The annual Global Powerlifting Committee World Powerlifting and Bench Press Championships were held in the beautiful old city of Gent, Belgium October 31 through November 4, 2007. Powerlifters from 22 countries assembled in The Sport Arena Yolhuis a large facility with under ground parking and food concessions. The competition area was spacious and convenient to spectators but the small warm up area was very cramped for the lifters. The platform was spacious and sported a new front opening monolift made in America for the competition. The meet was run with GPC precision through out with expert spotting and loading from the Heinz Buhl Austrian Platform Crew. If there were any flaws to mention it was the absence of squat bars and deadlift bars. A squat bar was found for the final day with the heavy weights but no deadlift bar was available for the entire meet.

Congratulations to US lifters Sonji Baldwin, best lifter open women, Evangeline Keresey, best lifter master women, and Brian Meek, best lifter master men.

The contest opened with the women bench press. The lightest women bench pressers were Svetlana Nefjodova, the number one lady of powerlifting in Latvia, winning the 50-54 age group with 52.5kg. Leslie Watson of Great Britain winning the open class with 65kg. Ruper Wick of Germany, the lone male lifter in the open 40-44 class won with 120kg. Back to the women we have Angela Debudey of Germany winning the 40-44 class with 52.5kg.Sabra Callahan of the USA took the honors with a world record 92.5kg in the 50-54 class over Lora Greco of Canada who followed with 71kg. In the 55-59 class the lone competitor, Beatrice Beneke of Germany, won with 67.5kg. In the 60kg class 40-44 Manuele Anger had a nice 62.5kg for the win. Wendi Michiels of Belgium had a good day in the open 60kg class with 100kg. Kimberly Elwyn, the teenage dynamo from Belgium continues to improve with 70kg in the 16-17 age category. In the men 60kg we have Frank Wunderlich of Germany winning the 40-44 class with 112.5kg. The open class was dominated by Gregorie Pulido of France with 142.5kg followed by RenoKarkuschke of Germany with 127.5kg and Frank Wunderlich of Germany with 112.5kg. Leading off for the women in the 67.5kg class was the outstanding Virpi Pukkila of Finland who won the open class with 105kg. Olga Miglans of Latvia had a good day with 75kg winning the 40-44 category. Hildegard Weinelt of Germany won the 45-49 category with 65kg. In the 50-54 age category Marie Jacques Burrick of Belgium finished in first place with 60kg. Magdalena Kasiarova of Slovakia won the junior class with 40kg. Followed by Sona Kojanova of the Czech Republic with 80kg to win the 18-19 class. For the men 67.5kg class Joachin De Rudder of Belgium won the 16-17 group with 120kg and Chris Keyser of the USA won the 13-15 group with 70kg. In the open class Toni Haaparant of Finland took the lead with a fine 160kg followed in second place was Pieter Calus of Belgium with 140kg finishing ahead of Rustam Musayev of Azerbaijan on bodyweight who also had 140kg. In the 65-69 group Erwin Trichlin of Austria won with 115kg followed by Dieter Schweitzer of Germany with 70kg for second place. Budgie Mullan of Great Britain won the 60-64 class with102.5kg. Louis Guercio of France had a strong 130kg to take the 55-59 class over Helmut Novotny of Austria with 100kg. Gary Bobrovitz of Canada won the 50-54 group with 62,5kg. And finally, Frank Oppermann of Germany won the 40-44 group with 115kg.

