Lift Like A Girl

Powerlifting world record holder Farhanna Farid is hoping to break stereotypes associated with powerlifting, and bring the sport to more people.

- KARISHMA TULSIDAS

Oscar-winning actor Michelle Yeoh and Nobel Peace Prize laureate and journalist Maria Ressa have more in common than one might think. Both individuals represent a profound and impactful message: that someone who looks like us has managed to overcome racial and gender barriers, and made the seemingly impossible possible by being awarded the highest accolades in their fields.

Being the first to break glass ceilings is never easy. It takes grit and guts, two qualities that 31-year-old Farhanna Farid has in spades.

The record-breaking powerlifter never expected to venture down this path. A pharmacist by profession, she only started powerlifting a decade ago when her then-boyfriend, now-husband started pushing her to join his gym. What first started as a hobby turned into a full-fledged career when she attended a casual meet-up with the “boys” (her husband’s powerlifting friends) in 2017, and inadvertently ended up breaking the national record. It lit a spark in Farhanna, and in 2018, she decided to seriously consider powerlifting as a career.

Since making that decision six years ago, she has broken several world records, including the 200.5kg deadlift for the under-52kg category at the International Powerlifting Competition last year in South Africa.

However, the journey has not been easy: There were plenty of barriers to entry, including the lack of representation, lack of awareness, high costs of competing; and perceptions that this was a manly sport.

Back in 2018, Farhanna was one of a handful of women powerlifting in Singapore. When asked about numbers today, she can’t give us an exact figure, but makes an educated guess based on the amount of time a women’s competition takes: “Previously, it would probably take us half a day. Today, it will probably be a full day.”