Logrolling leader champions sport and connection
June 11, 2025
| By La Crosse Community Foundation |
Livi Pappadopoulos, founder of Coulee Region Logrolling, is a world champion logroller. Here, she just rolled her way to her sixth win at the 2024 Logrolling World Championship in Hayward, Wisconsin.
World Champion logroller growing a sport and strengthening a community
Livi Pappadopolous doesn’t just keep her balance on a log — she’s also mastered the art of building and sustaining a thriving community. As founder and director of Coulee Region Logrolling, and a six-time Logrolling World Champion, Pappadopolous has turned a niche sport into a network of athletes, families, and fans.
Through Coulee Region Logrolling, she’s created a space where recreational rollers, competitive youth, and seasoned pros can sharpen their skills, challenge themselves, and keep the sport spinning year-round. But beyond the thrill of the competition, Livi finds it personally rewarding to build connections — between athletes, within the sport, and across the broader logrolling world.
Why was it important to you to create Coulee Region Logrolling?
Logrolling has a rich history in the Coulee Region dating back to the early 1980s. Seven-time World Champion Judy Hoeschler started the world’s first indoor logrolling program at the La Crosse Y, which quickly sparked love for logrolling from community members. Since then, the Y program, La Crosse Area Log Rolling Association, Park and Rec classes and annual events have blossomed, along with an exceptional team of coaches and athletes who travel to the World Championships each year.
I started rolling at the Y when I was eight years old and was fortunate to participate in many of the local programs and tournaments growing up, which led to my passion for logrolling at a very young age. As a teenager, I found myself helping out with the younger kids at tournaments and eventually developed a love for coaching that was equally as strong as my love for logrolling.
Logrolling is a really fun sport to learn. I knew it could flourish in our area even further by uniting programs and coaches, growing tournaments, and building community: this idea inspired “Coulee Region Logrolling” in 2017. That year, I started the “Holmen Summer Splash” event for beginners, which has grown from 16 participants in its first year to more than 80 in 2024. In the following years, I started the Advanced Youth Logrolling Workshop and Jingle Bell Roll series.
How has logrolling helped you expand your social connections and community engagement?
Through my work with Coulee Region Logrolling, I’ve been blessed to develop relationships with countless kids and families. More importantly, the growth of Coulee Region Logrolling has contributed to a thriving community of young people who lift each other and help each other succeed. It’s just a wonderful group to be a part of and I’m so proud of all of my kids’ growth and support for one another.
On a larger scale, I’ve substantially broadened my personal social connections and community engagement in recent years with community partnerships. As our tournament and program numbers have skyrocketed, we’ve gained immense support from local businesses and organizations. Through this networking, I’ve attended new events, become acquainted with fantastic business owners and leaders in the La Crosse community, and learned more about what our area has to offer. Consequently, giving back, staying active in the community, and fostering relationships with individuals and groups who have given so much to us has become incredibly valuable to me.
Who is a woman that inspires you to continue doing the work you do?
Along the way, I’ve looked up to countless women who have shaped who I am and what I do as a community member and leader today. I have always looked up to World Champion women’s log rollers, my coach Leah, my awesome training partner Emily, all of the women in my family, and even the driven young girls I coach.
One woman who has truly impacted my life like no other is my mom, Polly Pappadopoulos. As a little girl, I really struggled in school and behaviorally at home, but she never gave up on me. She believed in me when the other adults in my life did not, which is the only reason I am able to lead, coach, or even log roll at all. Her faith in me has inspired me to believe in every kiddo that comes my way, even if they don’t follow instructions or behave like the other kids.