Twelve-year-old weightlifter Maryana Naumova has bench-pressed 75 kilograms, to add a ninth world record to her impressive tally.
While most children’s bodies aren’t ready to lift heavy weights until they reach their teens, Maryana Naumova is clearly an exception.
The Moscow Region native is not afraid to throw a few extra plates on her rack, setting a juvenile world record by lifting one and a half times her weight. This despite her not yet having reached her teens.
Naumova can boast a personal best bench-pressing effort of 75 kilograms, certainly proving looks can be deceptive.
That represents incredible progress for someone who only started doing that particular lift two years ago.
Naumova did not hit the 60 kilogram mark until December 2010, but when she did, it became a world record amongst girls under 14.
And it was only a matter of time before she could add another 15 kilos to push off her chest.
The Russian got her athletic training off to a good start by beginning aerobics at the age of just five, which will be no surprise to anyone who has seen her warm up before setting a total of nine world records.
Mariana’s father, Aleksandr Naumov, is no stranger to pumping iron himself and has always emphasized proper fundamentals and training regimes for his star daughter.
The second-generation powerlifting wonder has already started to inspire others.
Eight-year-old Elisabeth Tomilov also decided to take up weights after witnessing Naumova’s success.
The Israeli native is already taking small steps to success, lifting 25 kilograms for now.
So an extraordinary up-and-coming Russian athlete – Maryana Naumova – is continuing to move up the ranks.
It would take a brave punter to bet against seeing her in future Olympic Games and on top of the weightlifting podium.