Students Hold Weightlifting Competition to Raise Money for Breast Cancer Research

Benching for Breast Cancer to benefit Pink Revolution

WORCESTER, Mass. – The strength and conditioning program at the College of the Holy Cross will conduct its third annual Benching for Breast Cancer event on Friday, Dec. 10 at 4:30 p.m. in the Hart Center’s varsity weight room.  The event is open to the Holy Cross student body.

Working in teams of four, students (who pay a $10 participation fee) solicit donation pledges based on how much weight they think they can lift.  While wearing a costume, they compete against other teams lifting weights for prizes in three categories:  best team costume, most enthusiastic team, and most money raised.

“I am very excited about Benching for Breast Cancer 2010 because it is going to be bigger and better than last year” says student organizer, Madison Horl ’12.  “The event was a success last year because of the enthusiasm of the students and staff that participated. We hope to improve the event this year, especially as we open it to all students.”

Last year 300 student athletes participated in the fundraiser and they raised approximately $3,500.  This year the event is open to the entire student body and more than 500 students are expected to participate.

“By including the entire student body in our Benching for Breast Cancer event we are ‘raising the bar’ in our efforts to help find a cure for, and to raise awareness for this devastating disease,” explains Jeff Oliver, head strength and conditioning coach and one of the event organizers.

Money raised will benefit Pink Revolution, a local charity that is committed to creating change in the lives of those touched by breast cancer.  The charity is working in conjunction with UMass Memorial Comprehensive Breast Center and affiliate hospitals to raise awareness about the importance of early detection and prevention strategies, to provide psychosocial care for patients, to fund clinical research advancements, and to promote survivorship programs in central Massachusetts.  Currently Pink Revolution is trying to raise $500,000 to purchase a breast CT scanner for early cancer detection.  The new device enables better diagnosis and evaluation of breast tumors than other current methods, and makes possible new methods for delivering therapy to breast tumors.  There are only four other breast CT machines in the country and this would be the first one in Massachusetts.

Benching for Breast Cancer is sponsored by The Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC ) and HC for a Cure.  SAAC is a group of student leaders made up of representatives from each varsity team on campus. They work with the NCAA and provide an athlete's prospective on the recruitment process, eligibility, and other regulations that affect athletes.

For additional information visit http://college.holycross.edu/benching/ or contact Madison Horl ’12.