Taiwanese powerlifter Yang Sen won a silver medal at the 2022 World Games on Sunday in the men’s super heavyweight category.
Yang squatted 440 kg on the way to his second-place finish. That’s a world record for his category. Yang also bench pressed 322.5 kg and deadlifted 332.5kg for a combined weight of more than 1,000 kg. Despite his impressive performance, Yang ended the competition behind Ukraine’s Oleksiy Bychkov.
Reflecting on his silver medal-winning performance, Yang said he always wanted to break the squatting world records. He says he thought he might achieve that goal during the World Athletic Championships later this month, but he accomplished it one competition earlier, at the World Games in the United States.
Yang said that his performance has boosted his confidence, and that he’s looking forward to the World Athletic Championships.