(Donna, Texas)-He’s only 5’3 but Donna North HS powerlifter, Louie Cavazos competes with a big heart as the Texas High School Powerlifting Championships begins this Friday and ends on Saturday at the Taylor County Expo Center in Abilene, Texas.
Many Rio Grande Valley powerlifting athletes will be traveling to Abilene with hopes of bringing back a gold medal, but for Louie, he is competing with a big heart. In September of 2020, his sister was struck and killed by a drunk driver as Louie was walking with her back home. She never made it home. ”It’s been tough for this young man,” says Donna North HS athletic coordinator, Juan Cuevas. ”He’s been through some tough hardships.”
But for Louie, he is playing these sports for his sister, to honor her. It’s what keeps him going. She loved playing sports too. During a varsity football game last season, after scoring a touchdown, he raced back to the sidelines to celebrate with his team. He told HSSM, ”I’m playing for my sister. This touchdown is for her.”
Louie enters the THSPA Championships as the regional champion in his 123lb weight class with hopes of bringing back the gold medal…to honor his sister, Liza. She was only 15-years-old when she died. ”He’s deserving of this, should he win,” says Cuevas. “He inspires us all with his big heart.” (HSSMImages/Donna ISD)