An executive committee member of Powerlifting Singapore, Farhanna Farid can lift up to eight times her body weight and has broken numerous world records—all with grace, humility and a red-hot Tom Ford lippie. Still, with gender stereotypes and societal expectations to battle, it hasn’t been the easiest of journeys. Here, the 31-year-old champion shares her story in her own words.
Honestly, I never imagined myself being a powerlifter, let alone a competitive one. I had always felt like a jack of all trades but master of none—up until I found powerlifting. Prior to this, I dabbled in long-distance running. I did a lot of it, but I wasn’t very good. I kept accumulating injuries, and I stopped getting my period for over a year. On top of that, I had just started dating a gym rat (my husband now) and all of our dates centred around his training schedule. Because I needed to rehabilitate from my running injuries—and expend my restless energy—I had this growing curiosity about this great “iron temple”, so I decided to check out the gym. I shadowed him and did every exercise he did. Then one fine day, the boys decided to have a ‘mock meet’ where they tested their one-rep maxes—the maximum amount of weight that a person can lift for one repetition—and I got dragged into it.
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Up to this point, I wasn’t particularly keen on lifting or thought that I was any good at it. However, at the mock meet, I deadlifted well above what was supposedly the national record back then. My partner figured if I could do that without any formal training, I might have the potential to do even better with a proper coach. So, he convinced me to get a powerlifting coach. I signed up for my first meet in 2018, and I haven’t looked back since.
I think winning my first Asian champion title in 2018 still makes me a little emotional to this day. It was my first year of competing, and I had the privilege of representing Singapore at the Asian Championships in Mongolia. It cemented my love for competing, and it showed me that competing transcended numbers, and beyond the sport itself. My win didn’t feel like mine alone. It was shared by many others who made that moment happen, and I felt like I was part of something bigger. Hearing the Singapore anthem blaring through the speakers as I stood on the podium was the grandest feeling ever.
Of course, the gender stereotypes on powerlifting were a frustrating situation in the beginning, because it wasn’t just older, conservative folks who were fixated on stereotypes, ‘social norms’ and self-imposed restrictions. Younger, fellow females were singing the same song, too. I think what was key was that I did my best to show people that I could be a pharmacist and a strength athlete who can lift heavy weights and still look like a woman—basically do what I want against what was imposed on me, without facing any actual detriment.
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In my mind, I look like a gremlin heaving the weights. That said, I do take some time to do up my make-up and hair on competition day. It has become part of my ritual. I believe if you look good, you’ll feel good, and you’ll do good.
My hope for women interested in this sport is that they learn to respect their own bodies and embrace their uniqueness, even if it’s in the form of imperfections. It’s easy to focus on our failures and shortcomings. But I hope they don’t forget to relish in every win too—no matter how small—and feel empowered to accomplish more.
I believe that the state of our health bleeds into every aspect of our lives, what more in something physically demanding like powerlifting. Our body is incredible but it is not a machine. If we don’t take care of what we put into our bodies and give them the respect they need during training, we will pay for it severely. I also believe that this sport is 60 per cent mental, and 40 per cent physical. So keeping our mental and psychological health in check cannot be an afterthought either.
The theme I have set for myself this year is “Balance and Mindfulness”. Like every other sport, we push our bodies to the absolute limit so it’s rare to be completely injury-free. The goal is to mitigate them and extend the injury-free period as long as possible. As powerlifters, we are very much conditioned to push. That’s why pushing ourselves becomes relatively easy. It’s actually harder to know when to hold back. Learning how to recognise true red flags and how to manage tricky situations has been key to ensuring that I push myself enough to grow but not to the point of injury.
My faith keeps me grounded. I’m not the most religious person, but having some sort of belief and conviction in something bigger than myself allows me to derive hope and strength from a ‘higher power’. There is also a settling sense of protection, like I’m well-taken care of and that things will be okay, regardless of the outcome.
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My personal goal is to keep pushing the glass ceiling for the Deadlift World Records, and hopefully podium for the overall total in the 52kg category. It might take a while but getting an invite to the Sheffield Powerlifting Championships—the Grand Prix of powerlifting—will be the ultimate cherry on top of my lifting career. I also hope to make powerlifting an even more accessible sport for all locally.
I believe most of us are already doing our part by being good representatives of the sport, advocating fair play and making sure we stay dope-free. If presented with the opportunity, I would certainly love to be involved in bettering our chances to be included in the Olympics.
*This story has been edited and condensed for clarity.