You know when you go to a sporting event and you can FEEL the energy and excitement the minute you walk through the door and at the end of the night there’s always the spectators that are super excited that their team won, and then there are those that are so sad and bummed out and they drag you down? THIS EVENT was not like that. The energy and happiness only grew as the day went on and at the end everyone was excited about what they had accomplished and even more excited about what they witnessed. Every single competitor WON and accomplished something that day. Many were competing for the first time, hitting a new goal, lifting a crazy amount of weight, recovering from a car accident, celebrating a milestone birthday and the list goes on… the accomplishments and celebrations are countless. As a community it was a day of Women empowering Women, but also a day of men showing up to support and help throughout the day to make the 2023 inaugural all ladies Strongman event “Battle Under the Stars” a huge success filled with laughter and tears of joy.
It really wasn’t a surprise that this event was as amazing as it was. Letia Tybor, athlete and amazing friend, is the event owner and manager. She poured her heart and should into making this such a great experience for all involved and it truly showed. The day started out with volunteers coming together to set up the day for the athletes. As the athletes showed up they could have their hair braided by Heidi, stretch with the Stretch Lab or have a deep massage from Giovanna in between events, delicious food by Marci of Charcuterie Ragazza all to the backdrop of some great music to keep everyone moving throughout the day! If you are a long time follower you may recognize her from previous events I have photographed and if you are new here definitely go check them out and watch her journey from amateur to the pro she has become in this sport!
Here you see her being appreciated by all the athletes and recognized by the Strongman Corporation for her contributions to this sport.
There were four main events that the women competed in: a truck pull, a deadlift, a log press and the Hercules hold judged by none other than current world record holder Gabi Dixon!
The age groups for the athletes ranged from 18 all the way to senior women, with various categories for each to compete in. This event was truly diverse in all aspects of the word!
Are you reading and wondering who the judges were and all their amazing accomplishments? I was there too! Clueless as to who they all were. I chatted with a couple of them and are not only breaking warriors and adding representation to a sport previously viewed as for strongmen, they are also good hearted cool, down to earth human beings. No egos and straight up supportive of everyone doing what they do at whatever level they are! Don’t just take my word for it, go check them out for yourself: Inez Carrasquillo, Ashley Crawford, Gabi Dixon, Erin Murray, Nadia Stowers, Tamara Walcott, Daphne Zhang.
I mentioned this was the inaugural event- yup you guessed it! This event will be back in 2024! Can’t wait to see it grow and all the amazing athletes showing up to defy limits and break warriors!
Are you an athlete looking for a marketing photographer for your next event, to document your progress or for your branding? Drop me a note let’s plan your shoot and your marketing strategy.
