Krzysztof Wierzbicki completed the lift with lifting straps and a sumo stance.
Krzysztof Wierzbicki is a Polish powerlifter that might be flirting with the heaviest deadlift of all-time. In a recent video, the powerlifter is seen completing an eye-opening 502.5kg (1,107.8lb) deadlift during a training session. He completed the lift with lifting straps and in a sumo stance.
Wierzbicki shared the video during an Instagram story. He is seen stepping up to the weight looking to build on other massive lifts accomplished recently. Just this month, Wierzbicki was seen pulling 490kg (1,080.3lb) and 461kg (1,016.3lb) on separate occasions.
While this is already an unofficial lift, where does it rank with the other deadlifts of all-time?
Anytime a lift of this caliber is achieved, Eddie Hall and Hafthor Bjornsson have to be mentioned. Hall became the first strongman to achieve the ultimate 500kg club, setting a new world record at the time. This was later broken by Bjornsson, who set a new mark with a lift of 501kg.
Both Hall and Bjornsson are former World’s Strongest Man champions and considered two of the best to ever do it. Bjornsson’s deadlift world record has stood since May 2, 2020.
When looking at the lift accomplished by Krzysztof Wierzbicki, there are a few glaring differences. First, this was done in a training session and not a sanctioned competition. Second, Wierzbicki approaches the bar with a sumo stance rather than a conventional stance. This has become a controversial topic in deadlifting because of the differences in the stance.
The sumo stance allows the lifter to get a wider base and the weight does not have to travel as far. Sumo stances are not legal in strongman, which is why both Hall and Bjornsson use conventional styles. Wierzbicki does not compete in strongman at this time.
The lift accomplished by Wierzbicki was achieved a bit more raw than that of Hall and Bjornsson. This is not considered a completely-raw lift because Wierbicki did use straps. However, he did not have a lifting suit on at the time. Danny Grigsby recently achieved the heaviest deadlift in a powerlifting meet. This was a 465kg (1,025.2lb) lift during the Virginia Beach Classic 2 in March.
It is unknown if Krzysztof Wierzbicki would be able to approach the numbers of Hall and Bjornsson with a conventional stance but nonetheless, this is an impressive lift regardless of stance.
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