Sport
18 August, 2025
Strongmen on power trip
It’s all muscle as four tough guys carry the hopes of Cairns at national champs
FOUR Cairns men, who tip the scales at almost 500kg between them, are hoping to lift way above their weight when they head to one of the biggest powerlifting championships in Australia next week.
Wes Vick, Marc Rogers, Mike Blackwood and Sam Coelli will travel to Melbourne’s Convention and Exhibition Centre to take part in the Australian Powerlifting (APL) national competition to test their strength against more than 400 entrants from across the country.
“It’s held over three days and it’s probably going to be the biggest powerlifting national event that Australia has had,” said Mr Vick.
“The APL Federation has put a lot of money into it … it’s going to be like a mini expo, there’s some strong man stuff going on and arm wrestling.”
Mr Vick is the co-owner, with wife Brooke, of the Zerow strength training gym on Mulgrave Road. He has been competing in powerlifting for about eight years and he coaches gym members Sam Coelli and Mike Blackwood, with Marc Rogers training at the gym under a different coach.
“Zerow suits all people for different reasons. But obviously we love powerlifting and if people want to do it, we help them,” Mr Vick said.
And getting to the nationals is the ultimate challenge.
“I think it is something good to strive for,” he said.
“If someone has the ability to get recognised, to be able to get invited to nationals, then I think they should do it.”
To qualify, an entrant lodges their interest and they go through a selection process in their weight class and division. The top percentage of power lifters are then invited to compete.
For Mr Coelli, who has “a few years of competition behind him”, it will be his first time at nationals.
The same goes for Mr Blackwood, the most recent newcomer to the sport, who will compete in bench press only.
“It’s hard to tell (how they will go), it’s very competitive and anything could happen on the day,” Mr Vick said.
“I think the focus for most of us is to go down and try and get some personal bests, lift well and the rest will take care of itself. It’s a nice feeling to see where you stand among the top lifters,” he said.
Preparation wise, the team has been training four days a week for the past six-to-eight months and have been hitting some big weights.
They expect to lift a range of 270kg to potentially 360kg in the squats, bench will range from 160kg to 190kg, and the deadlift from 270kg to 360kg.
“It just gradually gets heavier and harder towards the back end of the preparation and we are at that point where everyone’s doing pretty well, which is exciting,” Mr Vick said.
The APL National Powerlifting Championships will be held from August 22- 24 at the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Centre.
