- May 4, 2024
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Bob Marley once said, “You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.” Having lifted for three years — and destined to do her best her final season — FPC senior Jessica Roberts found herself in a position where uncommon strength was demanded, and she gave her all.
Roberts was T-boned in her GMC Tierra in a car crash in August last year, leaving her two friends with minor injuries but sending Roberts to the hospital where she discovered she had a ruptured spleen.
She was placed in ICU for a week, in fear that if her bleeding didn't stop, she would have had to undergo surgery.
Due to her fitness level, Roberts was told that her body would heal itself over time. With her final weightlifting season just two months away, she began lifting little by little, although she wasn’t supposed to lift more than 10 pounds for the first three months.
“I really wasn't supposed to be putting my body under that much pressure,” she said, “but this was my senior year, and I have worked so hard the last three years.”
Her parents were afraid of her condition, because it was a huge risk. If her spleen had ruptured again, Roberts could’ve seriously injured herself. She was told there may not have been enough time to undergo surgery.
So Roberts maintained a strict diet, and she trained harder than she had ever trained before.
“At first, I couldn't grip or even open a bottle,” she said. “It was really hard to get back. There was a lot of stress, blood and tears, but I ended the season with a 250-pound total weight mark — only five pounds lighter than last season.”
Roberts broke two of her old school records in her final weightlifting meet of her high school career.
“Honestly, it sucks that everything happened like this,” Roberts said, “but I’m mentally stronger. I knew I couldn’t get back to my physical strength, so I just wanted stay positive and have fun, which is why I started lifting. It’s my passion.”
“I didn't get to make it to state,” Roberts added, “but I am content with my accomplishments. I had the best meet of my four years of weightlifting.” Not a bad way to go out.
