MATTAGAMI FIRST NATION – Neebin Prince finished her first powerlifting competition with a perfect scorecard, three personal bests, and a message she hopes will inspire Indigenous youth.
Prince, from Mattagami First Nation, completed all nine lifts at the Band of Barbells Spring Classic and finished with a total of 332.5 kilograms (733 pounds).
For Prince, though, the achievement meant more than just numbers.
She explained that this moment reflected years of hard work, rebuilding her life through sobriety, reconnecting with her culture, and showing that Indigenous athletes belong in any sport they choose.
“I got into a really bad situation with alcohol abuse and alcohol addiction,” she said.
“In 2022, I gave it all up, and I started going to the gym, and that’s really what started my passion in all of this.”
Now, Prince sees fitness as a way to inspire others, especially Indigenous youth in northern and remote communities.
“Every day I wake up, and I choose to be sober, I choose to keep lifting, to keep getting stronger,” she said. “Because I know that I’m inspiring a lot of people.”
Prince’s success happened quickly.
Although she had been going to the gym for years, she only started training for powerlifting about six months ago.
“At first I wasn’t too sure about it,” she said.
“I remember saying to my sister, ‘I don’t think I have the willpower to do it,’ and she said, ‘You definitely do.’”
Prince later joined a small private gym in North Bay and started working with coach Danny Gosselin.
Her first competition, which was held in Scarborough, produced a perfect nine-for-nine performance.
She squatted 115 kilograms (253.5 pounds), benched 65 kilograms (143.3 pounds), and deadlifted 152.5 kilograms (336.2 pounds), setting personal records in each lift and finishing with a total of 332.5 kilograms.
“It’s definitely so much more than I ever could have imagined,” she said.
“I couldn’t have done that without my coach. Having a good coach and a good plan is what helps you succeed and get those numbers that you never would have expected.”
Prince said she felt nervous before the competition, but everything changed once she stepped onto the platform.
“It almost felt like it was just me in the room,” she said.
“When I walked up to the bar, and I looked up at the crowd, everything was blurry. It’s like the only thing that I could actually focus on was myself.”
Prince grew up in Mattagami First Nation, southwest of Timmins, and lived there most of her life before moving to North Bay with her young son. She still visits her family at home regularly.
She said representation remains one of the driving forces behind her athletic journey.
When she was growing up, there were few opportunities to try strength sports. Mattagami First Nation’s recreation gym only got weightlifting equipment in 2024.
“When Indigenous people, specifically youth, don’t have this kind of outlet, it gets really hard,” she said.
“When native kids see me doing this and travelling and competing, I want them to know that they can do that too.”
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She hopes young Indigenous athletes realize they do not have to wait for someone else to lead the way.
“Even if they’re the only native person in the room, even if they’re the only native person in their community doing it, they have the potential, and they have the strength,” she said.
Prince said support from her community, including public congratulations from Chief Jennifer Constant, has been especially meaningful.
“It really means the world,” she said.
“It helps me know that I have the opportunity to take my knowledge and experience about this sport and bring it back to my community.”
Prince has already signed up for another competition in October and hopes to qualify for provincials in the future.
For now, she is staying focused on the same goal that helped her through her first competition.
“When I step onto the platform, when I keep showing up every day, that’s what I think of,” she said.
“It’s for my family. It’s for my people. It’s for the young Indigenous kids on the reserves who need that kind of inspiration to chase their dreams and know that they are capable of achieving things that they want to achieve.”
