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OWA Team

To get in touch with the OWA Executive Board, email board@onweightlifting.ca.

Mike Miller

President

Mike is a father of four and currently lives in Trenton Ontario with his wife Christa. Mike works at Sigma Stretch Film managing departments handling production scheduling, purchasing and global imports. Sigma Stretch Film is globally one of the largest privately owned plastic film manufactures with over 600 million pounds of capacity.

Mike started weightlifting at the age of 8 under his brother Larry Robinson at the Kirkland Lake Weightlifting Club. Mike was formerly OWA VP of Operations and is currently on the National Coaching Committee of Canada as Canada Games representative. He is a shareholder of CrossFit Trent, head coach of Adamantium Weightlifting, and is a NCCP national level coach in training.

Mike plans on working towards creating and expanding on current policies to help foster positive training environments, removing obstacles for team Ontario, and continue the current plans to increase revenue and communication. He also looks forward to expanding his current relationships with CWFHC and Canadian Masters Federation.

Eva Martens

VP Administration

Eva brings a varied background to her role as VP of Administration. Since her teen years when she was elected to the board of her local 4-H club, to now serving as the Executive Chair of her local BIA, she has continued to be involved in leadership roles and community engagement throughout her life. On the business side she's managed multiple stores and started her own business by opening Restorative Mobility and Massage in 2021.

Introduced to the sport of weightlifting back in 2011 in Alberta, Eva has competed since 2013 with the highlight being World Masters Championships in Montreal in 2019. Having fallen love with the sport she became a coach while working at Hamilton Barbell and started a collegiate barbell club while returning to post-secondary education at Mohawk College. After joining the board in 2021, she added Technical official to her resume, moving up to National Category 3 in 2022.

Eva has undertaken several projects while on the board, including updating the logo and brand of OWA, securing grants and funding for software and improving our communication to members on projects and changes.

Dave Earle

VP Operations

Dave is the owner and head coach of The Power Academy, and lives in Waterloo with his wife and children. He started weightlifting in 2008, while playing rugby for the University of McMaster, and has competed in many national championships. Dave has coached athletes at the national championships and masters international meets, and hopes to use his position with the OWA to grow the sport of weightlifting.

George Vlahos

VP Finance

As VP Finance some of my responsibilities include bookkeeping, issuing payments, working with Accountants for Audits and Financial Statements. I have been involved with weightlifting since 2004. I have competed at Ontario Championships, Canadian Masters and Pan Am Masters competitions. I continue to be an active Masters Weightlifter. In my day job I work as a Network Engineer in the telecom industry. My Christian Faith is a very important part of who I am. Other interests include business, economics, health-fitness and playing guitar.

Linda Rosario-Earnshaw

VP Technical

Linda Rosario-Earnshaw has been a member of the OWA since 2013. Linda first got involved with weightlifting as a mother and spectator to her teenage daughter and OWA Jr/Sr lifter, Catrina Earnshaw. Upon the advice of Daniel Robitaille, her weightlifting coach, Linda became a Technical Official for the OWA. She has clocked quite some mileage and time with travel for regional and national competitions from the Nation’s capital and back.

Linda’s experience with weightlifting is vast and varied. She has been a member of the OWA and the CMFHCWM for many years. Linda has competed as a Masters athlete in many competitions and has earned herself a medal or two and set a couple of records within her category. She managed the OWA Jr. teams and the OWA Sr. teams from 2016-2020…and has managed the Ontario Canadian Masters Team at the Pan Ams Masters in Gaspe, Canada 2018. During the 2020-2021 Pandemic Lockdown Linda has put in quite a bit of time with judging online Zoom competitions at the Ontario Youth, Jr. and Sr. Championships the Canadian Jr. Championships, the Canadian Sr. Championship and at the IWF Worlds Masters Championships. Her current goal is to apply for her IWF TO International Level 2 once back at in-person live competitions.

Although Linda is not actively training at the moment, she wants to keep involved with Olympic weightlifting. Her goal as VP Technical is to recruit new officials; to continue Technical Officials’ Training for level advancement and to promote quality and maintain consistent officiating across Ontario.

Amanda Braddock

Staff - Membership Administrator

Amanda has been an OWA member since 2011, discovering weightlifting while a student at the University of Toronto. Residing in Mississauga, she is an active competitor at the national and international level, as well as a coach and Technical Official. Amanda is excited to contribute to the OWA behind the scenes as Membership Administrator.

