Kitchener ER doctor has podium finish at bench press championships
Posted Nov 15, 2025 05:07:58 AM.
Last Updated Nov 19, 2025 01:54:25 PM.
It’s another podium finish for a local Kitchener powerlifting emergency room doctor.
Dr. Khashyar Farzam, an ER physician at Waterloo Regional Health Network, came in second place in his category at the 2025 North American Powerlifting Federation (NAPF) Regional Bench Press Championships in Panama City, Panama, in October. He competed in the 93kg division, as a part of the Team Canada Powerlifting Team, finishing with a final bench press weight of 212.5 kg (468.5 Ibs), a new personal best.
Farzam said it was very interesting to experience how athletes from different countries approach powerlifting and see the “limits of the genetic potential.”
“I think just seeing that is pretty interesting,” he said. “Just being there and being able to go onto the platform and compete on its own is a good experience, certainly when you walk away with a medal, it’s even better.”
Powerlifting is not new to Farzam. He began his powerlifting journey in 2013 after a track and field injury. Between 2014 and 2017, as a junior, Farzam competed in several local, provincial, national and international competitions, setting numerous records and winning a silver medal at the 2015 World Powerlifting Championships in Finland.
Throughout his career, Farzam has won over 30 medals at all levels.
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Farzam left powerlifting in 2017 to pursue a career in medicine. He attended medical school in Maine and completed his residency at the University of Iowa before returning to Canada.
He returned to powerlifting in 2023 and trains at Lil’s Gym on Weber Street in Kitchener. He said the training can be very rigorous.
“You’re spending sometimes maybe three, even four hours in the gym in some of these training sessions just because there’s so much to do, and as you get better and better, it gets harder to progress,” he said, mentioning that training can be between four to five times a week.
“It gets hard to progress because you are always having to push for the extra little inches on the margin to get better,” he added
Farzam also holds two Guinness World Records in bench press: the most weight bench pressed in 30 seconds and the most times to bench press own body weight in 30 seconds. The records were set in November 2024, when Farzam beat his own record set in 2023.
Looking to the future, Farzam said he is preparing for the next national championship, scheduled to take place in Newfoundland in March 2026. After that, he will be aiming for the world championships in Poland in May.
But first, he has to qualify.
“Each time you go through the process, you have to qualify step-by-step every single year even if you’re a national champion,” he said.
“I guess it is meant to prove that you are still the best.”
