Meet the 9-year-old who can lift three times his own weight

At an all-ages meet in Ohio last month, Lucy Milgrim set her third American powerlifting record by deadlifting 180 pounds while wearing pigtails and a custom weight belt to the sound of AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck.”

The lift quickly caught the attention of professional powerlifters, and an Instagram video of her lifting nearly three times her body weight racked up 60 million views. Which athlete has achieved greatness? A 9-year-old fourth grader from Long Island, New York.

In her first year in the sport, Lucy is now among the top young powerlifters in the country.

“I was really excited and really excited to have reached that weight,” Lucy said. “I’ve been playing it for a while, but this is the first time I’ve been able to hit it.”

Lucy, a youth powerlifter, is part of a group of 8-year-old athletes who compete in bench presses, deadlifts, and squats. Through USA Powerlifting, the nation’s largest powerlifting organization, youth lifters can participate at the local level and advance to regional, national, and international competitions. On average, youth national conventions include 50 to 100 participants, while regional conventions typically have 10 to 20 participants.

“The impact this sport has on youth is pretty incredible,” said Heather Firth, a 13-year powerlifter and executive director of USA Powerlifting. “It helps with self-awareness and fun, while also helping you execute these lifts with great form and technique.”

And Lucy’s accomplishments have impressed athletes who have been lifting since long before she was born. In addition to deadlifting 180 pounds, Lucy also set bench press records of 74 pounds and squat records of 131 pounds.

“It’s pretty unusual to see an athlete, especially one of her size, able to lift three times her body weight both mentally and physically,” Firth added.

“This is a big thing for an adult athlete to ultimately achieve, and for a young man her age to achieve it is incredible,” she added, adding that she has never seen anyone like Lucy.

This achievement and record is especially exciting for the 9-year-old, whose main sporting focus is wrestling and who trains four to five days a week with two coaches: her father and Olympic bronze medalist in wrestling light flyweight, Vugar Orozhov.

About a year ago, Lucy started powerlifting, joined by one of her wrestling “best friends.”

“It’s a sport where the more effort you put in, the more you get out of it. Powerlifting is very similar in that sense,” said Brett Milgrim, Lucy’s father.

Milgrim said her priority was Lucy’s safety. Coaches are not focused on maximum lift volume, and training often includes “microplates” to more safely increase weight for her physique. He added that correct posture and technique are always emphasized.

Milgrim, who is also a former wrestler, said, “I want to focus on postural control and do smooth repetitions each time so I can do it over and over again.”

In fact, Lucy’s mother, Michelle, added that her daughter has only attempted maximum weight in three competitions, including March 7 at the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus, Ohio.

In the video, Milgrim can be seen waving her arms in the air before stepping onto the bar, wearing a powerlifting belt with her first name on it, and wearing pink shoes and knee-high socks. With her back to her father, she lifts the bar for a few seconds before releasing it, smiling as she flexes her muscles.

“My favorite thing about powerlifting that you can’t do in wrestling is that you can put on makeup and do pretty hair while you’re lifting,” she added. “In wrestling, you can only wear braids or ponytails.”

And Lucy says her sporting success is already an inspiration to others. At the state wrestling match on March 15, a 5-year-old girl introduced herself. The girl’s brother told Lucy’s mother that her sister had said she wanted to be the next Lucy.

“It’s really exciting and a great feeling to know that so many little girls look up to me,” Lucy said.

Lucy already has great strength, but she thinks long-term.

“I want to become an Olympic gold medalist in wrestling and I want to start my own wrestling club and beat my father’s record,” she said.