1. Born September 7, 1966 in Ames, Iowa, the second of three children. The family moved to Indianapolis in 1966 after my dad accepted a position with Eli Lilly & Co. While growing up in Indianapolis I participated in just about every sport except for hockey. My formative years in sports began at Tabernacle Presbyterian Church on 34th & Central. I was blessed enough to develop soccer skills that would allow me to successfully compete and play with Dynamo F.C.'s traveling team, and play in North Central's first State Soccer Championship in 1982. It was during those years that I began to seriously lift weights. I had no thought at all of powerlifting, my only intention was to become faster and stronger than my opponent. 2. After graduating from North Central in 1985, I worked for a 1½ yrs before attending Morehouse College in Atlanta, Ga. in 1987. I began studying and enjoying the college life and sports took a back seat. However, on occasion I would lift weights at a local gym and participate in intramural sports. I completed my undergraduate education with a B.A. in Banking/Finance. While attending Morehouse as a full-time student I also worked 35 hrs a week at Nationsbank (BKA: Bank of America). So upon graduation I already had a full time position. 3. I returned to Indianapolis in 1993 to successfully obtain custody of my oldest son Ervin Gainer, Jr. After obtaining custody of Ervin Jr. I remained in Indianapolis. It was during the end of 1993 and the beginning of 1994 that I developed a strong desire to get myself back into shape and participate in some type of sport activity. I began lifting at Bally's Fitness Center in 1994 and worked out with diligence. It was during the mid to latter part of 1994 that Kirth Vance, a part-time trainer, at Bally's introduced me to powerlifting. After training for a few months, in March of 1995 I traveled with Kirth to Muncie, IN to participate in the Indiana State Powerlifting Meet. I finished second in my weight class with a total of 660 lbs. The first place total by my opponent, David Osborne, was 990 lbs. 4. Needless to say the competitive juices were flowing again. I was bitten by the powerlifting bug and I walked away hungry to compete on a higher level. I walked away from that meet disappointed because 1) I knew I had the potential to win and 2) I placed second. I left the meet with two goals in mind 1) avenge my loss and 2) wipe David Osborne's name completely from the 114 lb Indiana State record books. At this time I've accomplished that and more in a short period of time much to my own amazement. 5. Lifting History Best lifts in a meet: B/W: 52kg (14lb) Squat: 418lb. Bench: 286 lb. Deadlift: 479 lb. Best Total in a meet: B/W:52kg Total: 1173 lb (532.5 kg) State Tournaments: 1995 Indiana State: Second Place - 52kg wt class 1996 Indiana State: First Place - 52kg wt class 1996 Kentucky State: First Place - 52kg wt class National Tournaments: 1997 USPF Men's National: Second Place - 52kg wt class 1997 USAPL Men's National: First Place - 52kg wt class 1998 USAPL Men's National: First Place - 52kg wt class 1999 USAPL Men's National: First Place - 52kg wt class 2000 USAPL Men's National: First Place - 52kg wt class International Powerlifting Federation Men's Tournaments: 1998 I.P.F.: Sixth Place - 52kg wt Class: Cherkasy, Ukraine 1999 I.P.F.: Fifth Place - 52kg wt Class: Trento, Italy; Bronze medal for 3rd best bench press. 2000 I.P.F.: Fifth Place - 52kg wt Class: Akita City, Japan; Silver medal for 2nd best bench press. 6. During the course of my training for various powerlifting meets, I enrolled in IUPUI's MBA evening program in August of 1996. I successfully completed the program in May of 1999. I am currently employed with Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and I am a Senior Case Manager in the Indianapolis National Market Claims Department. 7. I've only been actively involved with powerlifting for 5 years and sometimes I can't comprehend the amount of success I've had in a short period of time. I am a lifetime drug free powerlifter. I believe that having God, family and career in their proper place have allowed me to succeed beyond my wildest dreams. 8. There are a few people that I must mention that have had a positive impact on my life and lifting career, my wife, Angela, & children, Ervin Jr., Jessica, and Tyler, my Mom and Dad, Greg Simmons (148 lb Indiana powerlifter), Titan Support Systems/Pete Alaniz, Kirth Vance and Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. I will also take this time to thank the Jewish Community Center for allowing me to train in their fitness center and not complain when I drop or slam heavy weights on the floor after completing a deadlift. The Jewish Community Center has been instrumental in allowing me to progress to the next level while training for tournaments. The equipment is outstanding and the assistance I receive from the staff has been great. My family became members of the Jewish Community Center in May of 1997. I left Bally's Fitness Center for two reasons: 1) Bally's did not provide a family atmosphere and 2) Bally's did not have the awesome equipment or friendly staff like the Jewish Community Center. Last but not least thank you to my employer, Liberty Mutual Insurance Group for sponsoring me for this year's world meet. 9. Please browse the websites listed below so you can actually see pictures of myself and other powerlifters that are members of the USAPowerlifting Association: www.usapowerlifting.com: click on results to view the Men's National results from 1997-2000. After reviewing the results click on links then click on USAPL Indiana for pictures of myself during the 2000 world meet and a lifter profile dated 11/22/00. The state records are posted on the site as well. www.powerlifting-ipf.com: click on 2000 IPF World's Powerlifting Championship for results and view more pictures from this years world meet. If there are any questions please email me at the address listed on the first page. Sincerely, Ervin Gainer, Sr. 01/02/01
|
