The now 20-year-old “World’s strongest girl” upholds her legacy 12 years later as a weightlifter for Rutger’s University.
Naomi Kutin became known as Supergirl for her impressive accomplishments in powerlifting beginning at age 9.
She got into lifting weights at 8 years old as a way to spend time with her father, who started lifting as a freshman in college.
Only a few months later, the 88-pound girl from New Jersey broke a world record by squatting 215 pounds in the 97-pound weight class for women.
It was an impressive feat as the previous record was held by a 44-year-old German woman, the New York Times reported.
Becoming ‘Supergirl’
Kutin’s success at such a young age led to a documentary by PBS titled “Supergirl,” which chronicled her experience as an Orthodox Jewish pre-teen competing alongside huge adults.
A trailer for the film shows a young Kutin showing off her awards while navigating school, family life, and health issues.
Her family followed strict religious rules, which didn’t allow her to compete on Saturdays when they observe the Sabbath.
With female tournaments typically scheduled on Saturdays, tournament officials let her lift on Sundays alongside men competing in the heavyweight category.
Twelve years after she got her start, Kutin is still lifting, now at Rutgers University.
She told NorthJersey.com in March of 2021 that it’s the first team she’s ever joined.
At 145 pounds, she was squatting 340 at the time and working toward 350 for an upcoming competition.
She said she still practices with her father but takes a different approach to competition than when she was young.
“Obviously it would be nice to break those records,” she said.
“But I feel like I’ve been doing this long enough to know that if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. Life will go on.”
Overcoming challenges
The now 20-year-old shares updates on her powerlifting progress on her Instagram page.
A post from August of 2021 gives a glimpse into her mindset as of late.
“Last week I weighed myself for the first time in a month to see where I am at and was surprised to see that I am currently at my heaviest weight to date due to extra training and protein intake,” the post says.
“3 years ago this would have crushed me. For years, the number on the scale was everything. Having my weight be VERY public information from the age of 8, in a world where it is otherwise a very taboo topic..it’s safe to say my relationship with weight was warped (to say the least)”
The athlete went on to say that competing has been one of her biggest blessings in life but that nothing comes without challenges.
“This was one of mine that I had to learn to overcome,” she said of the numbers on the scale.
“All of this to say, for those facing similar struggles, you are definitely not alone.”
Throughout her years in the extreme sport, Kutin said her goals for competing have also changed.
She said few modern Orthodox women participate in such sports, in part because of the tight-fitting apparel.
It’s something she and her parents talked in length about during her career and ultimately decided the rules against competing in revealing clothes were more rooted in cultural traditions than Jewish law.
She now aims to empower more young girls and women to chase their dreams.
“I’m not saying, ‘Break the Jewish laws,’” Kutin said.
“I’m saying that within the laws, you can do your thing, even if nobody else is doing it.”
This story originally appeared on The Sun and has been reproduced here with permission.
