Swift Current powerlifter Wayne Cormier has captured a world title in Poland, completing a remarkable comeback after spending two years preparing for the Global Powerlifting Committee (GPC) World Powerlifting and Bench Press Championships.
Cormier won gold in the equipped world powerlifting championship with a 470-kilogram total after arriving in Pabianice, Poland. He was scheduled to continue competing in the raw world powerlifting championship, followed by the world bench press championships later in the week.
Wayne Cormier prior to his departure, confident in his condition. (photo by Hayden Michaels)The victory comes after Cormier described what he called an 86-week preparation that nearly came to an end after suffering a heart attack in June.
Come back from a heart attack
Cormier said he began preparing for the championships almost two years before stepping onto the world stage.
“This has been 86 weeks,” Cormier said. “I qualified for Costa Rica last year and health problems once again, injuries. The harder I push as I get closer to a championship, the more apt I am to get injured.”
His biggest setback came the day before Father’s Day, when he suffered a heart attack and missed three weeks of training while recovering.
“It was touch and go there for a while whether or not I was going to get green-lighted to be able to go to the worlds,” he said.
After passing stress tests and medical clearances, Cormier resumed training and travelled to Poland with the goal of competing in four world championship events.
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Four world championships in one trip
Cormier entered four divisions at the championships: raw powerlifting, equipped powerlifting, raw bench press and equipped bench press.
The veteran lifter said competing in multiple divisions meant doubling the workload after already completing two full powerlifting competitions at nationals in Edmonton earlier this year.
“If I’m going all the way to Europe, I at least want to increase my chances of having a successful return on my training,” he said.
The championships attracted 675 athletes from 45 countries, with Cormier expecting his toughest competition to come from Latvia, Poland, Great Britain, Hungary and Russia.
Chasing the medal that got away
Cormier entered Poland determined to earn the world title that narrowly escaped him nearly three decades ago.
His last world championship as a competitor came in 1998, when he earned bronze after briefly sitting in first place before the final lifters took the platform.
“Bronze is nice, but I forgot for a long time that in ’98 I sat in first place for five minutes,” he said.
“I’m going because I want to win.”
A lifetime in the sport
Cormier began competing in powerlifting in 1976 at the age of 13 and celebrated his 50th year in competition earlier this year.
The championships in Poland mark his 76th through 79th sanctioned competitions, reflecting four separate championship entries.
Over those five decades, Cormier has overcome two heart attacks, a stroke and organ failure while continuing to compete internationally.
“The duct tape and the crazy glue just isn’t working as well as it used to,” he said with a laugh.
He added that retirement is not on his mind just yet.
“It’s still fun. I still have the eye of the tiger and the will to get me there. When I lose that, then I know it’s over.”
