ORANGEBURG, N.Y.—On Saturday, June 15 the Michael LaViola Foundation hosted the 11th Annual Strongman Challenge at Varsity House Gym in Orangeburg, N.Y., attracting some of the area’s strongest athletes.
While the Strongman Challenge provides contestants a space to prove their mettle, it is held primarily to celebrate the life and strength of LaViola, who was only 21 years old when he passed away due to a rare form of cancer called Sinovial Sarcoma in 2008. Even in his final days, he refused to quit.
“What we are doing here, basically, is taking the negative—Michael’s illness and his passing—and making some positive tracks with it, as far as having this event every year and raising the money,” said his father, Michael LaViola, a retired Alpine police captain.
The challenge involves competitors performing feats of strength to raise money for research into clinical sarcomas and scholarships for seniors graduating from Northern Valley Old Tappan. The foundation gives two annual scholarships, one to a football player who best exemplifies Michael’s love of the game, and another to a senior student who demonstrates a passion and ambition for life.
“Over the last 11 years we’ve been able to help the fight against pediatric sarcomas and raise a lot of money to help families who are suffering from this disease and keep Michael’s memory alive,” said Joe Riggio, the co-owner and founder of Varsity House Gym.
Participants of the Strongman Challenge are split into three groups: junior varsity (eighth and ninth graders), high school, and college/adult. The three events were an overhead log press, a sled pull and push, and a max-distance sandbag carry.
This year’s event raised more than $20,000 to fund scholarships and cancer research.
For more information about the Michael LaViola foundation and the fight against pediatric sarcomas, visit the website michaellaviolafoundation.org.
Photos and additional reporting by Murray Bass