At just 17 years old, Centennial Senior Jeremy Dai has reached a level that many athletes can only aspire to reach. With a staggering 1,508-lb powerlifting total, Dai is looking competitive for the upcoming USA Powerlifting High School National Championships.
Powerlifting is a strength sport in which athletes complete three lifts: bench press, squat, and deadlift. Though once considered niche, powerlifting has massively surged in popularity over the past decade, in large part thanks to young people like Dai making use of social media platforms to document their progress and connect with other lifters.
Dai’s garnered a lot of attention here at Centennial with his Instagram account where he posts clips of his massive personal records. The account: @the.125.jedai has over 900 followers and hosts a video of his 675-lb squat, which he performed at only 16 years old. That video has surpassed 17,000 views. Though many classmates and fellow lifters can now follow his progress online, his story began years before his social media platform.
Dai’s powerlifting journey began in the eighth grade, when a football coach encouraged him to train with the local high school’s weightlifting club.
“The following night, I kind of just went there, and I really liked the environment,” Dai recounted.
After a few months of learning the basics and training consistently, he quickly started putting up impressive numbers. Upon reflecting on the start of his journey, Dai recollected, “I just kept showing up every single day, eating well, and that’s when I kind of noticed that I was like, pretty strong.”
His peers also took note of his strength and encouraged him to start powerlifting.
When Dai came to Centennial in his sophomore year, he got straight to work on his powerlifting goals, training in the weight room with the football team and at the local YMCA. Since then, he’s competed in multiple USA Powerlifting meets, including the 2025 Philadelphia Freedom Championship, where he was first in his division for the squat.
When asked about what motivates him, Dai replied that it was “Chasing PRs and records” that pushes his training.
Outside of the gym, Dai says that powerlifting has made him “more disciplined and better at time management.” Along with powerlifting, Dai is also a varsity football player, more specifically an offensive lineman. The position requires immense strength, showcasing how his time in the weight room has no doubt paid off on the field.
Dai isn’t alone in his passion for lifting at Centennial. A large portion of the student body regularly participates in some form of strength training, whether or not they play on a sports team. Reflecting on the growth of the lifting subculture, Dai noted “It’s definitely grown a lot. It’s a very positive culture here at Centennial.” He credits the growth in popularity of weightlifting to sports teams embracing strength training as a way to build on their athletes’ physical fitness in the off-season.
He also encourages anyone who is interested in powerlifting or bodybuilding to join the lifting club, which he founded this year and will be active starting in November.
Centennial isn’t the only high school in Howard County getting a lifting club. Howard High School and Mt. Hebron High School are also starting their own clubs this year, reflecting a growing interest in strength sports among high schoolers across the country.
Dai’s current goal is to qualify for Nationals in March and break the USA Powerlifting squat record in the teen2 (16-17) category, a milestone that would represent the culmination of years of hard work and dedication. In striving for new personal records, Jeremy Dai is joined by peers who share his drive in the weight room and have shown themselves to be a growing force here at Centennial.