The lone female competitor in the 75kg class was Valentina Abramenko of Latvia who had a very impressive 80kg bench. Jacob Evans of the USA led off for the men winning the 13-15 class with a strong 100kg. The open class was loaded with talent led by Phillippe Herzog of Switzerland with a strong 205kg. In second place was Alexander Liskovich of Israel with 185kg and in 3rd was Sarkhan Aliev of Azerbaijan with 180kg. Willi Sinn of Germany won the 65-69 group with 125kg. In the 55-59 class Joachin Winterscheidtof Germany took the honors with 125kg over Miloud Lazreg of France with 122.5kg. Phillipe Herzog of Switzerland won the 45-49 class with 205kg over Uwe Werner of Germany with 190 and Bertold Rien also of Germany who finished with 165kg. Andris Greberis of Latvia had a strong 150kg as the lone competitor in the 40-44 group and finally Christopher Reinhardt of Germany won the juniors with 160kg. Manuela Hanssen of Germany was the lone female lifter in the 82.5kg class finishing with a nice 120kg. In the men 82.5kg 80-84 class winner Pierre Pothee of France won with 57.5kg and also received a much deserved recognition with an award for being the oldest competitor in the competition. In the 70-74 group Gunther Tschierschky of Germany finished first with 120kg ahead of Pierre Contoli of France who failed to make a bench press. The 65-69 group brought out the best with my friend Konrad Hogg of Austria winning with a strong 150kg over Konrad Merta of Germany who managed a fine 110kg. Continuing with French domination of the bench was Jean Marie Kubick winning the 60-64 group with 132.5kg over Peter Hermann of Switzerland who finished with 120kg. Risto Leskenmaa of Finland won the 55-59 group with 200kg over Igor Barski of Israel who had 150kg and Idris Ismailov of Belgium with 129kg. Another impressive female lifter from Latvia was Angelina Romanovicha in the 40-44 group who, lifting raw, had a very strong 110kg bench. Back to the men we have Michal Kasair of Slovakia in the 18-19 group winning with 110kg. A battle developed in the 16-17 group with Maksim Kopilov of Latvia winning with 155kg over Saba Saleman of Israel who managed a strong 150kg.. In the open class Juhasz Istvan won with 225kg over Stephane Henzien of France with 155kg and Helmut Pignitter of Austria who failed with all three attempts. In the 50-54 class Gerd Mueller of Germany won with 135kg and in the 40-44 class Alekasandrs Miglans of Latvia finished with a very impressive 200kg bench. Finally, in the junior class Andreas Donath of Germany won with 175kg over Frk Vojtrch of the Czech Republic who had 165 and Kevin Banz of Germany who finished the day with 152.5kg.

L B Baker of the USA leads off the 90kg weight class 65-69 group with 120kg for the win over Ian Morris of South Africa who finished with 100kg. In the 60-64 group was Roland Gotz of Germany with 145kg for first place over Klaus-Werner Pascke of Germany who had 135kg. The lone competitor in the 55-59 group was Viacheslav Porozky of Israel who finished with 155kg. In the 45-49 group was Peter Rathke of Germany with 205kg for the win over teammate Lothar Pritzl of Germany with 160kg. Lukacs Bela of Hungary won the 40-44 group with 160kg. The teenage 18-19 group was dominated by Tirno Buhnert of Germany with 175kg for the win over teammate Waldemer Becker also of Germany who had 125kg. In the open class Kupcsik Laszio of Hungary won with 260kg over Namig Jafarov of Azerbaijan who had 210 for runner up and David Velicka of the Czech Republic with 180kg. In the junior division Herold Piotr of Poland won the gold with 202.5kg over Mathias Wenot of Germany with 195kg and Alexander Podarewkij also of Germany who finished with 180kg. In the 100kg weight class Julien Girardin of Switzerland leads off with a win in the 18-19 group with 175kg. In the 16-17 group Sdenek Bakus of the Czech Republic won the gold with 142.5kg followed by Glen Abbeel of Belgium in the 13-15 group who had 82.5kg for the win. In the open division Ayal Hasson of Israel won with 277.5kg over Vusal Mardanov of Azerbaijan who had 262.5kg and Kenneth Millraney of the USA who finished with a strong 260kg. In the 65-69 group Marc Le Bolay of France won with 175kg and in the 60-64 Billy Coleman of the USA finished with a strong 160kg for the win. The 55-59 group was dominated by Axel Gersdorf of Germany with 200kg over Aleksandrs Smelovs of Latvia who had 185kg beating Hans-Juergen Borkowski of Germany who had the same 185kg but was heavier in body weight. In the 50-54 group Michael Gunther of Germany had 205kg and edged out Laurent Durocher of France by 2.5kg who had 202.5kg and Karel Leibl of the Czech Republic with 160kg.Kenneth Millraney of the USA dominated the 40-44 group winning the gold with 260kg followed by Juha Pukkils of Finland who had 212.5kg and Reene Kuhnel of Germany who had 190kg. Rounding out the 100kg class was junior Vili Rinkenen of Finland who finished with 185kg for the win.

