OVERTON, Texas — On March 23, Kadden Williams won the super heavyweight class in the Texas High School Powerlifting Association - Division 4 with a total of 1,710 pounds.
At the state meet Williams squatted 700 pounds, bench pressed 470 and deadlifted 540.
The day of the state competition, Williams nerves were through the roof. He's normally outgoing, but the magnitude of the championship had begun to hit him.
"He was different, he's usually his laughing and joking self," Overton powerlifting Coach Lance Holleman said. "That morning when we got there you could tell he was focused on what he needed to do."
"When we got there the nerves just started," Williams said. "But then I started looking around like it's go time."
Although Kadden's 700 pound back squat was impressive, he was most satisfied with his bench press personal record.
"My biggest PR of all of them was my bench," Williams said. "At first it slid off, and that was nerve wracking for me but then on the second try I came in more focused and I got it up with ease, I thought 'Oh my goodness that could've been 500 or 600 pounds.'"
Kadden has multiple physical strengths with his arms, legs, and back, but beyond his physicality his strength lies in his personality.
"He is a presence everywhere he goes," Coach Holleman said. "Kids love him, adults love him, his smile is contagious and when he talks people listen, because he's a big fella."