Tag: powerlifting
100-Year-Old Edith Murway-Traina Becomes Oldest Competitive Powerlifter
On her 100th birthday, Edith Murway-Traina set a world record becoming the oldest competitive powerlifter.
They saw age is just a number. This is especially true for Edith Murway-Traina.
At 100 years old, Murway-Traina is the oldest competitive powerlifter breaking the world record, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. She turned 100 on Aug. 8 and was able to celebrate her birthday by accomplishing something great.
“Lifting weights upwards of 40-150 pounds, Edith is smashing the competitive powerlifting circuit, dazzling viewers and judges alike with her graceful lifts,” a Guinness World Record press release says.
Amazingly, Edith Murway-Traina was not always a powerlifter. She grew up as a dancer and eventually went onto teach the art. She idolized the likes of Shirley Temple and Ginger Rogers. This led her to dance and it ended up being a road to powerlifting. Through dance, she met Carmen Gutworth, who introduced her to the gym at 91 years old. This is when Murway-Traina began training in the gym.
Murway-Traina did not always plan to become a competitive lifter. Once she began lifting at the gym, she enjoyed it so much that competing seemed like the best logical move.
“While I was watching those ladies doing their thing, I thought I just as well should pick up a few bars, and I did,” Murway-Traina said.
“Going on a regular basis, I found that I was enjoying it, and I was challenging myself to get a little bit better and a little bit better. Before long, I was part of the team.”
She last competed in 2019 when she was 98 years old. Murway-Traina was forced to take a break from competing due to the COVID-19 pandemic but she is not finished just yet. Murway-Traina plans to return to competition in November and she will continue to extend her record moving forward.
“As a performer and a dancer, applause was always a very important part of my enjoyment,” Murway-Traina said. “As long as I could get a little bit of applause, I was happier each I time I got more and more applause. Once people found out I was in my nineties and I was doing all of these things, it got to be more noticeable. People got to pay attention more.”
This happened right away as Murway-Traina began racking up trophies and recognition during her early days as a powerlifter.
Below, Edith Murway-Traina’s record-breaking lifts can be seen in a recent YouTube video on the Guinness World Records page. While continuing to total some personal achievements, Murway-Traina is showing that it is never too late to get into something new. More importantly, it is never too late to better yourself and accomplish personal goals.
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Lasha Talakhadze Sets Three World Records at 2020 Olympic Games
Powerlifter Lasha Talakhadze set three world records during the finals of the Men’s +109-kg category.
The Olympic Games is a time for athletes in many different sports from all around the world to show off what they can do. On the biggest stage, Georgian weightlifter Lasha Talakhadze did just that. On Wednesday, Talakhadze set three world records during the finals of the +109-kg category.
Talakhadze totaled 488kg (1,075.8lb) in two lifts. It began with a 223-kg (491.6lb) snatch followed by a 265-kg (584.2) clean & jerk. All three were good for new world records as the 27-year-old notched his second gold medal at the Olympic Games. He also finished at the top during the 2016 Games in Rio.
Lasha Talakhadze took to Instagram to celebrate his newest gold medal.
Ali Davoudi of Iran finished as the silver medalist while Syria’s Man Assad took home the bronze. At this point, Talakhadze seems to be in a league of his on. He dominated his way through his lifts by performing three consecutive in each round and did not miss any of his six attempts. Talakhadze set new Olympic records with each lifts and broke his own world records on the final attempt in each round.
Is Lasha Talakhadze the best powerlifter in the world? It is hard to argue against a reigning two-time Olympic champion but he has seen great success in other competitions. Talakhadze has finished at the top in every international event he has competed in since 2015. He has won five times at the European Championships and four times at the World Championships. Prior to 2015, Talakhadze picked up international victories at the European Junior Championships in 2011 and Junior World Championships in 2013.
