Cees de Vreugd facts for kids
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| Born | 9 March 1952 Katwijk, Netherlands |
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| Died | 7 October 1998 (aged 46) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Strongman Powerlifter | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Cees de Vreugd (born March 9, 1952 – died October 7, 1998) was a very strong man from Katwijk, Netherlands. He was a butcher by trade, but became famous as a strongman and a powerlifter. A strongman competes in events that test extreme strength, like lifting heavy objects or pulling trucks. A powerlifter focuses on lifting the heaviest weight possible in three specific exercises: the squat, bench press, and deadlift. Cees de Vreugd even came in third place at the World's Strongest Man competition in 1985.
Cees de Vreugd started weightlifting quite late, at the age of 29, in 1981. Before that, he played soccer when he was younger. In 1982, he began competing as a powerlifter. He quickly became very good, winning the Dutch National Championships in 1983.
World Champion Powerlifter
In 1985, Cees de Vreugd won the IPF World Powerlifting Championships. He competed in the heaviest weight class, which was over 125 kilograms (about 275 pounds). That same year, he became the first person from Europe to lift a total of 1,000 kilograms (about 2,200 pounds) across the three main powerlifting exercises. This included an amazing 420 kilogram (927 pound) squat.
His total lift of 1002.5 kilograms set a new Dutch record. This record stood for 32 years, until November 2017. His 420 kilogram squat from 1985 is still the Dutch record as of April 2022. During his strongman career, Cees de Vreugd was about 185 centimeters (6 feet 1 inch) tall and weighed around 142 kilograms (311 pounds).
Passing Away
Cees de Vreugd passed away in 1998 from a heart attack. He is buried at a cemetery called Duinrust, which is located in Katwijk aan Zee.
Achievements
Cees de Vreugd had many impressive achievements in his career:
- Second place at the Strongest man of the Netherlands competition in 1984.
- Third place at the World's Strongest Man competition in 1985.