 Andis Volkovs of Latvia leads off the 110kg class in the 18-19 group wit the win of 190kg. In a strong open field Gerd TiefenBacher of Austria won the gold with 302.5kg over Ivar Ozols of Latvia who had a strong 282.5kg and Zeltan Csepregl of Hungary who finished with 275kg. In the 75-59 group Gerard Zappa of Brlgium won with a strong 130kg. Followed by Johan Feniuk of Germany in tyhr 65-69 group with 150kg. Joachin Eulenstein of Germany won the 60-64 group with 16okg . In the 55-59 group Michael King of Great Britain won with 235.5kg over Herve Pincemin of France who had 185kg. In the 50-54 group Ulrich Vetter of Germany won with 200kg over teammate Klaus Grosser of Germany with 190kg. In the 45-49 group Viktors Pevko of Latvia had a strong 245kg to win the gold over Marc Savoca of France who finished with 192.5kg. Dusan Brenkus of Slovakia won the 40-44 group with 165kg. The juniors rounded out the 110kg class with Martins Apskalns of Latvia winning with 247.5kg over Tony Hager of Germany who finished with 225kg. In the 125kg open class Laszlo Meszaros of Hungary wins the gold with a very strong 320kg over Kal-Uwe Gollnitz of Germany with 287.5kg and Jani Halainen of Finland who finished with 275kg. Karl Weber of Germany won the 55-59 group with 180kg. In the 50-54 group Andreas Richter of Germany finished with 235kg ahead of Andrei Friedalso of Germany with 170kg. Juris Judko of Latvia was first in the 45-49 group with a strong 280kg. My friend Dominique Seminatore of France finished with a strong 280kg to win the 40-44 group. Rounding out the 125kg class was junior competitor Matti Lehto of Finland with the gold winning bench of 240kg. In the open 140kg class Tomi Rantanen of Finland won the gold with 360kg, the heaviest bench press of the meet. The runner up, Jari Rosendahl, also of Finland had 275 kg followed by David Marr of the USA with 275kg losing on body weight. In the 65-69 group my friend Valdis Alksnitis of Latvia won with 210kg. My friend Brian Meek of the USA won the 60-64 group with a strong 235kg. In the 45-49 group Mario Boettcher of Germany won the gold with 210kg and the 40-44 group winner was David Marr of the USA with a very strong 275kg. And finally Juhani Savioja of Finland won the junior division with 275kg. In the super heavyweights Jakub Havelka won the 16-17 group with 215kg. In the open class Kari Kalliola of Finland won the open class with 320 over Sherman Dozier of the USA who had 220kg and David Coleman also of the USA who finished with 210kg. Bialac Wojciech of Poland won the gold in the 45-49 class with 225kg and finally Volker Stamm of Germany won the 40-44 class with a strong 250kg.

