On Aug. 10, 2023, Aquinn Onuoha competed in the +84-kilograms Class at the 2023 English Powerlifting Association (EPA) Manchester Open. She went straight to the top of the standings with a new British raw deadlift record of 251 kilograms (553.4 pounds) — adding 30 kilograms (66 pounds) to her total since she last competed in March 2023.
The 2023 EPA Manchester Open was a four-day contest featuring UK’s top lifters in classic and equipped competition. Many British records fell, but Onuoha stole the show. Check out the historic lift below, courtesy of Onuoha’s Instagram page:
Onuoha focused intently on the barbell as she approached the platform, paying no attention to the shouts of encouragement from the crowd. She fastened her lifting belt, set up in a conventional stance, and adjusted her foot placement minutely before momentarily composing herself.
Onuoha took a breath, reached down to grab the bar, shimmied into position, and began the lift. The bar moved easily from the floor but hit a sticking point close to the lockout. Her whole body shook. With a mammoth effort, Onuoha pulled back, securing the lockout with three white lights from the judges.
2023 EPA Manchester Open Results — Aquinn Onuoha, 84+KG Raw
- Squat
195 kilograms (430 pounds)- 200 kilograms (441 pounds)
- 210 kilograms (463 pounds)
- Bench Press
- 90 kilograms (198 pounds)
- 95 kilograms (209 pounds)
- 100 kilograms (220 pounds)
- Deadlift
- 235 kilograms (518 pounds)
- 245 kilograms (540 pounds)
- 251 kilograms (553 pounds) — New Raw British Record
- Total — 561 kilograms (1,237 pounds)
Onuoha burst onto the powerlifting scene in 2022. She showed promise as a deadlifter from the start, hitting 210 kilograms (463 pounds) at her first sanctioned meet.
Onuoha’s first British Championships was in March 2023, where she won comfortably. The Manchester Open was only her fourth sanctioned competition, yet she’s claimed the crown of the top-tested deadlifter in the UK.
British Raw Deadlift Record
The title of biggest tested deadlifter in the UK has changed hands many times in the last several years, and the progression has been astonishing:
- 237.5 kilograms (524 pounds) — Sophia Ellis, March 2022
- 240 kilograms (529 pounds) — Sophia Ellis & Ziana Azariah, Sept 2022
- 240.5 kilograms (530 pounds) — Erholove Izobodo-John, November 2022
- 240.5 kilograms (530 pounds) — Sophia Ellis, November 2022
- 246 kilograms (542 pounds) — Ziana Azariah, November 2022
- 250 kilograms (551 pounds) — Erholove Izobodo-John, April 2023
- 251 kilograms (553 pounds) — Aquinn Onuoha, August 2023
Erholove Izobodo-John will compete at the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) 2023 World Junior Championships in Romania on August 24, 2023, so Onuoha’s new record might already be in jeopardy.
Onuoha’s next meet is the 2023 European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) Western European Championships held in Reykjanesbär, Iceland, on Sept. 8-10. It will be her first international contest. The raw world and raw European deadlift records might still be out of range, but the Western European records look set to tumble.
Featured image: @girlscityfitness on Instagram
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