On May 27-29, 2023, during the 2023 UK’s Strongest Woman (UKSW), strongwomen Izzy Tait and Sam Taylor combined for a unique milestone of strength. The athletes paired up to deadlift a barbell loaded up with 454 kilograms (1,009 pounds) of weight. The mark is officially a Guinness World Record for the heaviest tandem deadlift between two women’s competitors ever.
Both athletes each wore a lifting belt and utilized wrist straps to pull their mutual CERBERUS Strength Kratos bar — a specialized barbell that is 10 feet in length and adds more of a “flex” challenge to a deadlift from the ground — for the record achievement. The lift was not an official event during the 2023 UKSW. During the actual competition portion, Tait finished in fifth place, while Taylor did not compete in the contest and was on hand solely to participate in the record pull.
Before this tandem Guinness World Record deadlift, Tait and Taylor had developed some measure of renown in their budding careers for different reasons. According to her page on Strongman Archives, the 2023 UKSW was Tait’s second-sanctioned strongwoman appearance, with the first being the 2022 UKSW. The athlete can now boast two top-five results in one of the biggest contests in the sport of strongwoman.
Meanwhile, as an occasional Masters competitor, Taylor has also started to make some relative noise in strength. Before notching this tandem deadlift record, the most noteworthy result of Taylor’s resume might be her third-place podium result from the 2021 Master’s World’s Strongest Woman (MWSW). To date, according to her page on Strongman Archives, Taylor has only featured in four strongwoman competitions.
Now, both Tait and Taylor have found a mutual way to use their combined strength as a way to rewrite one of the more unique record books on the globe.
Tait and Taylor’s Guinness World Record wasn’t the only new Kratos bar pulling record during the proceedings of the 2023 UKSW. Their peer Lucy Underdown, the runner-up in the overall contest, scored a 305-kilogram (672.4-pound) Kratos bar deadlift World Record. It seems when some of the strongest women on the planet gather in one place; iron sharpens iron in a motivating fashion.
At the time of this article’s publication, it’s unclear what the future holds in store for either Tait or Taylor, two strongwomen still relatively new to the sport’s scene. However, if they’re already notching records this early in their career, it might be hard to set a ceiling on their potential.
Featured image: @cerberus_strength on Instagram
