Derek Cope was as thin as a rake at 14.

"I was so skinny you could count my ribs and I was bullied at school," he recalled.

Now 43, he weighs 17-stone and has won world powerlifting titles for the past two years.

"My father, William, knowing I was worried about my frail appearance and keen to help me, put the "Health and Strength" magazine on the table at breakfast time. There was a picture of this man with a superb muscular body and I decided I wanted to improve my physique," Cope said.

Cope couldn't afford weights, so he improvised with two paint cans filled with stones from the garden. It did the trick, and he has gone from strength to strength.

Cope, who lives at Chanctonbury Way, Woodside Park, has never taken drugs.

"I felt it would be cheating and damaging to my health," he said. "But there was so much cheating going on, with many lifters using banned steroids, and those who weren't didn't have a prayer."

And so the World Drug-Free Powerlifting Federation was formed.

Competing on level terms, Cope has come right to the fore. Unbeaten in Europe in the past three years, he became world champion in Antwerp last year. Sponsored by Maximuscle, the Watford-based sports nutrition company that backs Barnet FC, Cope won the world title in the Masters (40-45 years) 110 kilogram class one, achieving a world record total of 597.5kg. He did even better in retaining the title in Birmingham recently. New world records for the squat (202.5kg) and deadlift (268kg) and a lift of 135kg on the bench press, gave him a new world best aggregate of 605kg.

Cope runs a small private club at his home where he helps people aged from 18-69 who want to improve their physical strength.

"I'll never forget what I went through as a spindly kid and I'm pleased to help others who want to improve their physical appearance."

November 7, 2001 19:31