Talakhadze had to serve a two-year ban for testing positive for stanozolol in 2013 but he has made up for it and them some. He has totaled nine records in the snatch, four in the clean & jerk, and eight overall.
This is not the end of the road for Lasha Talakhadze and why would it be? He has dominated for six years now since returning from his suspension. Talakhadze will more than likely enter the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris as the favorite looking to make some more noise and potentially set new records once again. Talakhadze has been at the top of the sport and it is looking like he is not going to fall anytime soon.
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Sarah Robles Wins Bronze At 2020 Olympic Games
American weightlifter Sarah Robles took home the bronze medal in Tokyo.
Sarah Robles went into Monday’s final in the Women’s +87-kg category at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo looking to return to the medal stand. After a strong performance, Robles earned bronze for the second-straight Olympics and became the first U.S. woman to win two Olympic weightlifting medals.
It was a competition full of storylines, headlined by Laurel Hubbard and her journey to become the first transgender athlete to compete in the Olympic Games. By the end of the day, Robles had stole the show.
Robles successfully completed five of her six lifts to total 282-kg (621.7lb). She went three-for-three on snatches, with her final attempt being 128-kg (282.1lb). Robles then completed a clean & jerk of 154-kg (339.5lb). She missed on her sixth and final attempt of the day. This allowed British weightlifter Emily Campbell to erase a deficit and earn silver. China’s Li Wenwen took home gold in the competition.
Sarah Robles has been one of the best powerlifters for the U.S. for nearly a decade. At 33 years old, Robles became the oldest American woman to medal at the Olympics and the second-oldest to compete. She finished sixth at the 2012 London Olympics and earned bronze during the 2016 Rio Games.
The success for Robles has not just taken place at the Olympics. Since 2009, she has represented America at the World Weightlifting Championships. This includes three gold medals in 2017 in the snatch, clean & jerk, and total. Robles has also seen great success at the Pan American Championships, where she has won overall four years in a row from 2017-2020.
Robles took to Instagram to celebrate her medal. Her performance came just one day after her birthday.
This victory solidified Sarah Robles as one of the all-time greats in American powerlifting. It is unknown if she will compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris but if this performance was any indication, it looks like there are plenty of good years of competing left in the tank for Robles.
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Shi Zhiyong Sets New World Record With 364kg Total Lift At 2020 Olympics
Shi Zhiyong won gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after setting a world record in the 73kg category.
The Olympics is a time for athletes to showcase their skills on the biggest stage while competing for their country. That is exactly what Chinese weightlifter Shi Zhiyong has been doing during these games. On Wednesday, Zhiyong won the gold medal in the Men’s 73kg category and set a new world record by lifting a total of 364kg (802.4lb).
Shi Zhiyong grabbed the fourth gold medal of China in weightlifting. You Zhihui (49kg), Li Fabin (61kg), and Chen Lijun (67kg) have all come out on top in their respective categories. Zhiyong joined them with yet another record performance. He previously held the Olympic record from his performance at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Zhiyong began his performance with a 166kg snatch. He currently holds the world record of 169kg but did not attempt to break it here. Zhiyong followed that up by going for the world record of 198kg in the clean and jerk. This is a record he already set at 192kg during the 2019 World Weightlifting Championships. Zhiyong successfully performed the lift and this also clinched the overall world record.
Venezuela’s Julio Reben Mayora Pernia took home the silver medal but finished an eye-popping 18kg behind Zhiyong. Indonesia’s Rahmat Abdullah too home the bronze medal as a competitor in the Group B session. USA’s CJ Cummings attempted a 198kg clean and jerk that would have landed him in third place but the lift was failed.
Shi Zhiyong continues to rack up the medals. Since 2012, Zhiyong has totaled 10 gold medals in International competition. He was won four golds at the Asian Championships and three at the World Championships. Zhiyong also won gold at the IWF World Cup in 2019 and Olympic Games in 2016 and 2020.
