Rebecca 'Becca' Swanson (born November 20, 1973) is an American

powerlifter Powerlifting is a competitive strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight singl ...

strongwoman A strongwoman is a woman who performs feats of strength in a show or circus, or a woman who competes in strength athletics. Traditionally, strongwomen have had a special appeal, as women involved in demonstrated feats of strength were exceptions ...

and former

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

. She broke multiple powerlifting

world records A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

, including the heaviest squat,

bench press The bench press or chest press is a weight training exercise where a person presses a weight upwards while lying horizontally on a weight training bench. The bench press is a Compound movements, compound movement, with the primary muscles involved ...

deadlift The deadlift is a strength training exercise in which a weight-loaded barbell is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, with the torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting ...

and the total. Due to her many accomplishments including unbeaten strength world records to-date, she is regarded as "the strongest woman to have ever lived".

Early life

Swanson was born November 20, 1973, in

Papillion, Nebraska Papillion is a city in and the county seat of Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. The city developed in the 1870s as a railroad town and suburb of Omaha. The city is part of the larger five-county metro area of Omaha. Papillion's populatio ...

. She graduated from the

University of Nebraska-Lincoln A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science in

Mechanical Engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...

Bodybuilding, powerlifting, and strongwoman

Becca Swanson started out in 1996 with the desire to be a bodybuilder, but ended up powerlifting. According to her, the larger and more muscular women had fallen out of favor in bodybuilding after a few shows. She was told that she was just too big for bodybuilding, which motivated her to take up

powerlifting Powerlifting is a competitive strength athletics, strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: Squat (exercise), squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athle ...

. At the same time, she was very close to some powerlifting world records and thought it best to focus her efforts there. Her squat is (equipped),

is (equipped with bench shirt), and she is the only woman to

(equipped). She is also the first woman ever known to be a member of the 2,000 pound club, as she is the first of two women ever to total over 2,000 pounds in a meet on the same day. She has also competed in strongwoman contests, beginning in 2002. Swanson is also known for doing 35 kg dumbbell curls for 10 repetitions.

Professional wrestling

Harley Race's Wrestling Academy/World League Wrestling (2009-2010)

Swanson was a

Harley Race Harley Leland Race (April 11, 1943 – August 1, 2019) was an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling promotion, promoter, and trainer. Race wrestled in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the American Wrestling Association (AW ...

World League Wrestling NWA World League Wrestling is a Troy, Missouri-based professional wrestling promotion affiliated with Harley Race's Wrestling Academy school. It was established in 1999 by former World Heavyweight Champion Harley Race. The promotion is part of ...

based in

Eldon, Missouri Eldon is a city in Miller County, Missouri, United States, located southwest of Jefferson City. The population was 4,416 as of the 2020 census. History Eldon was platted in 1881, and according to tradition, named after a railroad official. T ...

. Swanson (as a

heel The heel is the prominence at the posterior end of the foot. It is based on the projection of one bone, the calcaneus or heel bone, behind the articulation of the bones of the lower leg. Structure To distribute the compressive forces exerted ...

) won the

WLW Ladies Championship The World League Wrestling (WLW) Ladies Championship, is the top title contested for women's wrestlers in the independent professional wrestling promotion NWA World League Wrestling. There have been 43 reigns among 16 wrestlers with five vacan ...

from Amy Hennig on October 3, 2009, at the WLW Tenth Anniversary Show. On March 12, 2010, Swanson would lose the title to Lucy Mendez in a triple threat match which also included Hennig. On March 13, Swanson was unsuccessful in capturing the WLW Women's Championship for a second time as Hennig would defeat both Swanson and Mendez in a triple threat match.

WPC/APF/WPO world records (equipped)

*198+ Weight Class - Squat *198+ Weight Class - Bench *198+ Weight Class - Deadlift *198+ Weight Class - Total (854.3/387.5, 600.8/272.5, 683.4/310.0) (best lifts in one meet) * Weight Class - Squat * Weight Class - Bench * Weight Class - Deadlift * Weight Class - Total

Championships and accomplishments

Bodybuilding

*Ms. Midwest (1 time) *Ms. Nebraska (1 time) *Ms. Rocky Mountain (1 time)

Powerlifting

* World Powerlifting Congress **90 kg Class ***710.5 kg Total (June 14, 2002) **90+ kg Class ***377.5 kg Squat (June 4, 2005) ***272.5 kg

Bench press The bench press or chest press is a weight training exercise where a person presses a weight upwards while lying horizontally on a weight training bench. The bench press is a Compound movements, compound movement, with the primary muscles involved ...

(June 4, 2005) ***290.5 kg

Deadlift The deadlift is a strength training exercise in which a weight-loaded barbell is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, with the torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting ...

(June 4, 2005) ***873 kg Total (June 4, 2005)

Professional wrestling

( 1 time)

Physical statistics

*Height: *Weight: *Quads: *Calves: *Shoulders: *Biceps:

References

External links

Official websiteOld Official SiteProfile at AMG-LiteBecca Swanson's CageMatch.de ProfileWorld Record list
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swanson, Becca Female powerlifters Strongwomen American strength athletes Living people American female bodybuilders American female professional wrestlers 1973 births People from Papillion, Nebraska 21st-century American women