Bench press - the world record for this exercise today wants to set every powerlifter. And it should be noted, the goal of athletes can be understood. After all, the bench press is rightfully considered an unofficial indicator of strength in such a sport as bodybuilding, and in powerlifting itself. Therefore, many want to set a world record. Bench press is a very popular exercise. As a matter of fact, the first question that any athlete who visits the gym hears is: "How much do you squeeze from your chest?" It is not surprising that organized competitions for this exercise already exist today, and many athletes are preparing specifically for them.
It should be noted that today in the world there are a huge number of federations in such a sport as powerlifting. And almost in each of these federations you can compete in the bench press separately. So it makes no sense to describe every world record set in the federations. Many athletes perform the bench press with dignity. However, some records should be given special attention.
The first record was the following result - 487.6 kilograms. And put it by an American named Ryan Kennelly. Interestingly, this guy began to practice with the barbell after he was kicked out of all sections and abandoned the school. The first time he pressed the barbell, whose weight was 96 kg. This immediately became an indicator of his talent in the “iron” sport. Of course, Jay Cutler is far from him, because he immediately began to perform a bench press with a barbell of 140 kg, but this is a very worthy result. So it is not surprising that the guy broke the world record at one time.
The bench press was adequately performed by an athlete named Scott Mendelssohn. He performed this exercise without equipment with a barbell weighing 715 pounds (or 324.5 kg). Since childhood, this guy loved sports, but he began to seriously engage in powerlifting only at the age of 23, and at the age of 30 he began a competitive career. At one time, this athlete broke the following world record: bench press in equipment. A few years ago, in 2007, Scott squeezed out 457.6 kg. However, Ryan soon managed to surpass his result.
Speaking on a topic such as world records in the bench press, one cannot fail to mention a few interesting facts regarding powerlifting. An 11-year-old girl from the Moscow Region, a Russian athlete in the bench press, in 2010, December 19, shocked everyone by setting the absolute world record in the competition for this exercise without equipment in the "girls under 14 years old" category - she squeezed the barbell weighing 60 kg And this achievement was rightfully recorded in the “Book of Records of Russia”.
You should also pay attention to the absolute world record set by Brian Sayders in the IPF, in the bench press - a barbell weighing 352.5 kg. I would like to mention one more record. In 2011, at the World Championships held in the USA, a guy named Victor Testsov, who was from Ukraine, distinguished himself in the heavyweights category. He is only 22 years old, however, he annually stably sets records. And in this championship Victor squeezed a barbell weighing 350 kg! Undoubtedly - the athlete is worthy of respect and the honorary title of champion.