At 27 years old, Zhiyong has plenty left in the tank to keep competing internationally moving forward. The sport of weight lifting is in a good place when looking at the young talent and that includes Mayora and Cummings. All other competitors have been vying for the top spot that has been held by Zhiyong for years now. He has not been defeated in international competition since his debut back in 2012.
Shi Zhiyong is now a two-time defending champion at the Olympic Games. With the competition being held in Paris in 2024, Zhiyong will have a chance to defend his title once again.
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Iron Biby Sets New Axle Press World Record With 217kg Lift
Cheick Al-Hassan Sanou, known as “Iron Biby”, set a new world record at the 2021 Strongman Classic.
Cheick Al-Hassan Sanou has made a name for himself in the strongman community as “Iron Biby.” On Saturday, Sanou lived up to that nickname by setting a new world record in the Axle Press. Sanou stepped up to the platform and accomplished a 217kg (478.4lb) lift during the 2021 Strongman Classic at Royal Albert Hall in London.
Sanou completed the lift with an overhand/underhand grip and locked out his arms at the top. The judge gave the down command and by the time the weight hit the floor, Iron Biby broke a record that has been in place for four years.
Eddie Hall previously held the record of 216kg that was set during the 2017 Europe’s Strongman contest. Hall topped the 215kg lift accomplished by Zydrunas Savickas in 2011. This marked the second straight instance where this world record has been broken by one kilogram.
Hall took to Instagram to congratulate Sanou and by his words, it is no surprise that Iron Biby was able to break the record.
“Well done to @ironbiby for breaking my world record axle press last night at 217kg ?Iv seen him do 230kg in training at his home gym, but this is where it counts ? ?#Competition #Strongman #Beast#WorldRecord #GiantsLiveBig LoveTeam Beast”
Sanou has completed an unofficial overhead lift of 240kg (529lb) so it is no surprise that he was able to set the new world record. Iron Biby has been making some noise in the powerlifting game for years now. He claimed first place at the World Log Lift Championship 2018 and log lift at the Europe Strongest Man 2019.
Over the weekend, Sanou took home the third place prize overall. Oleksii Novikov, who won the 2020 World’s Strongest Man competition, finished first overall while Evan Singleton was second.
It was a special moment for Sanou and one that he will never forget. This is something he took the time to cherish on social media.
Sanou began his long post by describing the moment and taking time to acknowledge Hall.
“WHAT A SPECIAL NIGHT ✨Was an honor to compete at ROYAL ALBERT HALL . It’s is an iconic arena and the right place for me to Break axle the world record owned by the beast @eddiehallwsm . He is a great man and he inspired to do it . God bless him??Will never forget this day .”
Sanou could have his eye on some more records moving forward. For now, the Axle Press record is his and it will be a tough one to top.
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Powerlifter Otis Perkins Has Passed Away
Otis Perkins, who was involved in a car accident last week, has passed away.
Powerlifter Otis Perkins has passed away from complications from pneumonia on Saturday. Perkins was involved in a car accident on July 11 and rushed to the hospital. He sustained major injuries from the accident and required surgery.
Otis Perkins caught a high fever and ran into complications with his lungs during his time in the hospital. There was not enough air getting to his lungs because of the pneumonia and this caused his heart to fail. Perkins passed away on Saturday morning.
Following the accident, there was a GoFundMe page set up where all of the proceeds were to be send to Perkins to cover medical expenses and long-term care.
Larry Williams, a powerlifter and friend of Perkins, took to Instagram to pay tribute to Perkins.
“@black_tom_cruiseThe man brought laughs everywhere he went. Funniest man I ever met. He possessed all the traits of a GREAT friend.I love him and hold him closer to almost anyone I know. It hurts to accept he’s gone.No matter what life threw at him he kept a smile and his head held high. Otis Perkins you will be missed”
Otis Perkins made a name for himself in the powerlifting game by performing great feats of strength, both in competitions and on Instagram. He grew as a well-known figure in the sport and made many friends while competing.
