Powerlifting is a sport for affordable top performance

A Paralympic “hero” who is honored with a ten-meter-high statue at the entrance to his hometown? While such an honor would be hard to imagine in France, it is certainly possible in Iran. Since 2020, a huge bust of Siamand Rahman, the two-time Paralympic champion in powerlifting – or more precisely, in the bench press – has stood in Oshnavieh, a city in the northwest of the country.

Since he died of a heart attack on March 1, 2020 at the age of 31, Rahman, who won gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio Olympics, has remained an icon in the Islamic Republic. “The world's strongest Paralympic athlete,” as he was called, remains the only Paralympian to have lifted total weights of more than 300 kilograms.

“In Iran, where there is a cult of strongmen, the fame of Siamand Rahman, who could no longer move his legs due to polio, is comparable to that of Teddy Riner in France and lives on,” says Alexis Querou, who is in charge of bench press performance at the French Parasports Federation (FFH).

The Islamic Republic is not the only country where powerlifting is a flagship discipline of para-sports. Several nations, particularly with a view to participating in the Paralympic Games, have decided to “focus their efforts on a few individual disciplines, such as the bench press, where they are almost certain to win medals,” noted Mehdi Ourizat, coach of the French Paralympic powerlifting team.

For Egypt, for example, this means that the tournament in Paris will not really get underway until Wednesday, September 4, with the bench press competitions. Although the country is represented in around 10 different sports disciplines in Paris, it will rely heavily on its powerlifters (13 competitors, including 6 women) to ensure that its delegation does not go home empty-handed. Since Seoul 1988, its powerlifters have always been on the winners' podium at the Paralympic Games, as Emad Ramadan, the president of the Egyptian delegation, told the newspaper. Al-Ahram.

This strategy is also being pursued by Nigeria, whose representatives only compete in four disciplines (powerlifting, table tennis, badminton and shot put) and whose medal hopes rest mainly on the bench press: eight of its powerlifters, including seven women, will take part in these competitions. In Rio 2016, the Nigerians won six of their eight gold medals in strength training.

“Significantly less demanding than other disciplines”

Behind these decisions is often the question of the resources needed to develop competitive sport. Powerlifting is a low-cost sport that is accessible to all. The investment required to send an athlete to the Paralympics is therefore manageable. “To qualify, you only have to take part in two international competitions per year,” said Querou. “That is much less demanding than in other disciplines such as athletics or tennis.”

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