Liu Hao, 28 years old, is a Chinese weightlifter who’s no stranger to putting up big numbers. He’s normally a competitor in the 94kg weight class and has built a reputation around his strength under the bar.
In his latest video, Hao high-bar back squats 280kg (616lbs) for an easy five reps. His depth and speed are ridiculous for this weight. In all honesty, he makes the 280kg look like nothing as the bar bounces on his back.
To give context into just how strong Hao is, the training compilation video below highlights a few of his heavier snatches, clean & jerks, and squats. This video was shared in 2013, which would make Hao around 24 years old (if the videos were shot that year).
The video starts off with a 140kg and 150kg snatch that fly up with ease. Then Hao moves to clean & jerks where he crushes 160kg to 200kg increasing by 10kg each lift. Next, he front squats 260kg and moves to insanely heavy back squats.
What’s possibly made Hao so recognized in weightlifting was his gold medal win at the 2014 Asian Games. At these games Hao nudged Kazakhstan’s 94kg lifter, Almas Uteshov, into second place by 1kg.
Hao recorded a 173kg (380lb) snatch and a 221kg (486lb) clean & jerk, which put him at a 394kg total over Uteshov’s 393kg.
Hao has been putting up big lifts for quite some time and it doesn’t appear he’s slowing down any time soon. It’s always exciting to watch Hao put up ridiculous numbers in the gym. His form, strength, and presence make his lifting something to idol.
In regards to Hao in future competition, we’re not sure what to expect. It will be interesting to see what happens with China’s weightlifting presence as a whole. They’re currently facing a possible 1-year suspension from international competition, which would take out a lot of this sport’s strongest athletes.
Feature image from wlifts84 YouTube page.