Jackson Powell is a name everyone in the powerlifting community is going to have to become more familiar with very very quickly. When he was just 16 years old, he was squatting 297kg/655lb triples and hitting 329kg/725lb singles. Now he is just 17 years old, competes in both the -140kg and the 140+kg weight class, and can front squat 306kg/675lbs. Putting up these kinds of numbers at such a young age, it is only a matter of time before he adds his name to the list of athletes able to squat 453.6kg/1,000lb.
According to OpenPowerlifting, Powell has so far only competed twice. In the teen division of the Southern Powerlifting Federation (SPF) Grit House Classic and in the juniors division at the United States Powerlifting Association (USPA) 4th Annual Tennessee Open. He won both.
Before we dive into theorizing what he will do once he hits the open division, check out Jackson Powell’s phenomenal new 401kg/885lb personal record that he shared in a post on his Instagram page below:
Although he looked shaky lifting the weight off the rack and shaky when re-racking, the squat itself in between was as smooth as could be. It appeared effortless to go as deep in the squat as he did and even easier coming back up.
This was also a full 24kg/53lb more than his previous biggest squat — which is already a world record in his age group — from his most recent meet this past January where he hit a 377.5kg/832lb on his third attempt.
See that lift below from the USPA 4th Annual Tennessee Open:
Right now the three biggest ever squats in the 140+kg division are all above 453.6kg/1,000lb. Powell has a lot of time to work his way up that list and we look forward to seeing when he does.
Feature image from Jackson Powell’s Instagram page: @bigjpowell53