It’s been roughly six weeks since Kaiden Mima rose to the top of the podium to pose with his second career National University Weightlifting national championship medal. On the Tuesday just after the Memorial Day holiday, Mima answers a phone call while on his way to the gym – of course. Rest assured, Mima is not resting on his laurels. His summer schedule includes work Monday through Friday at a youth summer camp where he teaches jujitsu, wrestling and science. He’s back in his hometown of Colorado Springs, allowing him to continue his athletic pursuits in the place that birthed his passion for competitive lifting.
Concordia Athletics featured Mima in April 2025 (see HERE), but his story has only gotten better since then. Not only did Mima repeat as a collegiate national champion, he did so while breaking American collegiate records across the board for his weight class – snatch, clean & jerk and total.
“It was pretty expected going in,” says Mima confidently. “I had talked to (Concordia Head Coach) Freddie (Myles) about it beforehand, and we kind of knew that I was going to hit the record. I wanted to open with the record, which I ended up doing. I was happy with it but not quite satisfied with it. I left a few kilos on the platform. I wish I would have been able to raise the bar a little bit more. Overall, it was still an amazing experience and I’m thankful that I had the opportunity to compete and set those records. I still have the opportunity to break them again and put them up higher.”
In his very first semester (spring 2025) as a Bulldog weightlifter, Mima went to Columbus, Ohio, and won his first national championship. Standing at 5-foot-6 and weighing in at 60 kilograms (roughly 132 pounds), Mima packs a punch. His lifts at the ’25 national championships were 96 kg in snatch and 116 kg in clean & jerk for a total of 212 kg. Those numbers soared to 107 kg, 137 kg and 244 kg (total), respectively, at this spring’s University National Championships in Salt Lake City, Utah. He outmuscled the runner-up finisher by nearly 50 total kg.
In Mima’s mind, there is much more yet to come, including at least one additional year of collegiate competition (possibly two), this summer’s 2026 Senior National Championships in Colorado Springs and hopefully the 2026 FISU World University Championship in Doha, Qatar, as a member of Team USA this September. A former JUCO wrestler at Trinidad State College in Colorado, Mima sees no end in sight when it comes to competitive lifting.
Late in the month of May, the Biology major is enjoying a break from classes, but not from his strict training regimen. When back in Colorado Springs, Mima works closely with Jackie Black, a national team coach well-known in the world of competitive lifting. Mima also keeps in contact with Coach Myles at Concordia.
Says Mima of his summer approach, “I keep it pretty strict. My food stays pretty consistent. I don’t change that much. My water intake is high. I always prioritize my recovery. I can’t afford to not do that. With me being so close to (qualifying for) so many teams and everything, it’s become a priority behind school and my faith. Lifting is definitely one of my top priorities. I want to keep it that way for a long while.”
At this point in his lifting career, Mima has it down to a science. As he explained, his weight typically remains at four or five kilograms above his competition weight. The added weight makes it easier for Mima to increase strength in between events. Mima and Myles know exactly when he needs to begin cutting calories leading up to a competition.
That’s not to say it’s easy. Back in April at the national championships, Mima weighed in at 59.85 kilograms, just under the 60-kilogram requirement for his class. There are dynamics involved that can throw a lifter off the routine – travel being one factor. In this case, the altitude in Salt Lake City was another.
“This was probably one of the roughest lead-ups to a competition that I’ve had,” Mima said. “My weight was not dropping off as I would have liked and I ended up having to cut a little more closer to the time of my weigh-in than I would have liked. I definitely felt it the morning of the competition. I felt like I was going to be sick until I finally got some food in me. It worked out. I had a pretty solid day – 4-for-6 and I beat second place by about 46 kilos – or just under 100 pounds. It was definitely a good day. Salt Lake City is a difficult place to compete given the elevation difference, but it ended up working out pretty well.”
Mima overcomes such challenges through superior mental and physical preparation and through his faith. Coaches like Myles emphasize that success on the day of competition is a byproduct of the training and processes required to achieve on such a level. Says Myles, “Kaiden’s very impressive improvement is a result of his continued hard work in the gym and his diligence with nutrition, recovery and mental preparation.”
In 2025-26, Mima had the added advantage of having one semester under his belt at Concordia. In the transition from Trinidad to Concordia, Mima learned to adjust to a challenging course load combined with the rigors of life as a student-athlete. Through a semester-and-a-half, Mima can pinpoint just how much he’s grown in the area of time management. His study habits are better and he’s stronger and more confident than ever.
That confidence comes from knowing he’s now been there and done it before in a competitive venue. As Mima says, “I showed that I am the best in my weight class for collegiate athletes and that I am here to make some noise.”
Mima hopes to make a racket in late June in his hometown. Let the ‘cutting’ process begin. About a month out from a competition, Mima cuts his food/drink intake by 300 calories on heavy workout days and by 600 calories on recovery days. He trusts the process, even when he wakes up half a kilogram overweight on the day of the competition. No bacon or eggs on those mornings.
“My home coach and Freddie have really helped me dial into where I need to be at by a certain day,” Mima said. “They really believe that the less time I have to spend cutting the better because it’s less time I have to spend recovering from losing all that weight. Usually the last week before competition is where I see a drastic change in my weight. I usually drop about two or two-and-a-half kilos that week before competition.”
By the time the competition arrives, Mima is ready to dominate his weight class. First, a prayer helps relax him and prepare him mentally to step onto the platform.
Says Mima of the role of faith in his success, “It’s insanely important and Concordia has only emphasized that. Every time we go to competition or practice, we always start with a prayer, which I think helps me more than anything. It gets me in the right mindset. I’m not here for me. I’m here to glorify the Lord with the gifts that He’s given me. I use that as a reminder to not get overconfident and not get egotistical. I need to remain humble. While I am currently the best in college, it’s not my work that’s done it. It’s Jesus. It’s the good Lord.”
Lord willing, Mima will be headed to Qatar in September. More details on the FISU World University Championships can be found HERE.