A squat feat fit for a longtime name in powerlifting.
Some powerlifters seemingly have an ideal passion and energy for displaying their strength under an enormous highlight. German athlete Sonja Stefanie Krüger may be considered one of them. Krüger is just 22 years old, but has already had over 60 competitive powerlifting appearances since her debut in June 2014. Krüger’s latest stellar performance is a yet one more example of top-level lifting.
Throughout the 2022 IPF Equipped World Championships on Nov. 16, 2022, in Viborg, Denmark, Krüger successfully locked out an equipped World Record squat of 280.5 kilograms (618.4 kilos) within the 76-kilogram weight class. (Note: On the time of this text’s publication, the competition continues to be underway, making it unclear where Krüger has finished in her category.)
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The video of Krüger’s astonishing squat isn’t only noteworthy for its showcase of dynamic leg strength on a world lifting platform. As soon as Krüger finished her rep, she stepped away from her loaded barbell, clearly overjoyed as she proceeded to leap around in place in excitement.
Somewhat unlike other competitors on the 2022 IPF Equipped Worlds, a look at Krüger’s resume on Open Powerlifting will denote she mainly competes while equipped. Of those mentioned 60-plus competitive appearances, Krüger wasn’t equipped in only 18 of them.
Here’s an outline of a number of the more notable results from Krüger’s official powerlifting ledger:
Sonja Stefanie Krüger | Notable Profession Results
- 2014 Bundesverband Deutscher Kraftdreikämpfer (BVDK) Hessiche Meisterschaft im Kreuzheben (Youth/Raw) — First place | First profession victory
- 2014 Global Powerlifting Committee (GPC) World Championships (Youth/Wraps) — First place
- 2015-2016, 2018-2019 IPF World Bench Press Championships (Sub-Juniors/Equipped; Juniors/Equipped) — First place
- 2015-2016 IPF World Classic Powerlifting Championships (Sub-Juniors/Raw) — First place
- 2016 European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) European Classic Powerlifting Championships (Sub-Juniors/Raw) — First place
- 2019 EPF European Equipped Powerlifting Championships (Juniors/Equipped) — First place
- 2021 IPF World Powerlifting Championships (Open/Equipped) — Second place
- 2022 EPF Equipped European Powerlifting Championships (Open/Equipped) — First place
Krüger isn’t any stranger to record lifts. The athlete is now the equipped IPF squat World Record holder within the 69-kilogram (260 kilograms/573.2 kilos), 76-kilogram (280.5 kilograms/618.4 kilos), and 84-kilogram (275 kilograms/507 kilos) divisions. She also possesses the equipped IPF World Record bench press (182.5 kilograms/402.3 kilos) within the 69-kilogram division, which doubles because the equipped Single Bench Press IPF World Record.
Here’s a rundown of Krüger’s all-time equipped competition bests:
Sonja Stefanie Krüger | Equipped All-Time Competition Bests
- Squat — 280.5 kilograms (618.4 kilos) | IPF World Record
- Bench Press — 210 kilograms (462.9 kilos)
- Deadlift — 205.5 kilograms (453 kilos)
- Total — 685 kilograms (1,510.1 kilos)
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At the same time as the 2022 IPF Equipped Worlds begin to close on Nov. 20, 2022, there’s little doubt Krüger’s squat record might be considered one of the competition’s highlights when all’s said and done.
Featured image: theipf on Instagram