She may be 5ft 3in, but this RAF weightlifter is going places

Despite her diminutive stature, RAF athlete Corporal Stephanie Pye has become a force on the military weightlifting scene.

The Odiham-based competitor stands at just 5'3", but that belies the power she generates in the gym and in competition.

Cpl Pye admits she is happy to challenge the perception of what is possible in her sport.

"A lot of people, if I tell them I do weightlifting, they expect a big, kind of brutey girl behind that," she said.

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"When they see me, I think they get a little bit of a surprise. But I like that. People underestimate me.

"I just show them that being a female who is on the smaller side does not mean you can't be strong and compete with the best."

Coming from a CrossFit background, Cpl Pye is well used to facing taller opposition. With its focus on plyometrics, powerlifting and Olympic weightlifting, CrossFit was the perfect arena for her to perfect her pushing tin prowess, as she points out.

She said: "My numbers, weightlifting-wise, crossed over into the weightlifting world. It turns out they are good for my category of 57 kilograms. I moved over to weightlifting to compete against girls my size."

Cpl Pye has powered her way to two RAF titles since beginning her weightlifting journey. In the brief time she has been involved, the sport has gone from strength to strength.

"The weightlifting community in the RAF has grown so much," she proudly stated. "You could name the top lifters on one hand when I started. At this year's RAF championships, we had 42 lifters. Record-breaking numbers. We've never seen such levels of participation in any of our competitions."

As RAF team captain, Cpl Pye will look to lead the Air Force to victory at the upcoming Inter Services where military athletes from all three services will take to the platform striving for success and individual milestones.

"If you do PB [personal best] on the platform, it is the best feeling ever." Cpl Pye confesses.

"To know that all the dedication you've put into your diet, lifestyle, work life balance, training, everything, to get a PB, even if it is by a kilo and on a platform, being watched, there is no better feeling."