February digest: Incredible stories

Despite the turbulent days, let’s look to a brighter future with hope and confidence. In strength sports that is largely determined by your success in this aspect of life!

Never give up

In Junw 2021, Chinese weightlifter Tian Tao announced that he was leaving the professional sport due to a lack of opportunities with his national team. For 10 years and after being one of China’s best athletes there just wasn’t any room left for him because of new weight categories on this year’s Tokyo Olympic roster!

Tao has always been a world-class weightlifter. At the 2016 Olympics in Rio, he set an impressive new record for 85kg category with 217 kilograms of clean and jerk. The Clean & jerk world record for the 96kg weight class still belongs to Tao with 231 kg!

When it comes to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Tao will face tough competition due to combining two weight categories of 81 and 96 kg. But results from international competitions promise that his return will be too loud!

Age is just a condition

When you’re David Ricks, powerlifting is all about setting records and breaking barriers. He’s done it again! At the Boynton Barbell Center he did two 325kg squats (716 lbs) for one set – 3 times his own weight classed up by five observers as well who were amazed at how strong this 62 year man.

David has world records in  back squat (maximum 325.5 kg), bench press (210 kg) and deadlift (310 kg) in weight categories 90, 93, 100 kg and age master categories 50–54, 55–59, 60–64 years old.

If you’re looking to get closer to Rick’s performance level, try the MASTER STRENGTH training program from Olympic weightlifter Oleksiy Torokhtiy for athletes aged +35.

New powerlifting records

Wow! Iranian powerlifter Danial Zamani has set a new bench press world record of 365kg. True, the achievement was recorded only on an amateur video that he posted onto Instagram.

Zamani’s weight is given with difficulty, but without super effort. Danial said he was ready to try it again at official competitions and fix a world record! His only demand for such events are invitations from other top athletes so these can truly feel like legitimate challenges.”

In June 2021, Zamani made his powerlifting debut in a competition and benched 330kg (727 pounds). He increased the weight quickly until he broke world records with it!

How to become a champion at 9 years old

When Ivey Miller was just nine years old, she became a three-time national champion in weightlifting. Even during quarantine 2020, the English girl trained and looked at her mother for inspiration despite being quarantined herself! The girl is a natural born winner.

She won the English Championships in February 2021 in her age category, which were held online and then British Championship again but this time with virtual judges! And lastly she took first place at North Yorkshire’s traditional competitive ones – all under normal conditions where everyone can see how awesome you really are.”