Cheryl Anderson Breaks Two Decade Old Bench Record

looks like she has a rage or titan shirt... how can you compare a record in the 80s to that? i bet the record holder in the 80s would have put that shirt on and bench 200 plus.....

Don't turn her accomplishments into a gear debate.

say u set a record raw or in a blast t shirt that gives u nothing then some one 20 years later beats it in a high performance bench shirt? and they only beat it by one pound? how can u compare the two lifts... they were done under completely different conditions........what she did is awesome but i hate when i see old records broken when the lifters nowadays have way more assistance gear to use.... u just cant compare lifts of yesterday to now..... unless it was raw then and raw now......

I agree totally with this guy. That's like saying
a guy pulled a school bus a whole block in 46 seconds on flat tires and then saying someone who pulled the same bus with inflated tires in 45 seconds and saying he broke the 46 second record. Now say the guy was you who pulled the 46 seconds on flat tires and had your record swept by one second on inflated tires, I mean lets be real, you would probably give congrats for his accomplishment but you would feel very cheated out of yours.

I get tired of the stupid gear debate. I do have records (state and national; RAW and equipped)If another lifter breaks those records because they are stronger or they have better eupipment then what ever.

ah, the continual debate of whiners complaining about gear. the cavemen of lifting continue to slow down progress of this great sport

Uh, what sport are you talking about? Powerlifting is one of the least-standardized, most poorly run sports ever. It has only gotten worse in the last 6 - 10 years with all of these "advances."

"ah, the continual debate of whiners complaining about gear. the cavemen of lifting continue to slow down progress of this great sport"

agreed....

let the young lady have her fun and record.what does it matter it's not about you are me IT'S ABOUT HER!!.i've been powerlifting in meets for about 6 months and it has given a old football player something fun to do.until this sport comes up with the same rules for everybody.we should support EVERYBODY only to make powerlifting stronger.find the organization for you and train hard and good luck to everyone in powerlifting.GREAT JOB CHERYL!!!!!

ppl are caveman if they think its bulshit ppl put equipment on lift more and think it all them? and were cavemen becuz with think a raw record being beat by 1 pound is dumb when the person who beat the record had a shirt on? thats not fair.. what if you just bench 500 raw for a record then som one who did like 300 raw did 505 shirted and they said they are the new record holder .... u really out bench them by 200 pounds but yet they just beat ur record and ppl think they are better than u.... stupid!

It gave me a headache trying to read your post.

For the anti gear people: Why not get olympic runners to go barefoot? Spiked shoes provide a TON more traction than bare feet-- Ain't fair! Maybe the 2 records can't be compared, but jeez, Ayone who's been anywhere around this sport knows that NOTHING is accomplished without busting your rear end in the gym. Gear or no gear, material OR chemical, we ALL bust it in the gym. Anyone who thinks the gear makes the lifter can go watch frikkin springboard diving or something. . .
Dano

Gee Smitty, why don't you go ahead and tell us about all of your records? Or, would you just like to have a name-calling contest?

"For the anti gear people: Why not get olympic runners to go barefoot? Spiked shoes provide a TON more traction than bare feet-- Ain't fair! Maybe the 2 records can't be compared, but jeez, Ayone who's been anywhere around this sport knows that NOTHING is accomplished without busting your rear end in the gym. Gear or no gear, material OR chemical, we ALL bust it in the gym. Anyone who thinks the gear makes the lifter can go watch frikkin springboard diving or something. . ."
Dano

Good post......

So who pulled the bus with the flat tires? A block in 46 sec on flats is pretty good. What kind of bus was it? School bus/short bus/greyhound??

Oh and congrats to Cheryl on the lift.

Amen, awesome lift Cheryl!!!

"If another lifter breaks those records because they are stronger or they have better eupipment then what ever.

LOL.

I just went to the garage and lifted my suburban 20" with a floor jack. I haven't done the math, but I figure thats a new record, at least a 2,000 lb. bench press.

I worked really hard pushing that jack, and used new technology to advance the sport. I have a new record. don't criticize my lift or you're a whining jealous loser.

Sears has a professional floor jack line, I think it's even nascar-approved, so I'm hoping to increase my lifts when I can afford better equipment. wish me luck.

Alright, let's keep this on a little higher plane.

For those computer geeks that talk shit about power lifters..... Why not push yourself away from your computer desk get on the floor and do a push up... If you can? The reason most of us powerlift is because it is all about pride. I am not looking to be put on ESPN or anything like that. I do it because I love it. For the guys that are ranked in the top 10 yes they should be on tv becuase they bust their asses just as hard if not harder than any other athlete out there.

say u set a record raw or in a blast t shirt that gives u nothing then some one 20 years later beats it in a high performance bench shirt? and they only beat it by one pound? how can u compare the two lifts... they were done under completely different conditions........what she did is awesome but i hate when i see old records broken when the lifters nowadays have way more assistance gear to use.

