DeNeen L. Brown’s profile of 14-year-old powerlifting sensation Jake Schellenschlager in The Washington Post has been setting the Internet on fire over the past few days. Schellenschlager is a 14-year-old who hit the scales at a recent meet at 119 pounds and went on to deadlift 300 pounds. Brown’s profile looks at how the teenager got into weight lifting and how he made such progress in a short time. It also addresses the issue about what is the right age to start lifting.
The young lifter’s father, who does not train him (that job is done by Mike Sarni) addresses that question in the piece. “You want to make sure they are doing proper form and not lifting too heavy,” says Chris Schellenschlager. “I know it’s bad on the joints with him still growing. Some don’t believe it is good to have kids weight lifting too early. But Jake never complains about pain or hurting, and he gets regular check-ups.”
Young athletes being able to lift heavy weights is nothing new, and Russian teenager Maryana Naumova and American Dominic Swanson have also been smashing records of their own. To read more about Jake and to hear his take on his chosen sport and the advances he has made during his short career, check out the excellent Post feature.
Schellenschlager has his own YouTube channel where he keeps his fans updated on his latest goings on. Here he is in action from a video posted last summer, where he squats 212.5 pounds.
