Luis Everardo Canchola Rodríguez, a student at the Faculty of Chemistry, took first place in the Junior category (20-23 years old), -90 kg weight class, at the Xtreme Powerlifting Coalition (XPC) Arnold Classic 2025 World Championship, held on March 2 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio.

Canchola Rodríguez attended this World Championship to compete against and defeat American lifters in his respective category and weight class. He lifted 280 kilograms in the squat, 150 kilograms in the bench press, and 240 kilograms in the deadlift, totaling 670 kg, which ultimately earned him the gold medal.

Although the UNAM athlete has always had sports in his life—starting with swimming at the age of seven—his decision to take up powerlifting has brought him victories and national records in just two and a half years of competing in the discipline.

Adrián Parra Larios, a Law School graduate and powerlifting coach, highlighted: "We visualized this competition about 15 months in advance. The level of competition was high; however, Luis brought out the ‘Puma grit,’ hit the numbers we had projected, and managed to maintain them on an international stage".

With this gold medal, Luis Canchola’s next sporting goal is to compete in international events, such as the International Powerlifting League (IPL) Tested World Championships, to be held from November 18 to 21 in Wolverhampton, UK, where he will aim to break three world records.

On the national stage, after setting records in his category for squat (290 kg), bench press (150 kg), deadlift (230 kg), and total (670 kg) with lifts performed at the XPC National Powerlifting Championship in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Canchola Rodríguez continues to train rigorously with the goal of competing in state and national events to remain at the top among Mexican competitors in his category.