01
Jul
He fills his cheeks and heaves, in a single fluid arc, 185 kilograms over his head. He rises, no more effort in it than in a man getting up from a meal to stretch. The incoming wave crashes, and the crowd breaks wide-open, and the flags snap and billow in the furnace heat. A good lift. Reza Zadeh stands beneath his load smiling, then raises his chin and begins to nod from one corner of the room to the other. He is Jagger at Wembley, holding aloft a 400-pound mike stand, sending out the radiant grace of his own greatness while he takes in all this rabid love. The seconds tick away. Satisfied at last, he drops the weight as if he’s forgotten an appointment and needs to catch a cab. Its landing rattles the stands.
[Iranian weightlifter Reza Zadeh at the 15th Asian Games]
Sports Illustrated | Jeff MacGregor
