Rebecca Roberts (born 18 December 1994), is a Welsh strongwoman and grip athlete, current UK's Strongest Woman 2023[1] and winner of the 2021 and 2023 World's Strongest Woman competition. She regained the title of 'World's Strongest Woman' after winning at the Official Strongman games in West Virginia December 2023, becoming one of only 4 women in history to become a multiple Worlds Strongest Woman champion.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 18 December 1994 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Strongwoman | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 130–180 kg (287–397 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Partner | Paul Savage (Deceased 2022) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Early life
editRoberts grew up in Bangor, Gwynedd, in North Wales. Growing up, she has not been dealt the best cards in life,[2] after losing her mother at a young age and her father suffering from dementia shortly after. She attended University of Liverpool where she studied forensic psychology and through university clubs discovered rugby.
Career
editRoberts was introduced to strength sports by her partner Paul Savage in 2016. Standing at 6 ft 3 in,[3] and weighing in at 180 kg (397 lb), she was a formidable competitor. She was also participating in grip competitions, winning 2017 European Grip Championships in Norway, WHEA World Championships from 2017 to 2018 in Finland[4] and 2019 British Grip Championships in Stafford. Since then, Roberts has competed in numerous strongwoman competitions and also holds several world records. Between 2019 and 2021, Rebecca lost around 50 kg (110 lb) of bodyweight to improve her stamina and athleticism.
She has also won the World's Strongest Natural Woman contest twice, World Grip Championships twice and European Grip Championships.
Personal life
editIn 2022, Roberts' partner and coach Paul Savage suddenly passed away. She continues to compete in his honour. She is an advocate for body positivity and mental health, partially due to her own experience of bullying due to her weight and size earlier in her career.[5] Roberts works full time but still trains roughly 20 hours a week[6] to be able to compete at an international level. She is very active on social media, posting about her training, competitions and her weight loss journey, as well as the challenges of training while grieving.
Personal records
edit- Deadlift – 280 kg (617 lb) equipped
- Rogue Elephant Bar Deadlift – 273 kg (602 lb) raw with straps
- Log press – 109 kg (240 lb) x 2 reps
- Atlas stones – 5 stones from 90.5–147.5 kg (200–325 lb) in 28.04 seconds
- Natural stones – 4 stones from 85–145 kg (187–320 lb) in 23.91 seconds
| World Records (Active records are in bold text) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Record | Sport | Federation | Performance | |
| 2023 | Conan's Wheel of Pain | Strongwoman | Arnold Classic | 92 ft 9 in | |
| 2022 | Thor's Hammer[7] | Strongwoman | Rogue | 39 seconds | |
| 2018 | Handshake Lift (one hand)[8] | Grip | David Horne World of Grip | 84.68 kg | |
| 2018 | Axle Deadlift (20" from the floor) double overhand grip[8] | Grip | David Horne World of Grip | 137.05 kg | |
| 2018 | 76mm Silarukov Rolling Handle (thumbless) hold[8] | Grip | David Horne World of Grip | 47.5 kg | |
| 2018 | IronMind Little Big Horn[9] | Grip | IronMind | 70.96 kg | |
| 2018 | Log Lift Max[10] | Strongwoman | WHEA | 90 kg | |
| 2018 | Deadlift Max[11] | Strongwoman | WHEA | 227.5 kg | |
| 2017 | 2.5" Crusher[12] | Grip | FBBC | 67 kg | |
| 2017 | 3" Trilobite[13] | Grip | Mammoth Grip Tools | 43.1 seconds | |
| 2017 | IronMind Block[14] | Grip | IronMind | 31.55 kg | |
References
edit- ^ "2023 UK's Strongest Woman & Man Results — Rebecca Roberts & Paul Smith Take Gold". Fitness Volt. 29 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- ^ "Warrington bodybuilder set for space on world stage". Warrington Guardian. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
- ^ "Rebecca Roberts Lifts Big on the Little Big Horn". ironmind.com. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
- ^ "Strongest man/woman champions - World Heavy Events Association". www.worldheavyeventsassociation.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "'Bigger is better': The weightlifter". BBC News. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
- ^ Grimsditch, Lee (5 September 2021). "Woman sheds nine stone after first date changes her life". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
- ^ "Record Breakers - Leaderboard". www.roguefitness.com. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- ^ a b c "World Records". www.davidhorne-gripmaster.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "Rebecca Roberts Lifts Big on the Little Big Horn". ironmind.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "Strongest man/woman records - World Heavy Events Association". www.worldheavyeventsassociation.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "Strongest man/woman records - World Heavy Events Association". www.worldheavyeventsassociation.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "VBARCERTS". www.fatbastardbarbellco.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "European Grip Championship 2017". The GripBoard. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
- ^ "IronMind Block - Rules & World Records". ironmind.com. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
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