We begin the powerlifting with the ladies in the 48kg open class with Leslie Watson of Great Britain opening with a good squat of 95kg and benching a European Record 65kg followed by 102.5kg deadlift for a winning total of 262.5kg. Next my good friend from Latvia, the lovely Svetlana Nefjodova, who started with a personal record squat of 95kg and a 55kg bench press and a European Record deadlift of 122.5kg for another European Record of 272.5kg total winning the 50-54 group. Much improved over her last year’s total in Dessau. In the 56kg class Natacha Herbepin of France won the open division with a total of 400kg. Lifting in the 40-44 group but looking like the open was Leslie Thomas of Great Britain who finished with 432.5kg for the win. Sabra Callahan of the USA won the 50-54 group with a squat of 110kg and benching 95kg with a deadlift of 115kg for a total of 320kg. Lora Greco of Canada had a bad day failing to get a squat passed. The teenage dynamo from Belgium, Kimberly Elwyn, continues to dominate the teenagers with a good squat of 120kg and a bench of 72.5kg followed by a 120kg deadlift for a great total of 315kg for the win in the 16-17 group. Wendy Antoon of Belgium won the 60kg class 16-17 group with a total of 335kg. Wendi Michiels of Belgium continues to win with a good squat of 200kg and a bench of 102.5kg followed by a deadlift of 175kg for a great total of 477.5kg. The great Evangeline Keresey of the USA had a great day winning best lifter of the master women in the 65-69 group with a great squat of 152.5kg and bench 75kg followed by a deadlift of 175kg with a total of 402.5kg. All World Records A respectable total for any open female lifter, and she is 65 years old. Now to the men’s open class. Giovanni Robbens of Belgium won the gold with a total of 327.5kg in the men open 56kg class. Back to the men 60kg class Barrie Brown of Great Britain won the 55-59 group with a total of 360kg. Reno Karkuschke of Germany won the men open 60kg class with a total of 442.5kg and finally David Mahieu won the men 18-19 group with a total of 295kg.

Leading off the 67.5kg class is female junior Kelly Sohier of Belgium with a total of 347.5kg. In the 40-44 group the Latvian women continue to dominate with Olga Miglans winning with squat 140kg, bench 70kg and deadlift 142.5kg for a total of 362.5kg. Marie Burrick of Belgium won the 50-54 group with a total of 297.5kg. In the 55-59 group Hildegard Utecht of Germany won honors with a total of 345kg. Next is the amazing Sonji Baldwin of the USA winning the open 67.5kg with World Records and best lifter over the open women with squat 205kg, bench 145kg, and deadlift 195kg for a good solid total of 545kg. Marie Marshall of Great Britain was runner up with squat 120kg, bench 67.5kg, and deadlift 140kg for a total of 317.5kg. Back to the men, in the junior division Tommy Wendt of Germany won with a total of 582.5kg over Brieuc De Rudder of Belgium with a total of 400kg. Rudy Triangle of Belgium won the 40-44 group with a total of 267.5kg and Helmut Novotny of Austria won the 55-59 group wit a total of 435kg. Budgie Mullan of Great Britain won the 60-64 group with a total of 410kg. In the open class it was Toni Haaparant of Finland with a total of 665kg over Andrew Adams of Great Britain with a total of 615kg. Teenager Joachin De Rudder rounds out the class with a win in the 16-17 group with a total of 527.5kg. In the 75kg weight class there were 2 female lifters. Lee Steggles of Great Britain lifting in the open and master 40-44 age groups led off with a 200kg squat, 110kg bench and 170kg deadlift finishing with 480kg in the total. The runner up in the open class was teammate Kim Rushe also of Great Britain with a total of 310kg. In the men 75kg class leading off was David Norman Lewis of Canada with a total of 605kg to win the junior division over Kevin Smith of Great Britain and Jan Dryvers of Belgium who both joined the bomb squad. In the 40-44 class we have the little giant Gerry McNamara of Ireland with a squat of 325kg, bench 185kg, and deadlift 245kg for the winning total of 755kg. In the distance was Michael Molgedey of Germany with a total of 622.5kg and Patrick Van Oosterwijck of Belgium with a total of 525kg.Marcel Ingold of Switzerland was the lone competitor in the 55-59 group finishing with a total of 450kg. In the 60-64 group my friend Janis Pauljuks of Latvia won the gold with a squat of 200kg, bench 140kg and deadlift 220kg for a total of 560kg. Konrad Hogg of Austria had a good day finishing with 457.5kg total for a win over Alois Fasolin of Germany who had a total of 340kg in the 65-69 group. Gerry McNamara of Ireland comes back to the open class after shattering the 40-44 group to take top honors with the total of 755kg over Maxim Kutuzov of Germany who had a total of 625kg and Frederic Parmrntier of France withhis total of 577.5kg. In the teenage division Jon Bamsey of Great Britain won with 260kg total I the 16-17 group and Hick Zagers of Belgium had a good day winning the 18-19 group wit the total of 470kg.

