Laura Phelps

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TweetLaura Phelps benched 465 pounds on Saturday at the APF Leave No Record Unbroken Powerlifting & Bench Press Championship in Fremont, Ohio. Phelps' bench breaks the 181 pound weight class all-time World Record of 463 pounds formerly held by Svetlana Dedulia-Miklasevich of Russia. She missed a third attempt at 485 pounds. Phelps has been on a roll this year shattering all-time bench press, squat and total records in multiple weight classes.

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TweetInterview by Barry Williams:

On the lack of support from other powerlifters:


Yes, I definitely catch a lot of heat over my squats. I really cannot say why people feel they have to hate instead of support, simply because my brain does not work that way! LOL! I love this sport, and I appreciate every lifter, no matter what federation, what rules, how many ply's, etc. What boggles my mind is when people personally attack the lifter rather than the lift itself, or when they judge the person's character based off of a lift that was passed that they feel was a bad lift. That's when it goes too far.

Squat goal:

I try to never, in my mind, place a limit on any lift. A goal of mine, though, is to one day squat a clean, deep, 800 pound squat! And I 100% believe that I will!

On being asked for autographs:

I think I get a little caught off guard, almost like I look over my shoulder for a second, thinking, "are you talking to ME"? I think it's great and I appreciate anyone who offers their support and encouragement to me! It's not like a hollywood celebrity where people often ask for their autographs because they are popular. When people ask for a powerlifter's autograph, it is because they appreciate and respect the work that they put in to achieve what they have done. That is awesome. That reminds me, I need to buy a notepad so I can get everyone's autograph at the next meet : )

How she got into powerlifting:

Bodybuilding is what drew me into competitive lifting. I used to compete in bodybuilding and after seeing the photos from my last show, and per the reccomendation of the judges, I needed to add thickness to my back. So I started deadlifting, and for fun, i entered a local push/pull non-sanctioned meet. I ended up doing 3 of these meets, and by the third meet, I decided that Powerlifting brought me so much more happiness and I decided to focus on it.

Best powerlifter today and all-time:

Well, I am going to have to agree with Becca on this one*, in both aspects! Becca for sure! She is a powerlifting pioneer! She has been the first do do so many things, and when she steps up onto the platform, she always delivers. She is constantly breaking records. A few other lifters that I think are awesome today are Chuck Vogehlpol (which actually I would put him in both categories, best of today and best of all time!), Greg Panora, and Oleksander Kutcher...

Oh, I am going to get ridiculed. I believe Becca Swanson is the greatest powerlifter of all-time. No other lifter has changed the spectrum of the sport, while being so unchallenged and unprecedented" Becca Swanson