Powerlifting

Powerlifting used to be practiced by men with spinal cord lesions and made its Paralympic debut at the 1964 Games in Tokyo. Women only started competing from 1996. Today, the sport is practiced in over 100 countries.

Brazil’s first representative was Marcelo Motta in Atlanta 1996. In Sydney 2000, the country also took Alexandre Whitaker, João Euzébio and Terezinha Mulato. Athletes are divided into different categories for competition, according to their bodyweight, as in weightlifting.

Classification

Athletes are divided into categories based on their body weight, as with conventional weightlifting. The following athletes are eligible to compete: amputees with minimal limitations, athletes with cerebral palsy and those with spinal cord lesions. Competitors need to be able to stretch out their arms completely, with no more than 20 degrees loss at the elbows, in order to perform a valid movement according to the rules.

Curiosities

The strongest

At the London 2012, Siamand Rahman from Iran broke the Paralympic record by lifting 280 kilos. Among the ladies, the record holder is Ruifang Li from China, who lifted 165 kilos at the Beijing Games in 2008.

See also

Brazilian Paralympic Committee (CPB)
www.cpb.org.br

International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
www.paralympic.org