Pleun Dekkers made her first appearance of the year on the first day of the 2026 EPF European Open Classic Powerlifting Championships, which took place on March 15-22 in St. Julian’s, Malta. She competed in the 52-kilogram weight class, where she secured a convincing win by beating ten other women. Moreover, Pleun also set a new 182.5-kilogram (402.3-pound) Raw Squat IPF World Record.
Pleun Dekkers’ Full Performance Breakdown
Pleun Dekkers weighed in just below the limit for the 52-kilogram weight class, showcasing years of experience of doing powerlifting at the highest level. She finished the day with seven successful lifts, missing her heaviest bench press and deadlift attempts. Nonetheless, Pleun still beat the next best woman by 22.5 kilograms (49.6 pounds).
Squat
Pleun Dekkers opened up the competition with a 167.5-kilogram (369.3-pound) squat, which was a routine lift for her. So, she added another 10 kilograms (22 pounds) for her second squat attempt, which looked very impressive as well.
Following the two successful attempts, Pleun decided to close out the squat session with a World Record attempt. In order to do so, Pleun loaded 182.5 kilograms (402.3 pounds) and proceeded to successfully complete the lift.
- 167.5 kilograms (369.3 pounds)
- 177.5 kilograms (391.3 pounds)
- 182.5 kilograms (402.3 pounds) — U52KG IPF World Record
*Megan-Li Smith held the previous U52KG Raw Squat IPF World Record of 180-kg (396.8-lb), which she set at the 2025 IPF World Games.
Watch the lift here:
Bench Press
Moving on to the bench press, Pleun Dekkers continued achieving some impressive lifts. Her heaviest successful press came out to 87.5 kilograms (192.9 pounds), which pushed her toward the EPF European Championship title. Dekkers did attempt to lift 90 kilograms (198.4 pounds) on her final attempt but was unsuccessful in doing so.
- 82.5 kilograms (181.9 pounds)
- 87.5 kilograms (192.9 pounds)
- Unsuccessful — 90 kilograms (198.4 pounds)
Deadlift
Pleun Dekkers’ deadlift experience was similar to the one she had on the bench press, as she successfully completed the first two attempts and failed the last one. Consequently, her final result on the deadlift came out to 190 kilograms (418.9 pounds), which was enough for her to secure the overall win and set a new U52KG EPF European Raw Total Record.
- 177.5 kilograms (391.3 pounds)
- 190 kilograms (418.9 pounds)
- Unsuccessful — 200.5 kilograms (442 pounds)
Total — 460 kilograms (1,014.1 pounds) — U52KG EPF European Record
*Pleun Dekkers held the previous Raw Total EPF European Record of 459.5-kg (1,013-lb), which she set at the 2025 IPF World Games.
Pleun Dekkers has taken part in a total of 27 sanctioned powerlifting competitions over the course of her 9-year-long career. She has won 14 of those, including three EPF European Championships. Pleun has been battling for the IPF World Championships title on multiple occasions as well and has stood on the podium three times already.
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