She’s Britain’s strongest schoolgirl and capable of hefting the equivalent of the weight of two of her teachers onto her shoulders. The 14-year-old from Newton Abbot, Devon, has experienced a meteoric rise in the sport after taking it up just eighteen months ago.
Yet GCSE student Shachar Head is lucky to be here at all after being born three months premature. The upcoming star is being tipped for Olympic glory in 2016 after she set four new world records and became the new European Champion in her age group at the Power-lifting Federation’s European Championships.
In the squat she posted world records of 125kg, or 275.5 pounds and 73kg, or 160.9 pounds for the bench press. But amazingly the strapping schoolgirl, who wants to be a physiotherapist, weighed only 2lbs 13oz when she was born 13 weeks early.
‘She was absolutely tiny when she was born,’ Shachar’s mother Lilach says. ‘She had to go in to a special baby care unit after she was born and stayed there for three-and-a-half weeks. I have Crohn’s disease and I was told I would never conceive so she really was a miracle baby.
Lilach is immensely proud of her daughter’s impressive achievements. ‘To see how she’s turned out is amazing - we’re so proud. She’s very sporty. She only started power lifting 18 months ago when she went to the gym to strengthen her arms. The regulars there couldn’t believe how strong she was - she was very advanced from the start. She’s very dedicated - though she’s not at all violent. The school has been very supportive indeed. They’re proud of her too. ‘m so proud of her I can’t even put it into words. Everyone is saying there is plenty more to come’
Shachar said: ‘I’m so proud of what I have achieved. It was such a shock to have got this far with only a year-and-a-half’s training under my belt.’
After a two-week rest Shachar will start training for the world championships in Glasgow this November.
Yet GCSE student Shachar Head is lucky to be here at all after being born three months premature. The upcoming star is being tipped for Olympic glory in 2016 after she set four new world records and became the new European Champion in her age group at the Power-lifting Federation’s European Championships.
In the squat she posted world records of 125kg, or 275.5 pounds and 73kg, or 160.9 pounds for the bench press. But amazingly the strapping schoolgirl, who wants to be a physiotherapist, weighed only 2lbs 13oz when she was born 13 weeks early.
‘She was absolutely tiny when she was born,’ Shachar’s mother Lilach says. ‘She had to go in to a special baby care unit after she was born and stayed there for three-and-a-half weeks. I have Crohn’s disease and I was told I would never conceive so she really was a miracle baby.
Lilach is immensely proud of her daughter’s impressive achievements. ‘To see how she’s turned out is amazing - we’re so proud. She’s very sporty. She only started power lifting 18 months ago when she went to the gym to strengthen her arms. The regulars there couldn’t believe how strong she was - she was very advanced from the start. She’s very dedicated - though she’s not at all violent. The school has been very supportive indeed. They’re proud of her too. ‘m so proud of her I can’t even put it into words. Everyone is saying there is plenty more to come’
Shachar said: ‘I’m so proud of what I have achieved. It was such a shock to have got this far with only a year-and-a-half’s training under my belt.’
After a two-week rest Shachar will start training for the world championships in Glasgow this November.
