Ken Bray

Ken Bray is a masters 1b professional Powerlifter in the United States Powerlifting League and United Powerlifting Association's raw divisions. At 40, an age that many athletic endeavors end, his began. A free YMCA membership motivated him to walk his thin, 137lb frame into the weight room in an attempt to get stronger. It worked. Six years and 43lbs of muscle later, he holds three National, one American and four Ohio records in the sport after only two years of competing. In 2015 alone, he brought home four gold, two silver and two bronze medals; finishing out the year as the number one ranked deadlifter in the United States and a member of the USAPL National Team. Probably as well known as his performance on the lifting platform is his battle off of it. Shortly after the first competition of 2015, he was diagnosed with stage 2 prostate cancer. Instead of shutting down and beginning treatment; he worked closely with his doctors at the VA Medical center to draw up a plan that would allow him to finish out the season. He then went on to compete in an unprecedented seven competitions in as many months without incident. On December 15, 2015, he underwent a radical prostatectomy resulting in the successful removal of 100% of the cancer. Going forward, he plans to use his growing notoriety to draw more attention to the importance of early detection and the treatment of prostate cancer.