By DAVID WOOD, for The Democrat

“It came down to the last lift,” Josh Sparks said about his competitor. “Had he made it, he would have gotten third.”

As close as it was, Sparks still managed to clinch it.

With a 385-pound lift, he cemented himself as the third-best bench presser in the 183-pound raw open weight class.

Not third in the state, but third in the entire nation.

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“When I wrestled in high school, one of the defining moments in my career was that I didn’t make it to state in my senior year. I lost to a guy I had previously beaten, and that kind of haunted me for a long time,” Sparks said. “But, I finished third here.

“I was a good wrestler, but I’m a much better bench presser.”

Sparks competed at the U.S.A powerlifting (USAPL) bench press nationals in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

USAPL is the national affiliate for the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) in the United States. According to Sparks, it’s safe to say USAPL nationals are the powerlifting equivalent of the Super Bowl.

“There were 202 lifters competing, and for the most part, they are the top in their divisions. Everyone who goes there is already a pretty accomplished lifter,” he added.

“There are a lot of American records attempted there and even broken in some cases. So, most people who show up are pretty good, and I would guess they have the expectation to place in the meet.”

Spark’s main goal was to hit a competition personal best of 405 pounds, but little did he know that just 20 pounds less would earn him a spot on the podium.

“I was really wanting to hit 405 pounds, since breaking into the fours was one of my goals, but I was happy finishing off at third and getting a medal,” he said.

“In previous years my numbers have been kind of up and down. I finished off at 385 pounds and it wasn’t quite as high as I wanted to hit. It wasn’t a great meet, but it was good enough for the day.”

One would assume being the third-best in the nation at any sport would lend itself to sponsorships and widespread media coverage, but that’s not the case for powerlifting.

As a teacher and high school wrestling coach, Sparks doesn’t have much different of a story than other competitors. He remarked that one man was a car salesman and another a probation officer; the vast majority of them have typical day jobs.

It’s not a prized contract they’re competing for. Rather, they want to be the best and to have the personal satisfaction of pushing preconceived limits.

This chase is all done while balancing the daily grind of working and raising a family. For Sparks, this means finding time to train between parenting, teaching and coaching.

“I have two kids while working in Brown County, which is a 45-minute drive, so that’s 90 minutes each day. Then, there’s teaching, and of course, coaching,” he said.

“Now that wrestling isn’t in full swing, I can pretty much lift whenever I want. But, my family and I kind of made a deal where I can only lift for an hour and that’s it. If I can’t get a workout done in an hour, I have to cut something out.”

In a typical week, Sparks will work out four to six days while focusing on a combination of the powerlifting trio: the squat, the bench and the deadlift.

During wrestling season, he has to cut down to just three days a week.

“I have to lift after wrestling practice and I’m already tired at that point and want to get home. So, during the season it is a little harder, but it does give me time to recover. I tax my body so much through the spring, summer and fall,” he said.

“While I don’t like it, giving myself a rest is sometimes a good thing for maintaining a healthy body.”

Currently, Sparks doesn’t have much time to take his foot off of the pedal. Based on his performance, he has the option of attending the USAPL Raw Nationals in Illinois on Oct. 16.

This competition would include the deadlift and squat in addition to bench press.

“I have about six weeks to get my bench right for RAW Nationals. … I haven’t been focusing as much on squat and deadlift, but I do have a few weeks to really get those prepared as well. That’s the next,” he said.

Regardless of the outcome, Sparks has proven himself as an elite-caliber athlete with a competition record most anyone would be glad to share and boast about.

However, it’s not his ego he’s flaunting when he discusses lifting with his team of high school wrestlers.

“It’s not in a boasting way, but when I talk to my wrestlers about my weightlifting, I’m trying to get them to reach higher and do more. … There’s a whole other level of strong out there. You should always find something to improve upon,” he said.