In the 82.5kg class, 40-44 age group, the lone female lifter Angelina Romanovicha of Latvia demonstrated the fine art of raw powerlifting. Or, do it yourself powerlifting. Squat 160kg, bench 115kg, deadlift 170kg for a total of 445kg. In the junior division Frk Vojtech of the Czech Republic won with the total of 620kg. In the 40-44 group J J Dune of Ireland won with a total of 650kg over Vaclav Vich of the Czech Republic who had a total of 627.5kg. Bernard Morgan of Ireland won the 45-49 group with 690kg. My friend Robert Lovelace of the USA won the 55-59 group by way of a 217.5kg squat, 150kg bench and 212.5kg deadlift to total 572.5kg. My friend Dan Martin of the USA won 65- 69 group with a squat of 212.5kg, bench 125kg, and deadlift 200kg for the total of 537.5kg. In the open division Ian Humphries of Great Britain won the gold with a total of 720kg over team mate Adam Brooks of Great Britain with 682.5kg and Matt Phillips of Canada with 680kg, In the teenage 18-19 Gregor Muller of Austria won the gold with a total of 567.5kg over Michael Kasiar of Slovakia who had a total of 427.5kg and Joachin Probst of Germany who finished with 400kg. Benny Verbeke of Belgium leads off the 90kg class in the 40-44 age group with a 270kg squat, 145kg bench, and 310kg deadlift for a 725kg total followed by my friend Aleksandrs Miglans of Latvia who had, squat 250kg, bench 200kg and deadlift 250kg fo a total of 700kg and Liam Beville of Irelamd who finished with a 575kg total. Henry Trost of Germany won the 45-49 group with a 550kg total and teammate Frank Kutzsch of Germany won the 50-54 group with a 595kg total. It was Ernst Utecht from Germany winning the 55-59 with a total of 535kg and teammate Lothar Bohrish of Germany winning the 60-64 group with 467.5kg. In the 65-69 group L B Baker of the USA won with 490kg over Ian Morris of South Africa who failed to get a squat passed. In the open division Chris Jenkins of Great Britain had a good day with a 330kg squat, 200kg bench, and 310kg deadlift to win the class over Markus Horanex of Austria who finished with 722.5kg and Helmut Kraus of Germany with 722.5kg losing on bodyweight. Jens Vandenbrande of Belgium won the 16-17 group with 602.5kg and finally Nando Stoll of Germany won the 18-19 group with 795kg, a very nice total for a teenager.

The teenagers lead off the 100kg class with Janos Deli of Hungary winning the 16-17 group with a total of 750kg and Glen Abbeel of Belgium winning the 13-15 group with a 270kg total. In the open class Tatu Avola of Finland won with a 350kg squat, 240kg bench, and 330kg deadlift foe a fine total of 920kg. Not far behind was Jamie Burke of Ireland who had a 340kg squat and 230kg bench with a 310kg deadlift for a total of 890kg and Marcus Brandon of the USA who had a squat of 310kg, bench 265kg missing his last deadlift attempt on a very controversial judges decision and had to settle for 280kg and third place. In the 60-64 group Friedererick Hachenberger of Germany won with a total of 590kg. Over Heinz-Joachin Probst of Germany who finished with 425kg. Alan Luker of Great Britain won the 55-59 group with 790kg. Arto Rajala of Finland won the 50-54 group with 865kg over Alfred Neumaier of Austria who finished with 675kg. Sergio Bianchi of Italy had a good day winning the 45-49 group with 632.5kg. In the 40-44 group Sami Kaipio of Finland, who looked more like an open lifter, won easily with a squat of 390kg, bench 200kg, and deadlift 310kg for a great total of 900kg. For the silver medal Patrick Verblijdt of Belgium had a total of 680kg followed by my friend Brian Johnston of Canada who failed to get a squat passed. Finally in the junior division it was Adam Kitchener of Great Britain winning with a total of 730kg. Again the teenagers lead off with Dries Willaert of Belgium in the 110kg 19-19 age group with a total of 780kg. In the open class Steven Middleton of Great Britain won the gold with a squat of 370kg, bench 240kg and deadlift 280kg to total 890kg. Followed by Daniel Dvorak of the Czech Republic who finished with 847.5kg and Jeremy Zimmerman of Canada with a fine total of 845kg and Daniel Dvorak. My friend Mark Swank of the USA also had 845kg but lost on body weight. Josef Pollendorfer of Austria took the 55-59 group with 700kg over teammate Heinz Stroj of Austria who finished with685kg. My friend Thomas Bowman of the USA won the gold with a squat of 300kg, bench 185kg, and 250kg deadlift for a total of 735kg. In the 45-49 group Ralf Dohne of Germany won the gold with a fine total of 840kg over Krystian Slosarek of Germany with 747.5kg and Alan Gilbert of Great Britain who had 660kg. My friend Sam Graham of Ireland won the gold in the 40-44 group with squat 310kg, bench 170kg and deadlift 250kg for a total of 730kg followed by Viktor Kudi of the Czech Republic with 610kg and Clay Felton of the USA who, lifting raw, had a good total of 547.5kg. In the junior division Oleg Orehovs of Latvia had a great day with a squat of 300kg, bench 215kg, and 300kg deadlift for the winning total of 815kg.

