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Saturday, September 1, 2007
Living Strong
Western Arkansas, AR
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Shiloh Christian Sophomore Sam Harvill Has Right to Bare Arms
The sound of the humming fan purred as Sam Harvill sat on the edge of the bench. Just behind him, numerous plates of weight sit still in their place as if they are taunting the room.
The spot seems too familiar to the 15-year-old, who was soaked with sweat from the intense heat beating on the metal roof above in Shiloh Christian’s weight room facility. If the walls could talk, legends would be made, because sitting on that bench is a boy who may soon find himself in the record books as the world's strongest man.
Harvill first lifted weights at 12-years-old after his dad, Bill Harvill, had the desire to get his son ahead of the game, bought him a weight bench. Little did he know that his son would quickly find himself way ahead of the game.
By age 13, Sam was bench pressing a whopping 300 pounds, but the humble kid always knew inside that it was a devine gift to have such amazing ability.
"I have always felt strong, even before I started lifting weights," Harvill said. "I started noticing when I got up around the 300 range at such a young age that God had given me something special."
Special doesn't paint a picture of Harvill's strength, so here is an ESPN example: Mariusz Pudzianowski, the World's Strongest Man in 2002, 2003 and 2005 was noted as bench-pressing 450 pounds at 18-years-old.
Harvill pushed that weight up at age 15. That was the year his strength was measured against others during a nationwide lifting competition for high school athletes hosted by Takkle.com.
Incredibly, he recorded a jaw-dropping effort by winning the bench press with 48 repetition of 185 pounds. There are Division I college football players who can’t even do that.
However, the young lifter wasn't awarded the title because of his age.
"I believe that Sam is the strongest 15-year-old I have ever seen," proclaimed Shiloh offensive line and strength coach Caleb Perry, a former Arkansas Razorback. "He has a drive to improve in all areas of life and has a strong work ethic in the weight room."
If someone is looking for Harvill, the best place to start is in the weight room. Every other day Harvill works his upper body with the bench press, incline press and with dumbbells, likely the size of a small car. The days in between, Harvill works his legs and core while focusing on his flexibility.
For everyone out there who is interested in make an impression with your bench press totals, Harvill recommends high reps with low weight. And if your curious, the only juice in Sam's lifting regimen is a tall, legal glass of orange juice (he has been tested).
Atlas held the world, Samson held his hair in a ponytail and the world's strongest "young" man for 2007, holds a passion for living strong, but not by his own strength alone.
"Live right, live for the Lord and remain humble," Harvill said.
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