Roneil Walcott
THE raw power, strength and determination of national champion Joseph McDonald were on full display in San Jose, Costa Rica, on September 5 when he overcame a shaky start to reel in the gold medal in the 120 kg weight class at the 2025 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Junior Powerlifting Championships.
In an intense battle with Great Britain’s Joshua Ngoka across the squats, deadlift and bench press categories, the 22-year-old McDonald locked in and put on a show to snatch the title with a total lift of 965 kgs. Ngoka was a close second with an overall lift of 957.5 kgs, with Brazilian Davi Cardoso Gomes placing third with an overall lift of 867.5 kgs. McDonald accumulated 112.46 IPF points, with Ngoka earning 111.45 IPF points.
On his way to the title, McDonald pushed himself to the limit in the bench press category when he set a new world junior record with a lift of 257.5 kgs. Ngoka placed second in the bench press category with a lift of 215 kgs, which gave McDonald a chance to land the gold medal heading into the deadlift, which was the third and final category.
As coach Krystan Hosein described to Newsday, it wasn’t an easy feat for McDonald, as the youngster felt he should have done better with his squat lift to start the competition. In the squats, McDonald began with a weight of 315 kgs, which he negotiated well before also getting past the 335 kgs weight. At the next weight, 347.5 kgs, Hosein said McDonald mis-grooved it and was just unable to complete the lift. Ngoka was in top form in the squats category and he flexed his muscles by setting a new world junior record with a 367.5 kgs lift.
“Now, that placed us in a very difficult situation. We knew we needed every single kg to win this and Joseph was kinda disappointed going to the bench. But, as athletes, we have to overcome that and refocus,” Hosein said.
“It’s a weight (squats) we were confident he was going to get. But he was able to re-evaluate and motivate himself and get back into a good spirit. He was enjoying it…We picked the best numbers and then he acquitted himself properly,” Hosein told Newsday.
McDonald weighed in at 119.30 kgs, while his biggest threat to the gold medal, Ngoka, weighed in at 119.65 kgs. Hosein said this slight weight difference proved critical as McDonald would have been awarded the victory if he and Ngoka had achieved the same overall total, as the former athlete was lighter.
“Joseph’s event is the bench press. By that time, we were behind by 22.5 kgs on the forecasted total, which is far behind and a lot of kgs to make up to come out with the win. As we went to the bench, Joseph was feeling good and I had to motivate him a lot in between the squat and the bench but that’s what we’re there for.
“We were thinking we needed to get a secure number. As the coach, I was in between the ideal number to squeeze out every single kg. I opted to put 257.5 kgs, which is the world junior record. It was exactly enough. If it had even just a breeze blowing, (Joseph) would have missed it,” Hosein said.
The TT athlete and coach were pumped after the record feat and McDonald went into the deadlift with a renewed belief.
“As we went into the deadlift, we were very confident. We were trailing by about 10 kgs at this time and anything can happen in the deadlift,” Hosein said.
With the two heavyweights going at it, McDonald lifted 330 and 350 kgs to open up the deadlift category, with Ngoka comfortably lifting 350 and 375 kgs. With his athlete still trailing, Hosein had to make a decisive move before McDonald had his final go in the deadlift and the competition as a whole.
“Ngoka’s deadlift was going really good. I had to try and look at the second lift and decide what third lift I could put where Ngoka couldn’t pull a deadlift to beat us. Now, in the third deadlift, I put 372.5 kgs, which was smack on the exact number. I don’t think Joseph had even one more pound to give.”
With McDonald taking his overall tally to 965 kgs, Ngoka was forced to attempt the 385 kgs in the deadlift to try and surpass the TT athlete’s overall score. The competition went down to the wire.
“Ngoka went for the 385. He pulled it up to his thighs and it slipped out of his hand. It was a very dramatic finish.”
The 965 kgs tallied by McDonald is the highest mark in the 120 kg category this year and eclipsed the 962.5 kgs mark from Lebanon’s Etienne El Chaer to win the 120 kg weight class at the IPF World Men’s Classic Open Powerlifting Championships in Germany in June. McDonald placed fourth in that competition with an overall lift of 945 kgs.
Another TT athlete, Reshon Superville, placed fifth in the 66 kg category on August 29 with a total lift of 640 kgs. TT placed seventh overall out of 46 countries. Hosein said McDonald’s world junior title is a big win for the sport locally.
“This World IPF Junior Championships is the biggest competition for this age group…it really is a big milestone for TT powerlifting. The development powerlifting has had within the last ten years has been extreme. It has grown 20-30 times the number of athletes and the interest has grown extensively.
“I don’t even have the words to explain how great this accomplishment is for Joseph. He hasn’t been powerlifting very long.” (with reporting by Sherdon Pierre)
The raw power, strength and determination of national champion Joseph McDonald were on full display in San Jose, Costa Rica, on September 5 when he overcame a shaky start to reel in the gold medal in the 120 kg weight class at the 2025 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Junior Powerlifting Championships.
 World Classic Junior Powerlifting Championships.){kind=link}