Nikolai Sherstnev set a European record at the "Slavic Cup" bench press double tournament in Vitebsk (updated)

The official part of the tournament was opened by the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Council of Deputies, Vladimir Terentyev. He noted that recently the Vitebsk region has been acquiring the status of a sports attraction center in Belarus. This is largely due to the sporting achievements of athletes from the Vitebsk region. Over the past year alone, they have won 136 medals in various competitions. The region rightly prides itself on its representatives on the world sports stage, Irina Krivko, Svetlana Sakonenko, Lidiya Grafeeva, and other athletes. "Much is being done for the development of sports in the region. Over the past year alone, new sports facilities were opened in Ushachi, Gorodok, Dubrovno, Senno. There are serious plans for 2018 as well," noted Vladimir Terentyev. 

The competition was held in the regional center for the second time and gathered over 150 athletes from Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Within the walls of the Central Sports Complex, they had to show their strength in lifting the maximum weight and the greatest number of repetitions in their weight and age categories. Bench press is called the special forces of pressing, as it requires both strength and endurance from the athlete.

As reported by Vitaly Seleznev, Chairman of the Belarusian Bench Press Federation, the "Slavic Cup" attracted the attention of the strongest athletes from the post-Soviet space, so the competition for awards was fierce.

This year, the number of participants in the "Slavic Cup" has almost doubled compared to last year's competition. The tournament is also growing in quality, attracting more and more attention from elite athletes. For example, Olympic champion of 2008 and world champion of 2007 in weightlifting, Andrey Aramnov, decided to test his strength in this new discipline for him. According to him, he participated in a powerlifting competition for the first time in his life quite recently and became very enthusiastic about it.

sport. "I am glad that there is another opportunity to prove myself, I will try to take into account my past mistakes and will work to the maximum. In weightlifting, I am currently in good shape, let's see what it will be like in powerlifting," the athlete noted.

The competition was also attended by Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee Nikolai Sherstnev, known for his love of strength sports.

— Last year, the head of the region set a European record, benching 165 kg and lifting a 100 kg barbell 23 times, — said Vasily Zakharevich, Head of the Department of Sports and Tourism of the Regional Executive Committee. — In 2018, despite the colossal workload at work, he also responsibly approached the preparation for the tournament and surpassed his previous achievement, managing a 172.5 kg projectile and benching a 100 kg barbell 25 times.

According to Nikolai Sherstnev, results in sports and production activities are formed in the same way due to defining character traits and clear goals that need to be achieved. "All this is not done quickly, it takes time and consistency. For myself, I have already developed a life strategy: you set a goal, a bar - you approach it - you achieve it - you set a new, higher one. It's exactly the same at work, everything is one to one. And every new achievement obliges you to move forward, to the next one," the head of the region noted.

This sport is also of interest to women.

— I like bench press. "Iron" allows you to train not only your body, but also your willpower, — said Svetlana. — I don't have any special achievements yet, but in the future I plan to become the best in my weight category.

Following intense competitions among the top athletes, the organizers awarded them with medals crafted from exclusive designs specifically for these contests, and valuable gifts from sponsors.

Based on materials from BELTA, the newspaper "Vitebskiye Vesti". Photos from the newspapers "Vitebskiye Vesti", "Vitbichi".