Air Force Veteran returns to the Golden Age Games with strength, faith and fight
Terrence “Terry” Munoz hasn’t competed in powerlifting in over 20 years. Life brought injuries, retirement, family, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and two bouts with cancer.
However, when he found out about Golden Age National Veterans Gamesone thought kept coming back to him: “I think I have one more meeting left.”
Power above the bar
At 58, the Air Force veteran from Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, arrived in Tampa, presenting Ralph H. Johnson VA Health Care System in Charleston. A former C-141 master, Munoz said fitness has been a constant throughout his life, even when gyms were hard to find during deployments to places like Somalia and the Middle East.
Today, power means much more than numbers on a bar.
For Munoz, resistance training is a discipline. That’s recovery. It is a spiritual balance. It’s a way to fight back when life adds weight that can’t be measured in kilograms.
Recently diagnosed with cancer for the second time, Munoz said VA doctors caught it early and worked with him to be able to compete before radiation treatment began.
“They told me, ‘Go compete in Tampa. Go make your mark. Go do your thing,'” Munoz recalled.
That support meant everything.
“The VA has saved my life more than once,” Munoz said. “Now I can live my life supporting other veterans.”
At the Games, Munoz found more than competition. He found smiles, energy and a familiar sense of belonging.
“There is an understanding,” Munoz noted. “There’s a spirituality to it. And in the end, you face your game. You’re all friends again.”
His return to powerlifting is not the pursuit of the man he once was. It’s about honoring the man he is now, a husband, a father, a veteran and a fighter who is still ready to step on the platform.
Another lift
Munoz said his strategy is simple: finish the first lift, trust your training and go out with your strength.
“When that weight feels inhuman and your brain is screaming, ‘What are you thinking?'” Munoz encouraged, “It’s time to go for a ride.”
For other veterans, Munoz’s message is just as clear.
“Put your game face on. Compete. Take it off and smile,” Munoz encouraged him. “Enjoy the camaraderie. That’s why we’re here.”
After two decades out of competition, Munoz didn’t come to Tampa looking back. He came to test himself, represent South Carolina and stand with fellow veterans. Because, as he said, “that weight will not lift itself”.
