Not wanting to burden mum, S’pore teen powerlifter saves $5k to compete in South Africa and breaks world record
At 17, Muhammad Hazrul was determined to make it to the world powerlifting stage. But he did not want to burden his mother with footing the bill.
So the Temasek Polytechnic student took up a part-time job, juggling his shifts with school and training to save for the trip.
A year and $5,000 in savings later, he landed in South Africa, where he deadlifted 273kg to break the world record in his category.
He also placed second overall in the Sub-Junior Men’s 66kg category.
Speaking to Stomp at Strength Masters Gym, Hazrul opened up about his three-year powerlifting journey.
‘I didn’t want her to work so much’
Getting to the world powerlifting stage was far from easy for Hazrul.
It began in secondary school, when he started weight training at an ActiveSG gym. A senior from his school who was a powerlifter noticed him and eventually introduced him to his coach.
Over the next few years, Hazrul developed a passion for powerlifting and began training and competing at national and international levels. He earned second place for the 2024 Nationals.
Wanting to “reach for the stars” next, he set his sights on the World Championships in South Africa on Aug 21 this year.
Hazrul then spent the following year preparing for the championships.
Not wanting to add to the financial burden on his mother, the family’s sole breadwinner, he worked part-time as a receptionist and auditor at an Anytime Fitness outlet for about a year to save for his trip to Sun City, South Africa.
Despite having to juggle his studies in architectural technology with a rigorous training schedule, Hazrul managed to save just enough to fund the flight tickets for himself and his mother.
He shared that his mother works “extremely hard” as a sales advisor to provide for him and his brothers.
Hazrul, who is the youngest of three sons, said his mother already had to shoulder the family’s bills, put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads.
“I didn’t want her to work so much and I didn’t want to keep asking her for money. It’s hard for her already,” he said.
Hazrul shared that his mother was “initially worried” about him juggling school, work and training, but became excited by the idea of joining him on the trip and cheering him on.
“Travelling to a country as far as South Africa is something that she hasn’t done before.”
Still eager to chip in and support her son’s endeavors, she covered their accommodation costs which came to about $2,000.
Hazrul added that he will receive about $1,500 from the Government’s Athletes’ Inspire Fund, which supports national athletes. However, he noted that there is no monetary reward for his achievements.
Juggled school, work and training to fund his dream
Hazrul said balancing his studies, a part-time job and intense training proved challenging.
For months, he followed a strict schedule, with his days beginning at 7.30am.
He trained after school four days a week for up to four hours without fail. On the remaining days, he would clock in to work.
With such a rigorous schedule, he hardly had time to socialise or even stop for a break. There were countless times, he said, when he felt like giving up.
“I didn’t know how many more shifts I could take before I hit my breaking point,” said Hazrul. He added that he would go home “extremely exhausted”.
Ultimately, he reminded himself that he was working hard to achieve his goals at the upcoming competition.
Mother concerned at first
When Hazrul first started pursuing powerlifting, his mother was concerned about his safety and was “protective” over him, he said.
“It’s not that she wasn’t supportive of me doing powerlifting, but that she didn’t know what exactly I was doing,” he said.
She would tell him: “If you cannot, don’t force yourself. If you cannot, just let go.”
But after watching him compete, Hazrul said his mother realised that her son was actually very good at what he does.
Still, he has suffered injuries due to the physically demanding nature of powerlifting. The worst, he said, was a lower-back injury that left him unable to squat or deadlift.
The effects of the injury still linger more than a year later, although he said proper rehabilitation has allowed him to continue exercising without it affecting his performance.
Representing Singapore on the world stage
In powerlifting, athletes are tested on their strength by measuring how much they can lift, according to their age or weight class, across three exercises: the deadlift, squat and bench press.
Hazrul said he stepped onto the world powerlifting stage in August determined and expecting to break the previous deadlift record of 271kg.
But his competition got off to a rocky start when he failed his first two attempts and began experiencing cramps.
After composing himself, he walked back onto the stage for his final attempt, confident that he knew exactly what he had to do.
“I knew the perfect setup. I just had to reach down to the bar and pull it up just like how I did it in training,” said Hazrul.
As he lifted the bar off the ground and looked up at the sky, he told himself: “I’m not letting this go.”
When he heard the referee give the down command, Hazrul dropped the bar and turned towards the screen, where he saw three white lights indicating a good lift.
“I was overwhelmed with a lot of emotions and all I could do at the moment was fall to the ground,” he said.
“I wanted to cry actually. The years of hard work came crashing down and I didn’t know how to process it,” said Hazrul.
In addition to breaking the previous deadlift world record, Hazrul squatted 220kg and bench-pressed 120kg, bringing his total to 613kg and securing second place overall in his category.
Although he said he had set his sights on the world total record of 635.5kg, he was grateful for the experience and said there was still more for him to work on.
When Hazrul saw his mother after the podium ceremony, his mother hugged him and immediately called all their relatives to tell them about his win, saying: “I’m so proud of my son.”
“She was very happy. I let her wear my medals. She cried a little,” he said with a smile.
To celebrate his win, Hazrul said he immediately bought himself a large pizza and ate it all by himself at one go, having been on a strict diet for the eight months leading up to the championships.
Family keeps him going
Having his mother by his side at the world championships in South Africa meant a lot to Hazrul.
“My biggest pillar of support was there for me on my biggest day,” he said. “I really love my mum, you know? I’m very happy she was there for me the whole time.”
He shared that while his preparation for the championships was a challenging period as he juggled work, school and training, his mother had always been there to support him.
During that critical phase, Hazrul said his mother and brothers kept him going by talking to him and encouraging him whenever they sensed he was feeling down.
They would reassure him: “Even though it may be hard right now, you have a dream that you want to pursue, and you should always fight for what you want.”
“I always had my family behind me, supporting me and pushing me so that I’m in the right state of mind during those dark moments,” said Hazrul.
“My family keeps me going. They have always been there for me and they support me in everything I do.”
Beyond his family, Hazrul said he was also grateful to have a supportive gym community that cheered him on and pushed him to be the “best athlete” he could be.
When asked about what he wished people understood about young athletes, he said he did not believe those who break records were simply talented.
“I think that I’m a very average guy. The truth is, if you do not work hard and do not put in the effort day in and day out, and not do the mundane things, then you will never make it,” he said.
Now, Hazrul is in the midst of preparing for a national competition at the tertiary level, representing his school. He hopes to take a year-long break once it’s over, and has set his sights on becoming the national junior powerlifting champion next.
“I want to win nationals 2028.”
Explore more on these topics
See something interesting? Contribute your story to us.
