Joe Sullivan Terrifying Bar Bending Squat that almost killed him

Written by James C., M.S.(C), PT

| Published on

Fact Checked

Joe Sullivan is a powerlifter that competed in the 220 lbs (100 kg) weight division in the WPRF (World Powerlifting Raw Federation).

Joe Holds a world record in the WPRF in his weight class for the squat, having successfully squatted 822.3 lbs in “The Showdown” powerlifting meet in 2020.

Being one of the top squatters in the world, Joe Sullivan can lift some incredibly heavyweight.

However, one incident could have killed him, says Joe, when he was once warming up in the squat, the bar started bending.

Here’s what Joe had to say about this incident.

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That was still warmup weight and I was like wtf, why is this so heavy? As I started pushing the weight up the bar started bending as my knees were extending, so like there was a moment when my body was going up but the weight was going down, that was like the worlds worst feeling I’ve ever had on my back, it was so overwhelming and so much pressure. It was literally the closest I’ve ever felt to dying under the weight, I didn’t think of fear at that moment, like looking back yeah I was scared I guess, it was literally just like you stand up or you die and once I stood up I knew I was going to be ok but doing the movement I was like stand up or you are dead, so it was just fight or flight, I wasn’t really thinking about anything except doing it.

An experienced powerlifting champion, Joe Sullivan, says that this was a warmup weight for him. However, he still struggled hard because of the bar bending. Thankfully, he managed to get out of this incident without suffering any injury.

One thing is for sure, though: the bar he was using was not strong enough to hold the weight and cannot be used again.

The end of the video says, get yourself a reliable bar or end up like Joe.

I think we can all agree with that statement, especially if you are lifting heavy weights; a cheap bar that cannot be trusted is just dangerous to use, especially when the plan is to lift heavy weights.

Joe Sullivan Talks About his Bar Bending Viral Video

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1 thought on “Joe Sullivan Terrifying Bar Bending Squat that almost killed him”

  1. Joe. So proud of you and your success. Your hard work and drive comes from the heart of a good man. All the best for the future. Ian &Kaye Riddell

    Reply

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