August 2nd, 2025 was a beautiful day in Hanson, perfect for hosting the APO August Assault Push/Pull. There was a lot of excitement in the air as Tom hosted his first meet as APO Meet Director and we welcomed old friends and new from all over New England, including the New England Meet Directors who came out to show their support. We had 20 lifters, some were first time competitors and some old hat but they all left everything on the platform.
Some Standouts from Saturday
Joe Murphy
This was Joe’s first competition and he crushed his bench with a third attempt at 215kg, making it look like a warmup. His deadlift was a monster 227.5kg and if you blinked, you missed it. He finished his day with a 442.5 total and ready for his next competition.
Sherrie Simoneau
Sherrie punched her ticket to the WPO and her performance Saturday is exactly why. At 19, Sherrie closed out her bench at 92.5kg, just missing her 3rd attempt at 95kg. She crushed her deadlift with a 197.5kg pull, almost 2 and a half times her body weight and snatching a 290kg total.
Mike Berhle and Joseph Reihl
Mike and Joe battled it out in the Mens Raw Open 140+. This was Mike’s first raw competition in 11 years and hit white lights in all 3 bench attempts finishing at 142.5kg. While Joe missed his last attempt on bench, he walked away with a 160kg bench from his 2nd attempt. The deadlift is where it got interesting. Both athletes hit their 1st attempt just 3.5kg apart, Joe with 275 and Mike at 272.5. 2nd attempts at 287.5 and white lights for both lifters. 3rd attempts at 297.5, both receiving reds, putting joe ahead. Joe finished 1st place in their class with a 447.5kg total with Mike just slightly behind at 430kg, showing he’s still got it outside of a full kit.
Roza Dimitrieva
Roza competed in the Womens Raw Open 90+ division. She absolutely dominated the platform going 6 for 6 on the day. Her final attempt on Bench was an easy 85kg but her deadlift was a monster 160kg, almost 2 and a half times her body weight.
Jameson Costa
Jameson was our youngest lifter at just 14 years old. Jameson also went 6 for 6 on the day and closed out with a 220kg total, a 70kg bench and 160kg deadlift. Excited to see what he does in the future!
Philip Berrio
Phil, at age 69, was our oldest competitor on Saturday and showed us all it’s never too late. He also went 6 for 6 and finished with a 77.5 kg bench and a 150kg deadlift making it look like a warm up.
