Dave Githutu is an 18-year-old of few words. He is small in stature, but has the will of a giant.
Githutu, who has Down Syndrome, is a Milton High School student and a Special Olympics Powerlifting athlete.
Last April, the 110-pounder qualified for the Amateur World Powerlifting Congress championship in England, where he will participate with non-disabled lifters in his weight class.
Githutu’s coach, Josh Porter, recently started a Go-Fund Me campaign titled, Team Dave Goes to England, to help raise $5,000 for airline travel and hotel accommodations for him and Githutu. The weightlifter’s mother, Esther Githutu, and grandmother also plan to make the trip. The event is not affiliated with the high school or the Special Olympics.
In addition, Lucky’s Burger and Brew in Roswell will host a fundraiser during it’s annual live music, End of Summer Bash, Saturday at 5 p.m.
The restaurant has contributed thousands of dollars to sports programs at north Fulton high schools since it opened in 2010, Lucky’s General Manager Ted Lescher said.
“I’m going to get Dave up on stage and introduce him to everyone,” Lescher said. “When I learned that this kid was on the world championship level, I’m like, ‘I don’t know anyone who’s the world champion of anything.”
The UK competition is an important opportunity for Githutu. He’s scheduled to undergo open heart surgery next spring, his mother said.
He was born with ventricular septal defect, which is a hole in the wall of his heart, she said. Approximately half of infants born with Down Syndrome have a serious heart condition, according to the National Society for Down Syndrome website.
The condition is not affecting the young weightlifter at this point but his physicians believe it’s time to close the hole, said Esther, who works with her husband in the healthcare industry.
Credit: Jenni Girtman
Credit: Jenni Girtman
“They are worried about his old age and him having heart failure or a heart attack,” she said. “So we wanted to give him this opportunity for the competition in England. If he’s going to bounce back, we don’t know.”
Young Githutu has participated in several sports with Special Olympics Georgia and won gold, silver and bronze medals in turbo javelin 100-meter dash, Porter said.
But the 18-year-old said weightlifting is “everything” to him. He started training with Porter, an adaptive physical education teacher at Milton, three years ago.
Roswell Barbell gym allows Githutu to train with Porter for free several times a week. On some mornings this summer, he’s up before sunrise to meet the coach at 4:45 a.m., his mother said, and on other days, he trains for three hours in the afternoon.
Githutu overcame a setback last April while competing as a Special Olympics athlete at an Amateur American Power Federation weightlifting event in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. His powerlifting squat was subpar for what Githutu is capable of, Porter said.
He powerlifted 185 pounds in his squat compared to the 205 pounds he has lifted when training, Porter said.
It was disappointing given that squat is Githutu’s favorite lift.
“He got a little nervous,” Porter said. “And this is where I push my kids. I let him have it (saying) I knew what he was capable of. And then he just flipped a switch and just had a real good (performance) in the next lifts.”
In those next lifts, the 18-year-old bench pressed 153 pounds and deadlifted 253 pounds.
Sometimes he surprises himself, a smiling Githutu said.
Githutu’s performance qualified him for the England competition.
A total of $2,250 had been pledged to the Go-Fund Me campaign on Thursday.
Credit: Jenni Girtman
Credit: Jenni Girtman
Early in the pandemic, Githutu didn’t have access to weights and exercised with gallon containers filled with juices, milk or water, Esther Githutu said.
She said that while her son has always been a confident person, realizing what he can accomplish through weightlifting has given him a greater sense of himself.
“He never used to know danger, now he has more of an awareness,” she said. “He has more self-discipline. It’s really made him grow up. And everyone loves him. He just has a good heart.”
Credit: Jenni Girtman
Credit: Jenni Girtman
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