Atmore resident Robert Wilkerson set a world record for squat lifting this on Sunday at the SPF Nationals.

Wilkerson’s squat of 975 pounds broke the previous record of 953 pounds set by Mark Henry in 1995.

At the Nationals, Wilkerson’s total of 2,200 pounds of lifts was enough to finish as the No. 1 ranked raw lifter at the meet. Along with his record setting squat, Wilkerson bench pressed 625 pounds and performed a deadlift of 600 pounds.

Wilkerson said setting the record was surprising because of how easy the lifts felt.

“It felt really good, but it was suprising,” Wilkerson said. “It surprised me because at 910 pounds, it felt like it was just easy. When I got to 975 pounds, the adrenaline was just pumping through me, and I went parallel and stood up with it. I could have done more, but I decided to just stick to my gameplan, which was 975.”