The professional powerlifting scene is witnessing a wave of brand new amazing athletes in the sport and the newest one comes from Wales. The 2023 GPC-GB Welsh National Championships took place on April 30th, 2023, in Swansea, and Laura Sancho stood out as a notable competitor. Laura competed in the Knee With Wraps division and won the female division overall. However, that was not the peak of her experience, since she also set a new British Raw Deadlift Record in the 82-kilogram weight class.
Laura Sancho started off with a relatively light deadlift of 230 kilograms (507 pounds), which was just enough to fire her up for the next two attempts. She immediately broke the British Record on the second attempt of 250 kilograms (551.1 pounds), but that was not enough for her.
Laura Sancho decided to load 263 kilograms (579.8 pounds) for her third and final attempt. After approaching the barbell with just some chalk and a lifting belt, Laura positioned herself perfectly for a conventional stance pull. She then grabbed the bar with a mixed grip, pulled out the slack, and crushed her third attempt for a new U82.5KG British Record.
The previous British record was also in Laura Sancho’s possession, as she lifted 247.5 kilograms (545.6 pounds) at the 2022 GPC-GB British Finals. So, with almost six months of preparation, Laura managed to add 15.5 kilograms (34.2 pounds) to her deadlift.
Watch the lift here:
Related: Powerlifter Reece Fullwood (125KG) Sets 412.5-kg (909.4-lb) Raw Squat All-Time World Record
Laura Sancho’s Full Performance
Laura Sancho weighed in at exactly 80 kilograms (176.4 pounds) for the 2023 GPC-GB Welsh National Championships. In addition, she only missed two of her squat attempts, but still came out with new competition PRs in every event.
Squat
- 200 kilograms (440.9 pounds) — Competition PR
- Unsuccessful — 220 kilograms (485 pounds)
- Unsuccessful — 220 kilograms (485 pounds)
Bench Press
- 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds)
- 107.5 kilograms (237 pounds)
- 112.5 kilograms (248 pounds) — Competition PR
Deadlift
- 230 kilograms (507 pounds)
- 250 kilograms (551.1 pounds)
- 263 kilograms (579.8 pounds) — U82.5KG British Record & Competition PR
Total — 575.5 kilograms (1,268.7 pounds) — Competition PR
Related: Powerlifter Hunter Henderson Smashes 501-lb (227.2-kg) Raw Conventional Deadlift PR
Laura Sancho’s Competition History
Personal Bests
| Equip | Squat | Bench | Deadlift | Total | Dots |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wraps | 440.9 | 226 | 440.9 | 1196 | 507.12 |
| Raw | 209.4 | 209.4 | 88.91 |
Competition Results
| Place | Fed | Date | Competition | Division | Total | Dots | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | GPC-Scotland | 2022-11-27 | Sultans of Squat | F-O | 396.8 | 168.46 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | GPC-Scotland | 2022-11-27 | Bench Gathering | F-O | 209.4 | 88.91 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | GPC-GB | 2022-11-19 | British Finals | F-O | 1196 | 507.12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | GPC-GB | 2021-11-27 | British Finals | F-O | 1041.7 | 460.85 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 1 | GPC-GB | 2021-06-26 | Scottish Championship | F-O | 903.9 | 393.35 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Data Source: Open Powerlifting. Last Updated: April 12, 2023
Laura Sancho has been competing for less than two years, but she has already accumulated six sanctioned appearances. What is even more impressive is that she is still holding a perfect streak, having won each of the six competitions. Moreover, her recent 263-kilogram (579.8-pound) raw deadlift is the Fourth-Heaviest in the world at her weight class of 82.5 kilograms. So, she is getting close to the World Record territory as well.
We do not know what Laura Sancho’s future plans are at this time. Nonetheless, as she has seen improvement in all events, she is likely to continue to raise her goals and chase records in the future.