A British gran has been crowned the world’s strongest OAP powerlifter – after deadlifting the equivalent of an elephant.
Martine Barons, 65, has made history after winning the title for the third year in a row while representing Great Britain at the World and European Championships.
The superfit sexagenarian came out on top in the squat lift and bench press before deadlifting a whopping 140kg (22st) – the same weight as a baby elephant.
Last Monday (14/9) she bagged her third World Championship title while competing in the Masters 6 U82.5kg division.
It completed a hat-trick after she won the 2024 World Championships in Limerick, Ireland, and the 2025 World Powerlifting Championship in Idaho, USA.
Martine, of Stratford-upon-Avon, Warks., said: “I was confident I could probably win but I knew I wasn’t going to be at my best this time due to picking up a bug.
“I was competing in the 65 to 85 age group for the first time, but I got sick after a trip to Kenya and was still recovering, so these aren’t my best figures but I was the best on the day.
“I set a 90kg squat (14st), a 52.5kg bench (8st) and a 140kg deadlift (22st) on the day.”
The academic researcher at Warwick University added: “I recovered enough to get back to everyday life, but the illness had a huge impact on my strength.
“Mentally, it was difficult to adjust my expectations, and tactically it was a challenge to pick lifts that were ambitious enough to be competitive but still within my capabilities.
“In powerlifting, once you nominate a weight for an attempt, you can only increase it or keep it the same for your next lift.
“If you fail all three attempts in any one discipline, you don’t record a total and you’re out of the competition.”
Martine’s winning deadlift was still two stone lighter than her career-best of 155kg (24st).
The mum-of-three, who has four grandchildren, took up powerlifting by accident in December 2023 after a colleague introduced her to it and she found she had a knack for the sport.
She said: “I’ve really noticed the benefits of powerlifting in my life.
“If I need furniture moving at home, I can do it and when I’m with my family I can toss my grandchildren in the air and play games with them.
“My posture is also better and I just feel more capable and more confident in everyday life”.
Just six months after she started training she won the European Championships in Finland in June 2024 before successfully defending her title again in June 2025 in Poland.
The gran – who weighs 12st 9lb and stands 5ft 6ins tall – maintains her strength by eating more than 188g of protein a day and hitting the gym 12 hours a week spread over four days.
Martine added: “I’ve only been powerlifting for two-and-a-half years, my first competition was in April 2024 and I’d only been lifting for a few weeks.
“It was meant to be a fun day out for us but I really enjoyed it.
“I was actually scared to death of doing a deadlift before as I was worried I’d hurt myself.
“I entered anyway and made my friend lift with me and I had a fun day out.
“Then we got invited to the British and European Championships.
“I never expected to be doing this. I love the training, the routine, the adrenaline of the competition and the joy.
“The community is amazing, too.
“You bond together in adversity don’t you. We all know what it takes to achieve this.
“I have seen such a huge change in my own physique and my capabilities – I don’t struggle to lift things around the house anymore.”
Martine has won an impressive 20 of the 21 competitions she has entered in her weight class.
Her next goal is to deadlift double her own body weight and hit 160kg (25 stone).
Martine said: “Resistance training of some kind is really important for the bones and the mental side.
“Creatine and exercise itself is really beneficial for cognitive ability, something which can help menopausal women.
“It’s all a case of finding your grove and finding what you like.
“All this, it’s training for your old lady body, and that really motivates me.
“I’ve seen my neighbours, parents and friends end up in care homes and I don’t want that.
“I would love for more older people to come into the sport, I would love it.
“I’ve done my level one coaching and I’ve got a couple of clients now, and that’s very rewarding.
“There’s no age limit on strength training so no one should be scared about taking it up.”