Dimitrije Mancic

Staff - Competition Administrator

Dimitrije started his weightlifting journey while attending the University of Guelph, with his 1st competition being the 2019 Toronto Pro SuperShow. Since then, he has been working towards improving himself in weightlifting, as well as seeking further involvement in the sport. Dimitrije now works as a strength and conditioning coach at LIFT Fitness and Performance, and competes under LIFT Barbell Club as a 96 kg athlete. As both an athlete and coach, Dimitrije seeks to motivate more junior athletes to compete in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, and to make competitions enjoyable for athletes and spectators.

Noah Santavy

Social Media Administrator & WCH Athletes Council Member

Noah serves as a voice and advocate for athletes at the international level, acting as a liaison between athletes and Weightlifting Canada Haltérophilie (WCH). His primary responsibilities include representing athletes' interests in discussions related to rules, policies, and decisions. He also addresses athlete concerns and ensures that athletes have a say in the direction and development of their sport. The Athletes Council plays a pivotal role in fostering transparency, communication, and collaboration between athletes and sports organizations to enhance the overall athlete experience and the integrity of the sport.

Martene Herbert

Social Media Administrator

I am a mom to a 12 year old daughter and work full time for the Ministry of Education in the Math Student Achievement Department. I currently live in Kenora, ON but spend a lot of time in the GTA for my job as well as training with my team from Burlington Barbell.
I started weightlifting competitively 2 years ago and have represented Canada as a Masters athlete at the Masters Pan Ams and Masters World Championships.
I have been involved with competitive sports my whole life as I was an elite gymnast growing up and currently hold my NCCP level 3 as a gymnastics coach.

Nichole Lee

Team Development Leader - Senior Women's Team

Nichole has been Olympic weightlifting for 6 years. She has competed at the masters level internationally and has recently started her journey into coaching and becoming a technical official at the national level. Her love for weightlifting came from a background of rugby and crossfit.
She is also the founder and owner of Integrity Barbell Collective. A safe space community for individuals who are interested in participating and competing in the sport of weightlifting.

Nichole currently works as an RMT in London, ON where she has been practicing for almost 20 years. Her experience ranges from professional sports teams, Olympic athletics and clinical treatment.

Nichole looks forward to growing within the OWA as she would like to take on more responsibilities in the future as opportunities arise to keep the organization being the best it can be for athletes, coaches and the community.

Nicholas Koo

Team Development Leader - Senior Men's Team

Nicholas has always had a passion for athletics! Growing up, he competed in Football, Wrestling, Rugby and Track and Field. He has prior experience developing athletes and their careers as the former Head of Varsity Strength and Conditioning at Trent University, where he was in charge of overseeing the development of programming, testing and in person coaching for a diverse range of athletes and teams including Volleyball, Lacrosse, Rugby, Curling, Soccer and Rowing.

In 2017, Nic joined forces with Rowing Canada to work with high performance HUB athletes, closely overseeing their development and integrating training programs and expectations from national coaches.

Nic currently competes with the Ontario Weightlifting Association as a member of team Justlift. Having competed at the provincial and national level, recently appearing at 2023 Senior Nationals as a 109kg athlete. Nic looks forward to helping athletes have a seamless experience at upcoming events as they strive to perform their best.

Jess Verwey

Team Development Leader - Junior Women's Team

Jess has been involved in the fitness industry since 2013 when she graduated from Fleming College with a diploma in Fitness and Health Promotion. After working in conventional gyms for a number of years, she started CrossFit in 2014 and shifted towards weightlifting in October 2019. She competed for the first time in December 2019 and has continued to do so ever since.

Jess is also a Technical Official and Comp Intro Coach. She has coached and personal trained a wide range of individuals ranging in age from 12 to 86. She likes to work hard and is dedicated to sharing her love for lifting and fitness with everyone.

Logan Baker

Team Development Leader - Junior Men's Team

Logan Baker is a dedicated coach and educator with an extensive background in youth and junior athlete development. With over a decade of experience as the Head Coach of Youth and Junior Development at the Athletic Performance Centre in North Bay, Ontario, Logan has spearheaded programming and provided expert instruction for athletes aged 9 to 18 in a wide range of sports, from ice hockey and American football to soccer, snowboarding, figure skating, and more.

Logan's academic journey reflects his passion for strength and conditioning. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (BASc) in Strength and Conditioning from the Limerick Institute of Technology, where he actively participated as a coach in the Olympic Weightlifting Club. Additionally, his diploma in Strength and Sports Conditioning from Canadore College, coupled with an exchange program at Limerick Institute of Technology, has equipped him with a well-rounded understanding of athletic training and development.

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