Richard 'Pops' Sorin (June 26, 1950 - June 3, 2024) was an American strongman and a grip strength specialist.[1][2]
Richard Sorin | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 26, 1950 |
| Died | June 2, 2024 (aged 73) Columbia, South Carolina |
| Occupation(s) | Strength athlete and exercise equipment manufacturer |
| Known for | Grip strength |
| Height | 195.5 cm (6 ft 5 in) |
Career
editSorin developed noteworthy grip strength at a young age. At only 13 he managed to pinch grip a pair of 35 lb (15.9 kg) York Barbell plates.[3] Coupled with a background of collegiate track and field and national level olympic weightlifting, Sorin rose to prominence, establishing himself as an icon among the grip training fraternity. In 1991, he became the first man to officially close the IronMind Captains of Crush No.3 gripper[4] which is recognized as the gold standard in world class crush grip. The feat earned him the nickname 'grip king'.[5]
Also among his noteworthy feats of grip strength are repetitively pinch gripping a couple of old York 45 lb (20.4 kg) deep dish plates with thin rounded edges which are 4 inches (10 cm) thick together, lifting a 201 lb (91 kg) anvil and snatching 100 lb (45 kg) anvils while holding them by their horns, performing 7 reps with the Captains of Crush No.3 gripper, closing the 'Phantom 4' gripper, a max pinched grip of 123 lb (56 kg), Rolling Thunder of 235 lb (107 kg), lifting the 172 lb (78 kg) Thomas Inch dumbbell, the original 50 lb (23 kg) 'fatman' Blob[6] and his legendary 1,331 lb (604 kg) rack pull lockout hold with a raw grip.[3]
In March 2023 Sorin was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame.[7]
Other ventures
editSorin was the founder of 'Sorinex' strength training equipment.[8][9]
References
edit- ^ Team OPL (March 1, 1991). "Richard Sorin (M)". Openpowerlifting.org. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
- ^ Anwnate, M (April 27, 2016). "Under the Spotlight – Grip Profile – Richard Sorin". gripboard.com.
- ^ a b Horne, David (April 2, 2002). "AN INTERVIEW WITH RICHARD SORIN". davidhorne-gripmaster.com.
- ^ Strossen, Randall J. (April 27, 2023). "Captains of Crush® No. 3 Gripper Certification: Official certification list for the No. 3 Captains of Crush® gripper". IronMind Enterprises, Inc.
- ^ EVEN, ZACH (December 21, 2020). "Who is THE Grip King?". Zacheven-esh.com.
- ^ VintageWeightsPGH. "Blobs". www.vintageweightspgh.org. Retrieved October 6, 2022.
- ^ Clubindustry.com/press-releases (March 8, 2023). "Richard Sorin inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame". Clubindustry.com. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
- ^ Maxwell, Jenny (May 21, 2021). "Sorinex Strong – Competing in the international arena". Columbia Metropolitan Magazine.
- ^ Sorin, Bert (September 7, 2021). "It's In Our Blood – Sorinex". Sorinex Exercise Equipment, Inc.
External links
edit- David Horne's 2002 interview with Richard Sorin – Untitled Document