order to reach the podium in Germany.
Any weightlifter knows all the iron in the world doesn't
count if it isn't moved with proper form. Competitive powerlifting
isn't judged on sheer weight alone. Multiple points
of movement and timing must be perfected, and JP says
Charlie excels at following the referee's commands.
" Everybody has hobbies, and it's really rare for a Special
Olympian to find lifting as a full-time hobby, " JP says.
" Charlie's one of the few that has made it part of his lifestyle,
and like anybody who has made fitness part of their
life it's a positive thing that he enjoys and, in my opinion,
it's really good for him. "
Competing in powerlifting organizations outside of Special
Olympics, Charlie has not only improved his raw talent
but also made friends with other athletes from around
the world and inspired many newcomers to the sport. No
doubt all of them will be cheering him on this summer.
" At powerlifting meets you've got music on, you've got
fog machines, you've got people cheering you on - it's so
much fun, " Charlie says. " I'm competing with other people,
but mentally I'm competing against myself and that's very
good because I do more than I think I can. "
All that's left for Charlie between now and when he
takes the platform in Germany is to stay focused, stay
hungry and, most importantly, be himself.
" We're very grateful for everything he does. We can't
believe everything he does, " Tina says. " I never dreamed it
was possible, but he always dreamed it was possible.
" He has some pretty lofty goals, " she adds, and the grin
passes from her to her son.
" My goal is to get all four gold medals, " Charlie says. " I
can't believe I'm going to represent our
country, but this is the dream that I
always had, and the dream came true. "
Savannah
For more information on Special
Olympics Missouri, visit www.
somo.org. Charlie Phillips can be
reached by email at tinaschoon@
icloud.com.
JUNE 2023 | RURALMISSOURI.COOP 9
http://www.somo.org http://www.somo.org http://www.RURALMISSOURI.COOP
Rural Missouri - June 2023

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