Top British powerlifter Sophia Ellis is in preparation for the upcoming International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) 2023 Classic World Championships on June 11-18, in Valletta, Malta. She recently shared some of her training via a video on her Instagram page, wherein she performed a sumo deadlift of 235 kilograms (518 pounds) for a double. Ellis’ deadlift double is only 5.5 kilograms (12 pounds) lower than the European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) raw deadlift record that she currently holds in the 76-kilogram (168-pound) weight class. Suffice it to say, lifting like this in the gym bodes wel ..read more

The 2023 European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) Equipped Championships occurred May 2-7, 2023, in Thisted, Denmark, and were dominated by one team: Ukraine. Long regarded as one of the top nations in the field of equipped powerlifting, Ukraine won all but one of the team awards. Team points are awarded for each lifter who achieves a top 10 position in their respective weight class: 12 points for first place, nine points for second place, eight points for third place, and so on, down to a single point for 10th place. Best lifter awards were also given based on GL* points across w ..read more

Mary Duffy continuously proves that age is but a number. The 73-year-old constantly increases her strength in the gym and competes as a Masters powerlifter in the 56-kilogram weight class. And she continues to push herself in training to perform better in sanctioned meets. On May 20, 2023, Duffy shared a video on her Instagram page, wherein she attempted to deadlift 83.9 kilograms (185 pounds) on the barbell with an additional 58.9 kilograms (130 pounds) of chains, totaling 142.9 kilograms (315 pounds) at lockout. Check it out below:             View this po ..read more

Powerlifter Jamal Browner is training for his strongman debut in September, and that includes a heavy focus on conventional deadlifts. Given his performance in the 2022 USPA Pro Raw Championship, when he pulled 455 kilograms (1,003 pounds), Browner is capable of deadlifting with some of the world’s top strongmen. On May 13, 2023, Browner published a video to his YouTube channel describing how to properly perform a conventional deadlift. (Unlike in sanctioned powerlifting competitions, strongman contests do not allow sumo deadlifts. ) Check out his tips for deadlifting in the video below a ..read more

Powerlifter Jamal Browner is undeniably one of the best deadlifters on the planet. The 27-year-old phenom has pulled everything from 426.4 kilograms (940 pounds) to a milestone 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) and is the current raw world record holder in the 110-kilogram class with his 455-kilogram (1,003.1-pound) pull at the 2022 USPA Pro Raw Championships. Part of how Browner has accomplished his numerous competition victories and world record deadlifts is his diet. As the adage goes, “You can’t out-train a bad diet.” Browner posted a video on his YouTube channel on April 29, 2023, documenting ..read more

You can tell an athlete is deadlifting some serious weight when the barbell starts to bend with each rep. And that’s exactly what happened when 125-kilogram powerlifter Shane Hunt pulled a 420-kilogram (926-pound) triple PR in training. The set was captured on camera and posted to Hunt’s Instagram page on May 7, 2023. Hunt pulled the weight three times in a sumo stance, wearing lifting straps and a lifting belt. Check it out below:             View this post on Instagram                       ..read more

Elite 47-kilogram powerlifter Heather Connor is training for the upcoming International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) 2023 Classic World Championships. She shared some training lifts on her Instagram page recently, including a video wherein she exceeded her own IPF raw deadlift world record twice. Her first deadlift was 190 kilograms (419 pounds); her second was an incredible 195 kilograms (430 pounds). Connor has held the world record raw squat at 47-kilograms since 2017 and has pushed it up twice since then. Her most recent jump of the record came at the 2022 IPF Classic World Championships ..read more

Daria Rusanenko is the new queen of the equipped squat at 84-kilograms. The 22-year-old lifted in the Open class at the 2023 European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) European Equipped Championships in Thisted, Denmark, during the first week of May. Rusanenko was part of a very successful Ukrainian team. Although still a Junior, she took the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) Open world record with an assured-looking 276-kilogram (608.5-pound) single-ply squat. During the lift, Rusaneko wore a lifting suit, wrist wraps, knee wraps, and a lifting belt. The squat can be seen in the video b ..read more

Is there any better way for a two-time Super Bowl champion to celebrate their 45th birthday than by loading an endless number of weight plates on a barbell and crushing a new personal record bench press? Former NFL linebacker James Harrison doesn’t seem to think so. On May 2, 2023, Harrison posted a video on his Instagram page wherein he successfully locked out a staggering 545-pound raw bench press two days before his 45th birthday. Check it out below:             View this post on Instagram                 &nbs ..read more

It sounds silly at first, sure: When you think of work capacity, your mind calls forth images of sweat pouring down your face, your heart pounding in your chest, and the ominous, authoritative beeping of a stopwatch that signals it’s time to do another round of throws, or sprints, or whatevers.  If you hit the gym because you like working yourself to a pulp, those things might sound alluring. But — at first glance, at least — they’re the antithesis of powerlifting. The powerlifter pursues only an ever-heavier barbell; how long they can hold it or how many reps they can pump out are of no ..read more