Powerlifters from Vernon press on to Commonwealth event
Published 5:30 am Tuesday, August 11, 2026
Three Vernon powerlifters will wing their way to Winnipeg for the Commonwealth Powerlifting Championships next month.
Teresa Gilman, Barry Antoniow, and Marc Vezina will compete for Canada Sept. 16 to 27 against athletes from close to 15 other Commonwealth nations.
Gilman will compete in the Classic Bench Press Master 2 (age 50-59), 76 kilos (167 pound) Class.
She has won regional, provincial, Western Canadian, Canadian, and North American titles in her age class.
Gilman earned a spot in Winnipeg on Team Canada after winning the 2026 National Championship in St. John’s, Nfld., in March in her age and weight category.
“I’d like to continue winning by taking gold for the classic bench press in Winnipeg. That’s my goal,” said Gilman.
Antoniow is in the Equipped bench press, Master 2, 93 kilos (205 pounds) Class.
An Ontario resident who lives in Vernon for the Okanagan summers, Antoniow is a 10-time undefeated Canadian bench press champion, a two-time World record holder, and once held a World No. 9 ranking.
He finished second at the World Classic and Equipped bench press in Austin, Texas in 2024 with a lift 227.5 kilos in the Master 2, 93-kilos class.
“I’d like to break the bench Commonwealth record of 215 kilos in my division,” said Antoniow, who is the Commonwealth Master 1 Division record holder at 280 kilos.
Vézina will be in Winnipeg competing in the Classic and Equipped Bench Press, Master 3, 93 kilos. He finished first in the Masters 3 Male (age 60-69) equipped bench press category at the Nationals in Newfoundland, lifting a provincial record of 138 kilos (304 pound).
Vézina earned his place on Team Canada for the Commonwealth competition by finishing second in his age and weight category at the Nationals with a Classic bench press of 117.5 kilos (259 pound).
“My goal is to try and win gold in both bench press events (Classic, Equipped) in Winnipeg,” said Vézina.
The powerlifting trio train together at Vernon’s World Health and Fitness Gym on Highway 6.
The 2026 Commonwealth Powerlifting has the same rules as the IPF (International Powerlifting federation) rules for powerlifting, classic and equipped bench pressing.
For classic bench pressing, athletes must use a one-piece lifting singlet, or shirt, and no bench shirt is allowed.
Equipped bench pressing allows a bench shirt made of polyester, denim, or canvas.
In bench press, a lifter must lie on their back with their buttocks, shoulders, and head in contact with the bench, and their feet must be flat on the floor. The weight bar then has to be lowered to the check, with the underside of the elbow level or below the top of the shoulder point.
The bar has to be pressed upward to a locked-out position, and the bar can’t move back down after a press command.
If a lifter can’t press the bar to the full extension of the arms, if there’s any movement of the feet with the bench, or there’s contact made with spotters, the lift will be considered a fail.