In the 125kg weight class Tomas Podlipny of the Czech Republicwon the gold with a squat of 330kg, bench 250kg, and deadlift 350kg for a total of 930kg for a 10kg win over Reiko Kruse of Germany who had a squat of 400kg, bench 230kg, and deadlift 290kg for 920kg. The bronze medal went to Richard Revyn of Belgium with a total of 760kg. In the 45-49 group my friend Lee Marshall of Great Britain had a good day winning easily with a squat of 370kg, bench 200kg, and deadlift 330kg for a total of 900kg over Mark Goovaerts of Belgium who finished with a total of 752.5kg. Gary Boulton of Great Britain won the 40-44 group with a total of 812.5kg just barely over teammate Gary Bamsey of Great Britain with 805kg. Michael Adams, also of Great Britain won the bronze with a total of 780kg. My friend Rocky Tilson of the USA had a good day with a squat of 292,5kg, bench 185kg, and a deadlift of 252,5kg for a total of 762.5kg.Rounding out the 40-44 group was my friend Andy Fogerty of Ireland with a total of 765kg. Jordan Sturm of the USA won the junior division with a squat of 247.5kg, bench 160kg, and deadldit 230kg for a total of 637.5kg. Jari Rosendahl of Finland won the 140kg weight class open division with a 395kg squat, 277.5kg bench, and 327.5kg deadlift to total 1000kg. My friend Mario Piatelli of Canada won the silver medal with a squat of 367.5kg, bench 285kg, and deadlift 295 kg for a good total of 947.5kg. Phillipe Crets of Belgium took the bronze with a total of 872.5kg. My friend Brian Meek of the USA, a 60 year old, still competing as an open lifter with a squat of 330kg, bench 255kg, and deadlift of 250kg in the open class but also winning the 60-64 group with new World Records and best lifter for the master men with a total of 835kg... Frank Hurrass of Germany won the 45-49 group with a fine 740kg total. Gunnar De Vadder of Belgium was the lone junior lifter and won with a total of 660kg. Kari Kalliola of Finland had a good GPC squat of 475kg for a world Record and gave 500kg a good ride. A strong bench of 355kg and deadlift of 297.5kg for the highest total of the day at 1127.5kg. Finishing the day was Jakub Havelka of the Czech Republic with a good total of 747.5kg to win the teenage 16-17 group.

After the awards ceremony the GPC flag was passed to Brian Johnston, the President of the Independent Powerlifting Association, by President of GPC Belgium Josef Mattens. The Independent Powerlifting Association of Canada is the host country for the 2007 Global Powerlifting and Bench Press Championships to be held in Calgary, Canada in October 2007. The Canadians are going all out to present the best Worlds Championships ever with the best equipment and facilities. They promise squat bars and deadlift bars and monolifts in the warm up room as well as the platform. I hope to see all of you there.