Generation Iron will continue to update this piece as more information becomes available as no official source has confirmed the death or details at this time.
Generation Iron send out condolences to the friends and family of Otis Perkins during this difficult time. For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Greg has covered the four major sports for six years and has been featured on sites such as Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports, SB Nation, NJ.com, and FanSided. Now, he is transitioning into the world of bodybuilding and strength sports.
Chris Craft Shows Off Massive 317.5 Squats Without Belt Or Knee Sleeves
Chris Craft posted a recent video on Instagram where he performed huge squats without much help.
No knee sleeves, no belt, no problem for Chris Craft. When it comes to squats, Craft has always been a bit of a freak. Craft took home the prize during the 2021 United States Powerlifting Association Arkansas Powerlifting competition. On Wednesday, Craft took to Instagram to show that he is still in top shape.
Chris Craft performed a 317.5kg (700lb) squat for a double and did it without wearing knee sleeves or a belt.
Not only did Craft load up the weight on the bar and do it raw, he made it look easy in the process. Craft is forced to pause after each rep because of the weight shaking on the bended bar. This is because of the burst that Craft displayed when performing the lift.
This was not the only lift performed on Wednesday by Craft. He also shared a single rep of 319.8kg (705lb). Craft’s best competition squats was 320kg (705.4lb). It seems as though Craft is heading for some big things in the future.
Chris Craft has been a star in the game for half a decade now. Since 2015, Craft has competed in five sanctioned powerlifting competitions and has won gold in all of them. Craft did not share his bodyweight in his recent Instagram video but it is safe to assume that the weight on the bar was more than double his current weight.
The last three competitions Craft has competed in were the 2019 USPA Rhino Iron Massacre, 2021 Southern Powerlifting Federation (SPF) Proving Ground Classic, and the aforementioned USPA Arkansas Powerlifting Championships. He competed in the 140kg (308lb) weight class during these.
Chris Craft’s caption on his recent video was as simple as it gets. He wrote “700 lbs x 2 #RespectTheDepth”.
“Respect the Depth” is a tribute to a training program created by Craft that is centered around squats. Reading int between the lines of this caption, Craft makes a 700-lb squat seem like nothing and it hints that he might have bigger numbers in mind moving forward.
If social media is any indication, it looks like Chris Craft performs squats in the gym on a daily basis. His Instagram page is loaded with videos performing some massive lifts. More often than not, Craft is performing these lifts without any gear. It is unknown when Craft plans to take the stage again at a competition but when he does, there is a chance that he does something special.
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WATCH: Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller Sets Female Bench Press World Record Of 274.4kg
Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller recently set the all-time female bench press world record of 274.4kg.
Records are meant to be broken and over the weekend, a long-standing female record was surpassed. The 2021 Metal Militia (MM) National Power Lifting Invitational took place from July 17-18 at the Bayfront Convention Center in Erie, PA. Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller stole the show when she set a new world record for female bench press with a 274.4kg (605lb) lift.
Becca Swanson held the previous record of 272.5kg (600.8lb). This was set back on March 8, 2008 at the 2008 American Powerlifting Federation Big Iron In-House Open. Swanson was at the top of the lift for an eye-opening 13 years and four months. Coughneour-Miller was able to set a new record with a lift that was 1.9kg more than Swanson.
Entering the weekend, Coughenour-Miller’s personal best at a competition was 258.5kg (570lb), which took place back in April at the 2020 MM Power Wars. The preparation for this event and eventual world record was not smooth sailing.
Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller addressed some difficulties in her recent Instagram post.
It began with her husband undergoing multiple back surgeries. This forced her to miss out on some training time and when she did train, it was by herself. She skipped out on heavy days and struggled to lift 505lb. Coughenour-Miller’ opening lift at the MM National Power Lifting Invitational was 575lb. She ended up with the heaviest bench press of all-time and made sure to acknowledge Swanson.
