‘Quadzilla’ fired up for champs
Hamish Coulter and his 32.5-inch quads are heading to Serbia next month in an attempt to smash a world record.
Hamilton’s biggest asset in powerlifting is on a mission to out-lift more than 400 competitors at the GPC Powerlifting World Championship.
There he will compete in the sport’s three components – the squat, bench press, and deadlift.
With the squat, lifters start upright, bend at the knees, and then return to their original position. In the bench press, competitors lie on their back, take hold of a weight, lower it to their chest, and then return it to the rack.
In the deadlift, they pick up a weight off the floor, lift it until they are standing erect, and then return it to the floor.
Coulter’s personal bests include 325kg for deadlift, 365kg for squats and 230kg for the bench press, all completed raw, meaning he lifts without using any equipment.
He is also the top qualifier heading to Serbia in his weight division of under 125kg.
This raw total of 912.5kg is the highest in New Zealand history and has earned Coulter the nickname ‘‘Quadzilla’’.
While in Serbia, Coulter is hoping to break the squatting world record of 370kg.
It will cap off his powerlifting career, with Coulter semiretiring after the championships.
‘‘I’m not just going, I’m going to win,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been but my body’s pretty broken.’’
Coulter has torn both of his forearm tendons while squatting and has torn his pectoral and glute muscles. He also has a stomach hernia, but that doesn’t hold him back, he said.
‘‘Quadzilla’’ Coulter also said that powerlifting was an ‘‘incredibly mental sport’’.
‘‘It’s mind over matter. I take myself to a place where I can’t fail.’’
And as far as using banned performance-enhancing drugs go, Coulter said there was no need.
‘‘[Doping] is in every sport and you’d be foolish to think that it wasn’t. But there’s nothing that’s going to replace hard work.’’