Elise Laari is a senior at Sunlake High School. Elise is a part of Sunlake’s weightlifting team. Elise has been on the team since her sophomore year. Elise is excited for her third year on the weightlifting team and is excited to see all her improvement and hard work be shown after the off-season. 

Elise shared, “I couldn’t be more excited for my senior season.” That excitement was easy to see as she reflected on the team’s first major meet of the season: the Buffalo Invitational at The Villages, a competition she described as “one of our bigger ones.”

Elise competed in all three lifts — snatch, clean and jerk, and bench. Coming back into competition mode after the off-season is always an adjustment, something she openly acknowledged. “Being the first meet back, it always takes a minute to get back into your rhythm,” she explained. Still, she remained proud of her performance, adding, “I believe I did well, but there is always room to do better, which is what is amazing about the sport.”

Elise’s pride extended beyond her own results and toward her teammates. Elise described the group as strong, supportive, and consistently high-performing. “As a team, collectively we are a very strong one, and we do very well,” she said — a statement backed by their impressive finish of second in traditional lifts and fourth in Olympic lifts.

When reflecting on the meet as a whole, Elise didn’t express regret, but she did recognize an area for personal growth. “I don’t know that there is anything I would’ve done differently, but maybe come in with a more confident and supportive mindset.”