“So with no expectations and no idea what to open with we set off for Erie. I decided to go with my original opener of 575. I ended up with 605 lbs. The biggest bench in history. I want to acknowledge @bigbeccaswanson. She has been in my corner for a long time. She was, is and always will be the strongest woman ever,” Coughenour-Miller wrote on instagram.
As part of the Anderson Powerlifting team, Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller is featured with some of the other top lifters in the sport. This includes Jimmy Kolb, who holds the overall world record for heaviest bench press at 508kg (1,120lb).
Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller is one of the top powerlifters going and has done a lot of winning since 2013. She has won gold in 18 of her last 22 sanctioned powerlifting competitions. There will certainly be more added to the collection in future competitions.
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Julius Maddox and Danial Zamani Hit Impressive Bench Press Numbers Over 750Lbs
Julius Maddox and Danial Zamani put up some insane numbers in their recent training.
Julius Maddox and Danial Zamani both hit some insane bench press numbers in recent training. Both powerlifters are on the hunt to hit 800lbs and cement themselves in history. Both have recently put up some insane numbers over 750Lbs (340kgs).
Julius Maddox has been hard at work chasing his dreams of hitting the 800lb bench press. While he may be the current world record holder in the raw bench press, Maddox isn’t content with lifting 782.6lbs, the current record. Maddox is motivated and wants to continue to achieve great things in his powerlifting career. Achieving the 800lb bench press would be just the feat to prove his incredible strength.
But Julius Maddox isn’t the only one who is looking for glory. There is another powerlifter looking to cement his name in history. That powerlifter is Iranian born Danial Zamani.
Recently Danial Zamani and Julius Maddox both put some insanely impressive numbers in their training in the gym. Neither man are showing signs of giving in and both are motivating the other to push themselves to the next level.
Maddox Hits New PR
Julius Maddox as always showed he’s an absolute beast in his recent training. In fact, Maddox put up 750Lbs for two reps, a personal record for the powerlifter.
?PR ALERT? (340kg) 750lbs X 2
Lost traction on the second rep so I racked it for safety. I’m officially ready for 800..
Zamani’s Undeniable Strength
Danial Zamani recently put up an insane 766lb (347.5kg) bench press. He’s closing in on the world record and shows no sign of stopping.
?347.5 kg raw bench press?
As I promised the world and all strength fans I reached my target weight. This weight is dedicated to all my fans and my supporters. Thanks alot from all international pages that post my trainings and motivate me to push more.
It’s not over yet wait for storming start in close future ?
It’s clear that both Julius Maddox and Danial Zamani have what it takes to lift 800lbs. Who will hit the 800lb raw bench press first? That’s anyone’s guess.
What do you think of the strength of Julius Maddox and Danial Zamani?
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Managing Editor at Generation Iron, Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Sound Cloud for in-depth MMA analysis.
How The Spoto Press Can Enhance The Bench Press For Powerlifters
The Spoto Press is one of those bench press variations to really enhance your chest and pushing strength.
For powerlifters and those who just love to put up big weight, we are always looking for ways to really boost our strength so those big PR’s will continue to be greatly enhanced. While benching and benching and more benching may seem like the best option for you, it really isn’t. You have to find fun and engaging ways to continually see growth and this benching method has potential to skyrocket your gains.
The Spoto Press is something you may not have heard of, but you will be glad you did. Designed to enhance the bottom portion of the bench press, this effective method can seriously boost your bench and aid in your powerlifting goals of continually putting up monster weight. This press will make you feel uncomfortable, in a good way, so you get used to really feeling what it’s like to be under that much weight. By increasing time under tension, it will also work your muscles so they are forced to grow.
What Is The Spoto Press?