With equipped lifting that's the nature of the beast. The gear will continue to evolve and allow more pounds to be lifted. Today's geared lifters fully recognize their records will be surpassed in the future by powerlifters with more advanced equipment.

It still is a record like it or not. I lifted raw and ive lifted with a bench shirt. I found that i take more pride in my self by lifting raw. If you want to lift with a shirt that is fine but just remember that the nubers that you put up are false. Power lifting is a measurement of ones strength. My opinion is that in a shirt i was not getting a true accurate measurement of my lift. I did like the ego trip that i got when i benched over 400 and i weight in at 181. Ive been drug free my entire life. I only do 320s raw. Id really like to do the 400 raw and then use the shirt. Congrads on your record no matter what is said it is a record raw or equiped. It is true that we can not compare records from the 80s to the records in 2020 but thats what makes it so interesting. do you really think that this lady is done and she wont get a bigger lift and break her own record??? She is going back to the gym to increase more. in a way she is picking up where the lifter in the 80s left off.

I mean lets be real, you would probably give congrats for his accomplishment but you would feel very cheated out of yours.

Not if equipped lifting was the path you'd chosen. See my post above.

how can you compare a record in the 80s to that?

You can't! But Cheryl now has the Record. Anyone out there that thinks they can take it away should step up. Until then, shouldn't she receive all of our congratulations for being the best in America, under the conditions in which she competes, regardless of how we feel about equipment?

By the way the photograph used in this write-up was an old one from her website not from the meet.

No one is trying to compare lifts today with yesterday. It was said that she broke the record - that's neat. It never said she was the best female bencher ever, bar none, whatever. Most of the people who have chips on their shoulders are those who are mediocre at best.

I know my records will be broken some day, it happens. I'm not going to cry on the Internet when it happens and I hope no one cries for me. Who gives a shit! I'm doing this for me, and all the top lifters are doing it for the same reason - pride, as was said before. No one is the best forever. Training evolves, people evolve, gear evolves.

Bottom line - she's strong and so are all the other people who have records. Get over it and LIFT.

End. Of. Rant.

Thanks very much to Jon and all the others for their very kind words of support and encouragement!

FYI (correction), the Twin Cities Open had taken place at THE GYM Training Center in Plymouth, Minnesota.

I broke the American BP Record with the same exact Titan F6 bench shirt I wore at the IPF Women's World Championships in 2005. At that meet, I had worn it for the first time, got a 154.3 lb. bench and won a silver medal. 11 months later, I got a 165 in a full meet and locked out 175 (except the latter was turned down 2 to 1). 16 months later, I got this easy full meet BP of 172 in what is now a much more broken-in, stretched out shirt. I went for a 176 but was too excited having just broken the record that I lost my usual drive to push it through that day (I was laughing by the time I racked it - you have to have some fun at some point here!). So the point is, I have made bonafide strength gains; believe me, I have put some time and effort training into this, and my raw strength has increased along with that. My shirt takes just a few minutes to put on, and for me, it does not yield anywhere near the vast poundages you hear so much about with other lifters (I wish! LOL).

And, as Jon said, the picture was from a different meet - that was from the WABDL World's in 2004 where I put up a single-lift 161 BP in an Inzer Rage.

One of my favorite role models in this sport, a multi-time, multi-federation, multi-record-holding national and world champion, Team USA member, and a good friend, Ann Leverett also had very positive "congrats" and she is old-school for sure, but the lady still keeps going strong amongst all the rest of us youngins!

Thanks again, everyone. Keep training hard!!

Congratulations on this awesome accomplishment to my best friend since high school days in Florida - Cheryl Anderson. Let those "Anonymous" individuals continue to talk smack...it's making you famous ;)

Cheryl you are awesome! That is an awesome lift, congrats! Onto 200!!

If you set a record RAW in a gear fed, don't get pissed if someone else breaks it. Doesn't matter if they can't do as much raw, they were just smarter than you. I lost in one meet to a guy who can barely bench 350lbs raw, but benched a huge amount of weight. I on the other hand bench 450 raw. was I pissed, no I just realize I need to develop more speed to get better in the shirt. IF YOU WANT TO LIFT RAW LIFT IN A RAW FED

Geared people always whine "I worked hard and bust my ass." Well you know what? Gear helps you lift more weight, bottom line. The good news. The sport of Powerlifting involves gear. To be the best you have to learn to be good at using it. The way I see it powerlifting is two part: lifting and learning how to lift in gear.

I wonder if these mythical computer geeks who have never touched a weight in their lives but do nothing but sit all day hating about gear actually exist... I think not!!!
Come on, if you were some skinny computer nerd who had never lifted weights, do you really think you would seek out a POWERLIFTING forum to tell everyone how weak they are and how much they cheat? Of course you F***ING WOULDN'T!!!
You would look into geeky sites about computers. Powerlifting would be the LAST thing on their mind.

