Elena Seiple
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
bodybuilder and strongwoman
Strongwoman
Strongwoman refers to either a woman performing feats of strength in a show or circus, or a woman who competes in strength athletics. Traditionally, strongwomen have had a special appeal, as women involved in demonstrated feats of strength were exceptions....
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Seiple was born in 1973 in Harmony, New Jersey
Harmony, New Jersey
Harmony is an unincorporated community within Jackson Township, Ocean County, New Jersey. Harmony is located near Exit 22 on I-195 and is also located nearby CR 526 ....
. A gifted athlete from childhood, she excelled in swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
(specifically, in the breast stroke), basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, soccer, and track. While attending a private Christian school in Pennsylvania, she competed in men's soccer due to the absence of a women's team. Her level of play was enough to receive an athletic scholarship from Liberty University
Liberty University
Liberty University is a private Christian university located in Lynchburg, Virginia. Liberty's annual enrollment is around 72,000 students, 12,000 of whom are residential students and 60,000+ studying through Liberty University Online...
and it was during these years that she began experimenting with weightlifting, drawing inspiration from women like Lenda Murray
Lenda Murray
Lenda Murray is a champion female bodybuilder from the United States. She is an eight-time winner of the Ms. Olympia title, the highest achievement in professional female bodybuilding.-Early life and education:...
and Cory Everson
Cory Everson
Corinna Kneuer , best known by her stage name Cory Everson, is an American female bodybuilding champion and actress. She won the Ms. Olympia contest six years in a row from 1984 to 1989.-Education:...
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She began her bodybuilding career at Gibson's Gym in Washington, New Jersey
Washington, New Jersey
Washington is a borough in Warren County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 6,461. The borough is located in the eastern most region of the Lehigh Valley....
. She entered a NPC
National Physique Committee
The National Physique Committee is the largest amateur bodybuilding organization in the United States. Amateur bodybuilders compete in various competitions from local to national competitions sanctioned by the NPC...
show, the Women's Extravaganza, in 1999 at a weight of 120 lb., placing second in the Middleweight category. Other career highlights include placing 2nd at the NPC Nationals a total of four times and 3rd, three times. She competed in the 2006 World's Strongest Woman
World's Strongest Woman
World's Strongest Woman was an annual strongwoman contest organized by the International Federation of Strength Athletes . The format was similar to the World's Strongest Man contest, but with lighter weights. The contest was first held in 2001....
, held in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, placing 9th at a weight of 163 lb. Her personal bests are 500 lb. in the squat
Squat (exercise)
In strength training, the squat is a compound, full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks, quads , hamstrings, as well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body...
, 315 lb. in the bench press
Bench press
The bench press is an exercise of the upper body. For bodybuilding purposes, it is used to stimulate the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. While on his or her back, the person performing the bench press lowers a weight to the level of the chest, then pushes it back up until the arm is straight...
and 475 lb. in the deadlift
Deadlift
The deadlift is a weight training exercise where a loaded barbell is lifted off the ground from a stabilized, bent over position. It is one of the three canonical powerlifting exercises, along with the squat and bench press.-Overview:...
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Seiple is politically conservative and a professed Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
. She currently works as a judge for the NPC and manages the New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
NPC website.