(File Photo of New Brighton)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Seventy-year-old Tom Proya, a powerlifter from New Brighton, achieved six world records during two national meets held in June and July of 2025. One of those meets that Proya competed in recently was the USPA Nationals meet in Pittsburgh where he was in the 165 lb. weight class and was in the master raw bench press 70-to-74 age group. The other of those meets that Proya competed in recently was the WPC National Championships in Detroit, Michigan. Proya bench pressed 331 pounds in one meet and 336 pounds in another to get first place in both as well as awards for outstanding master raw bench press in both. During both meets, Proya also made three national records. In November of 2024, a 42nd world record was set by Proya on the bench press at the WPC World Championships in Chicago, Illinois. Proya was also the winner of the 2014 WPC World Championships and in 2011, he was one of the people that competed in the APF Ohio State meet. In October of 2025, Proya will compete in the 2025 IPL Olympia Pro Powerlifting meet in Las Vegas, Nevada.