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World Para Powerlifting to Use Panasonic’s Power Assist Suit

Posted by Marie Curtis on
World Para Powerlifting to Use Panasonic’s Power Assist Suit

World Para Powerlifting has announced that power assist suits created by technology giants Panasonic, a Worldwide Paralympic Partner, will be used at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and during World Para Powerlifting events.

Support staff will use the suits at powerlifting competitions to help them attach and remove weights from barbells. The decision to deploy them follows that Panasonic has become a Official Supplier of WPPO, agreed in September between WPPO and Panasonic.

About World Para Powerlifting

World Para Powerlifting, under the governance of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), is the International Federation for the sport and is based in Bonn, Germany.

Para powerlifting is open to male and female athletes with eight eligible physical impairments. Major competitions include the Paralympic Games, biennial World Championships, regional Championships and annual World Cups.

As you can see, the Para powerlifting competitions can witness athletes lifting more than 3 times their own body weight.

To help the athletes stay focused, it is the support  staff  that will need to lift multiple weights for over 180 contestants at the World Para Powerlifting events and at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Assistants will need to carry an absolute minimum of 8,650kg of weight being lifted across male and female competitions.

Panasonic is proud to support the Paralympic Games

Panasonic Corporation has been an Official Worldwide Partner of the IPC since 2014.

Panasonic is committed to provide accessible products and services to various people including those with disabilities and the elderly and continue to support the Paralympic Movement. Promotion by the Paralympic Games enables the realisation of a more peaceful world through sport and corresponds to Panasonic’s philosophy of ‘A Better Life, A Better World.’

Panasonic Corporation is a leader in the development of diverse electronics technologies in the consumer electronics, automotive, housing, and B2B sectors.

The company has expanded globally and presently operates 582 subsidiaries and 87 associated companies worldwide.

News

Japanese weightlifter set a new world record on the bench press

Posted by Marie Curtis on
Japanese weightlifter set a new world record on the bench press

Daiki Kodama, a Japanese powerlifter weighing just 11 stone, lifted 225 kilograms on the bench press and set a new world record for his weight class.

The amount he lifted is three times over his bodyweight, and as a result, he was assisted by his teammates who acted as spotters due to the elevated risk of injury.

The Japanese powerlifter competes in the International Powerlifting Federation. IPF competitions are drug-tested, and supportive equipment is kept to a minimum, however, in Kodama’s case, he could use wrist straps and a singlet.

The 40-year-old was the previous record-holder too when he set a 211.5kg deadlift, while he also has a best squat record of 170kg.

This new world record will add to the 2017 world record set by Kodama at the Asian Powerlifting & Bench Press Expo, where he benched 210.5kg in the Open 83kg class.

A study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research showed that bench pressing like Kodama did (with the assistance of spotters) boosts how much a person can lift.

Either way, without spotters, the risk of injury would have been significantly higher, due to the big amount the 11 stone athlete was lifting. Last month, for example, a French weightlifter broke her arm in two places at the European Weightlifting Championship.

31-year-old Gaelle Nayo Ketchanke was attempting to lift her career personal best 110kg in the women’s 76kg category in Batumi, Georgia. She failed to complete her lift the first two times, and on her third attempt her left arm buckled and gave away. She was rushed to the hospital for surgery but incredibly still walked away with the bronze medal.

And let’s not forget the Russian powerlifter who broke his leg in three places while trying to squat 250kg recently. The perils of weightlifting can be extremely severe!