Kidnapping survivor loses competition
usatoday.com • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Elizabeth Smart, a child safety advocate and kidnapping survivor, recently competed in the National Physique Committee's North American Championships bodybuilding competition in Pittsburgh, participating in two divisions but placing at the bottom in both.
- Despite not winning, Smart expressed pride in her progress, highlighting the discipline, hard work, and bravery required to compete, and emphasized that simply stepping onstage was a personal victory.
- This competition followed her previous success five months earlier, when she won first place in the Fit Model Novice category at the Wasatch Warrior competition, marking her fourth bodybuilding contest.
- Smart shared that bodybuilding has become a symbolic part of her healing journey as a sexual assault survivor, helping her celebrate her body and counter feelings of self-loathing that many abuse victims experience.
- She began bodybuilding after experiencing knee issues from marathon training and was encouraged by a former trainer, overcoming initial fears about performing in a bikini onstage.
