Good to know: Bodystrong is a weighted streetlifting competition consisting of 4 lifts: muscle up, pull up, dip and squat. Athletes have 3 attempts at each lift to build the biggest overall total. The competition is split into male and female, and then into weight categories.
On Saturday 13th December, Sequoia Movement in Penryn, Cornwall, hosted the South West Bodystrong Regionals giving athletes a chance to qualify for the 2026 Nationals.
It was the 4th time that gym owners Sarah Taylor and Adam Gawley have hosted the competition, and it was another great success.
Known for providing an incredibly warm welcome to their gym, the Sequoia Movement team really focused on the athlete experience; providing a professionally run competition whilst making sure every single athlete felt valued.
Small touches such as having athlete profiles for the spectators to look through made this event stand-out for the level of care.
For 6 of the athletes, it was their very first streetlifting competition. One of these first timers was Nilrem Stewart from London:
“This was my first competition and I travelled all the way from London to Cornwall for it, and it was 100% worth it. From the moment I arrived, everyone was welcoming and supportive, and the officials were highly professional, ensuring correct technique and consistent standards throughout. The event was well structured, ran smoothly and on time, and created an enjoyable, high-quality competition environment — I’d definitely do another one”.
Competing in the under 70kg category, it was also Annabelle Silcock’s first competition:
“This was my first competition and I can honestly say I had the best time competing. Leading up to the day I was feeling quite anxious, knowing that I’d sacrificed some of my training due to unexpected life circumstances but the event itself changed my mind completely. Not only were my competitors incredible athletes, everyone was amazingly supportive - in fact, every person that I met from the athletes to judges, spotters and organisers were genuinely lovely. I really look forward to competing again - a really inspiring competition!”.
The event saw some very impressive lifts from up and coming athletes.
Notable performances came from Mila Stanzani in the -63kgs with a very easy-looking 42.5kg pull up, and Saskia Guichard in the -70kgs with an incredible 62.5kg dip.
Both of the athletes are at the beginning of the streetlifting journey so it’s very exciting to see what the future holds for them. Sean Kazab in the -80kgs also put on a crowd-pleasing performance with a huge total of 415kg.
The Bodystrong team are constantly striving to create a better comp-day experience. This competition saw the introduction of athlete QR codes, allowing athletes to input the weights for their next attempts on a dedicated tablet.
This reduces the chance of error in an often noisy environment where numbers can be misheard and spreadsheets misread, whilst also giving control back to the athletes.
The spectators were able to view screens showing the current athlete’s information and score, helping them to feel more involved in the competition.
For -73kg athlete, Michael Portsmouth from Chichester, this was his 8th Bodystrong competition (and 6th this year alone!). Here is what he had to say about the day:
“Having competed in plenty of Bodystrong events, this calisthenics competition stood out as being exceptionally well run and athlete-focused. The new online system worked brilliantly, making heat times, scores, and updates really clear and stress-free throughout the day. It made comp day feel smoother and more professional, letting athletes focus on performing rather than logistics.”
A huge congratulations to the whole Sequoia Movement team for running such a fantastic event.
These competitions wouldn’t run without volunteers giving up their time to be loaders, spotters, judges and time-keepers, and the community spirit was evident in the members of Sequoia.
We look forward to a return in 2026!
Bodystrong was started in 2022 by Toby Rogers to give UK streetlifters a pathway to the European and World Championships run by FinalRep. This has seen the UK athletes become big contenders in the sport, with 7 athletes competing at the 2025 World Championships, 5 podium places, and 4 world records.
Bodystrong Regional events take place throughout the autumn and winter, with the Nationals being held in the early summer. The next Bodystrong Regional is held in London on 1st March. For this and future events, check out the “Events” page.
Photography credits for this article go to Laila Virji (@l.virji) who provided the South West athletes with the option of having professional photos and videos of their day, another nice touch to add to the athlete-experience.
