By Greg Shepard

is the N.C.A.A. record holder with a discu.s throw of 217'2". Goran has trained with weights systematically since he was 14 years old. Now at 23 he can do a 533 Bench, 600 squat, 425 Power Clean, and a 330 Power Snatch. (The Power Snatch is lifting the weight from the floor to an overhead position in one swift explosive movement.) These spectacular achievements did not come overnight. Goran made himself a champion through a long period of time. The following table is an annual account of his improvement:

Goran Svens sen: NC.AA. Discus Record Holder Svenssen benching 500 lbs.

Age Bench 14 220 15 250 16 286 17 308 18 354 19 400 20 418 21 445 22 495 23 533 Discus 170'6" ladies discus 166'9" H.S. discus 175'3" H.S. discus 180'6" H.S. discus 202'4" H.S. discus 184'3" college discus 180'9" college discus 203'6" college discus 218'6" college discus Svenssen claims the average good football player can't do what track people can. "Of course, it's the way you train," he states. I asked him, 'Let's say I was introduced by your track coach as one of the premier strength coaches of the world, who had just been hired at your university. If I told you we were going to work out primarily on Nautilus to be a world class athlete, what would you say?" "I'd laugh at him,"

responded Svenssen quickly. I further questioned, "What if I told you were going to workout with only one set of 15 or more reps like several major college football programs?" Svenssen snapped, "I'd laugh even harder, that's absolutely crazy. It would be practically impossible to throw the shot 60 feet or the discus 200 feet on that kind of system." O.K. Goran, that's track, but how fast can you run the forty yard dash? "The football coaches have timed me in 4.55 seconds," replied Svenssen modestly. At 6'3" Svenssen weighs 252, so thats got to be highly impressive to say the least. Goran also has a standing long jump of 11 '3" and that's 10 inches better than the Pittsburgh Steeler record.

These accomplishments would have been impossible without his dedication and training system in the weight room. Goran improved his strength year by year and, as a result, his throwing improved year by year. Improving to the N.C.A.A. Collegiate record!

From BFS Magazine — November/December 1982. Part of the BFS Magazine Archive (1980–2014).