Para powerlifter Roohallah Rostami of Iran has set a new world record in the 80-kilogram weight class on day two of the 2021 Para Powerlifting World Cup in Bangkok, Thailand. He successfully bench pressed 241 kilograms (531.3 pounds) on his third attempt to beat the previous record, held by fellow countryman Majid Farzin, by a single kilogram. Farzin’s record stuck for nearly five years as he scored the 240-kilogram (529-pound) lift at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games. This marks the second world record currently held by Rostami. He also holds the world record bench press in the 72-kilogram class — 229 kilograms (505 pounds) lifted at the 2018 Asia Para Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, where he won gold.
If you have not yet had the opportunity to see Rostami’s world record lift, you can do so below, courtesy of World Para Powerlifting’s Instagram page:
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It probably comes as no surprise that Rostami claimed the world record at 80 kilograms in 2021 when you consider that he won gold at the 2019 World Para Powerlifting Championships in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. Here are his lifts for that event.
- Attempt One — 215 kilograms (474 pounds)
- Attempt Two — 225 kilograms (496 pounds)
- Attempt Three — 236 kilograms (520.3 pounds)
Competitive Para Powerlifting Career
Rostami made his international Para powerlifting debut in 2009. Three years into his career, he scored a silver medal at the 2012 London Paralympic Games in the 67.5-kilogram class. He moved up to 72-kilograms and added two more silver medals to his resume prior to becoming a world champion in 2019 at 80 kilograms, the former being stripped due to an anti-doping violation:
- 2014 Para Powerlifting World Championships, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Silver Medal (stripped)
- Received a two-year ban from competition after testing positive for the banned substance methylhexaneamine
- 2017 World Para Powerlifting Championships, Mexico City, Mexico — Silver Medal
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