The Spoto Press was discovered by legendary powerlifter, Eric Spoto, whose specialty is the bench press. What Spoto discovered, and ultimately what the Spoto Press is, is that you can pause at different heights during the benching motion, in particular the bottom. Not only will this enhance the initial pressing motion upwards, but it will work your mid-range section of the lift as well, since isometric work does tend work areas around the targeted spot (1). This will mainly assist you with not getting stuck at the bottom of the bench press.
About Eric Spoto
Eric Spoto is an American powerlifter and arm-wrestler, who mainly specializes in the bench press. He is best known for holding the world record in the raw bench press with a monster lift of 722 lbs. Interested in strength sports at a young age led Spoto to compete in various events. Through increased training and sheer determination, he became a serious force in the powerlifting world, especially when it came to the raw bench press. He currently sits at number three in the world for raw pressers, but his style of training with this press has left his mark on powerlifting with the Spoto Press.
Benefits Of The Spoto Press
With the Spoto Press, you are taking the isometric overload during the motion when you typically are at a weaker point naturally. This forces you to fight the resistance and stabilize the weight, relying on other muscles to activate to keep that weight from falling on you. By engaging muscles like your triceps and shoulders, you will effectively work to lift the weight up, thus enhancing the pressing power of the bottom of the movement (2). By increasing time under tension as well, you are aiding in muscle hypertrophy to see some serious progress with your lifts.
Tips & Effectiveness
For those just starting out, the Spoto Press can work to give you good form, especially at the bottom of the lift where you aren’t naturally the strongest. When you move to higher weight, this will greatly pay off in the long run. It will allow you to build more muscle before moving up to higher weight, so once you do, you’ll be more than effective. For more advanced lifters, this will only elevate your training and performance even more. Sometimes going back to the basics can help reset poor form that’s settled in, but this will also increase strength and effectiveness by finetuning the bottom portion of your lift. Give yourself the edge as best you can and take the Spoto Press for what it is: a bench press enhancer.
While performing the Spoto Press, it is important to have your feet positioned the right way. Keeping them grounded will allow you to drive through the floor and give your back more support as you drive that weight up. Take less strain off your back to prevent injury, but also really work to push big weight. While your grip should be whatever is comfortable, a closer grip will increase your range of motion and offer better opportunity for strength at the bottom. A wide grip will allow more muscle activation but will limit your range of motion. Keeping your body tight is important for proper form and will only enhance that muscle growth and really work to pause for a second or two at the bottom of the lift to work on time under tension and muscle overload.
Featured Barbell For The Spoto Press
Having the right equipment is important, especially for your home gym now that gyms remain closed or at limited capacity. This barbell is perfect for the Spoto Press and really work to enhance those big gains.
American Barbell 20KG Training Bar
American Barbell 20KG Training Bar is a versatile bar tested and approved for training and competition. The precision ground alloy steel bar shaft is tested through a rigorous process to ensure longevity and excellent whip for optimal performance. A finished hard chrome adds extra durability and corrosion resistance for nice added features. The bar sleeves work to rotate smoothly and this bar is 20kg, 28mm in diameter, and 2,200mm in length. American Barbell Training Bar is built to last while providing comfort and longevity for all of your goals.
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Wrap Up
The Spoto Press is a great bench press enhancer and can be used for a variety of benefits. Everything from time under tension, to better range of motion, to serious PR’s, the Spoto Press is one of those methods you need to try. From legendary powerlifter Eric Spoto, this method has proven effective time and time again and is a necessity for those powerlifters looking to enhance their bench press. Add the Spoto Press method into your benching routine and see what this can do for you. You won’t be disappointed with the results.
Let us know what you think in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
*Images courtesy of American Barbell and Envato
References
Oranchuk, Dustin J.; Storey, Adam G.; Nelson, Andre R.; Cronin, John B. (2019). “Isometric training and long-term adaptations: Effects of muscle length, intensity, and intent: A systematic review”. (source)
Waller, Mike; Piper, Tim; Miller, Jason (2009). “Overhead Pressing Power/Strength Movements”. (source)