"For the anti gear people: Why not get olympic runners to go barefoot? Spiked shoes provide a TON more traction than bare feet-- Ain't fair! Maybe the 2 records can't be compared, but jeez, Ayone who's been anywhere around this sport knows that NOTHING is accomplished without busting your rear end in the gym. Gear or no gear, material OR chemical, we ALL bust it in the gym. Anyone who thinks the gear makes the lifter can go watch frikkin springboard diving or something. . .
Dano"

Just because some advancements are allowed in other sports does not mean that all advancments are good for all other sports. I can see a track & field athlete saying, "Well they allow bench shirts in powerlifting, so why can't I ride my bicycle on the track?"

For those of you that say, "if you want to lift under X conditions, then go lift under X conditions", you need to also acknowledge that records are meaningless outside of 2-3 year time spans in geared feds. As long as you are willing to do that, I have no problem with your request.

you guys are too much.

no one is saying Cheryl is not a good person.
no one is saying Cheryl doesn't work hard.
no one is saying Cheryl is not an incredible lifter.
no one is "talking smack" about Cheryl.

they are saying that shirts resist the bar and allow higher numbers than a given lifter could get without assistance. therefore, "records" set using a shirt are not directly comparable to records set without a shirt.

that's it. nothing more, nothing personal. if you don't get that concept, you're either lying or stupid.

I am usually lying and stupid for sure but in this case Cheryl had a great meet, broke a record and should be proud of her accomplishment. You can go ahead and post your name so I can stop laughing at your internet tough guy posts...Anonymous

You are on the TOP of the heap Cheryl. Let em keep whining, You keep winning! Regardless of what anyone say about today or the past, you are the Bestin todays history of powerlifting. Raw, gear ,super shirted or whatever.
I Love it when they and keep you down. Makes you figth that much more. LOL!
Keep kicken ass and taken names!

guys... listen

she is a 97lb woman benching 172. i garuntee you that the f-6 she is wearing is no tighter than a blast shirt from the 80's. on someone that light that is benching 172lbs, the shirt CANT be tight or there is no way she could touch the weight. smaller lifters cant wear those insanely tight shirts and get 3o% carryover like the big guys do.

"guys... listen

she is a 97lb woman benching 172. i garuntee you that the f-6 she is wearing is no tighter than a blast shirt from the 80's. on someone that light that is benching 172lbs, the shirt CANT be tight or there is no way she could touch the weight. smaller lifters cant wear those insanely tight shirts and get 3o% carryover like the big guys do."

Then why waste the money on anything more than a loose blast shirt?

Look, benching 172@97 is a huge accomplishment in or out of a shirt, but it is what is, nothing less, nothing more.

shes only 97lbs. I'm suprised she can lift anything.

jared,,, just how tight can the damn shirt be if she is touching 172lbs?

PS - im willing to be that she is sponsered, so i dont think she "wasted" any money on the shirt

I know Cheryl Anderson personally. In addition to being a world class (yes, I said WORLD CLASS) powerlifter), she's a fulltime student, model, and a couple other things that keeps her busy. She's one of the most disciplined people I know and she earns the accolades she receives. Any arguments about what happened 20 years ago are moot at this point in time. Congratulations Cheryl, I'm proud of you!!!

Wow!!! Congratulations Cheryl!! Awesome lift! Good luck to you in the future!

123 wow

Jared, you either have no concept on how a bench shirt works or have your head up your ass. Trying to draw a parallel between an F6 and a blast shirt in any context is absolutely retarded. The shirt would literally have to be falling off the lifter to not add more support than a blast shirt. From my understanding she broke the record using the record breaker plates, which is one kilo (2.2#'s). Do you really think the shirt she wore did not offer more than 2.2#'s assistance than something worn 20+ years ago?

I'm new to this page but have been reading the comments. I've only been powerlifting and competing for 6 months and have loved every minute of it! I don't always get my lifts so I train harder and set goals. I've competed raw and equipped (I prefer raw). I've learned that equipped doesn't always make your lift better. Mine don't change! Way to go Cheryl! With or without assistance, she obviously worked her tail off to get where she is!

It's 172.

Apologies to Jared. Post should have been aimed at "Anonymous" who is trying to state her shirt was no tighter than a blast shirt. Ever had a blast shirt on? Not only were they worn much tighter than the tightest new age Titan, but offered about a tenth of the weight the loosest new age shirt offers. That is one of the dumbest comparisons I have ever heard. Of course she is getting more out of her shirt than the original record holder. At best you could hope to pause a touch and go RAW double in a blast shirt To attempt to assert anything else is ignorant.