Squires after his record-breaking lift (Photo: Instagram/Nick Squires)

A vegan powerlifter has scooped the California state record for deadlift.

Nick Squires was competing at the California State Championships in Chino Hills last week when he took the record.

He took part in the in the 100kg, open age group category at the event, which was organized by the United States Powerlifting Association, when he lifted 650.36lb (295kg) to beat the previous record of 633.82lb (287.5kg).

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Vegan powerlifter

Squires took up powerlifting in late 2013, and adopted his vegan lifestyle in May 2014. Since then, he has 'competed in five open powerlifting competitions, placing first in three of them, finishing second at the 2018 USPA Drug Tested California State Championships, and qualifying for and competing at the 2018 IPL Drug Tested Powerlifting World Championships in Las Vegas'.

According to Squires, he 'wasn't even sure if the two [veganism and powerlifting] were compatible' when he first adopted a plant-based diet, but he says he 'couldn't continue to eat animals'.

You can find out more about Nick Squires here