The second edition of the popular Sheffield Powerlifting Championships is nearly upon us. Twelve male and 12 female athletes will compete for world records and huge cash prizes in front of a sell-out crowd at Sheffield City Hall in Sheffield, England.
In 2023, USA’s Jesus Olivares made history with his record-breaking performance that garnered £30,000 (~$37,875) in prize money. He hit a 1,152.5-kilogram (2,541-pound) total, breaking the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) world record in the super heavyweight class and setting the all-time world record in knee sleeves.
The 2024 Sheffield competition can be seen live on SBD Apparel’s YouTube Channel on Feb. 10, 2024.
Olivares will be joined by 11 of the top raw lifters in the IPF from a wide range of weight classes. They will compete directly against each other based on the proportion of the world record total in their weight class.
2024 Sheffield Championships Roster
- Anatolii Novopismennyi (Ukraine) — four-time world champion
- Jonathan Cayco (USA) — two-time world champion
- Delaney Wallace (USA) — two-time world champion
- Gavin Adin (USA) — 2021 Junior world champion
- Jesus Olivares (USA) — three-time world champion
- Gustav Hedlund (Sweden) — three-time silver medallist at IPF Worlds
- Carl Johansson (Sweden) — 2023 world champion
- Tim Monigatti (New Zealand) — world record holder in the squat
- Carlos Petterson Grifith (Guyana) — silver medallist on deadlift at IPF Worlds
- Tony Cliffe (UK) — two-time world champion, World Games medallist
- Panagiotis Tarinidis (France) — two-time world champion
- Kyota Ushiyama (Japan) — two-time bronze medallist at IPF Worlds
2024 Sheffield Championships Prize Purse
The athletes will be scored on the proportion of the total world record in their weight class. Here’s how the prize money breaks down:
- First Place: £25,000 (~$31,480.75)
- Second Place: £12,500 (~$15,740.37)
- Third Place: £7,500 (~$9,444.22)
- Fourth Place: £6,000 (~$7555.38)
- Fifth Place: £4,000 (~$5,036.92)
- Sixth Place: £2,000 (~$2,518.46
- Seventh Place: £1,750 (~$2,203.65)
- Eighth Place: £1,500 (~$1,888.84)
- Ninth Place: £1,250 (~$1,574.04)
- 10th Place: £1,000 (~$1,259.23)
Competitors win a £5,000 (~$6,300) bonus for any IPF Open world record broken in the squat, bench press, deadlift, or total. That’s a potential £45,000 (~$56,800) prize purse for whoever can earn the top spot via three world record lifts.
Olivares is one of the favorites to win at the 2024 contest but faces stiff opposition. In 2023, Olivares extended the total world record by a massive 47.5 kilograms (105 pounds) — a 4.3 percent increase. As the competition is scored in proportion of the total world record, Olivares has extra work to do this year to hit a big score. He will need to add another 23 kilograms (51 pounds) to hit a two percent increase.
In the lighter weight classes, two percent of the total world record represents a smaller increase, so Olivares might be challenged from the lighter end of the scale. In particular, Johansson and Monigatti in the 74-kilogram class seem closely matched and have made great strides in training. They could both exceed a two-percent increase in the total world record in their class.
Whoever comes out on top, this promises to be an exciting event. Watch the competition live on SBD Apparel’s YouTube Channel on Feb. 10, 2024.
Featured image: @mega.gojira on Instagram
