From Academy Life to Gold Medals: The 2-year rise of Nonso Chinje.

“Just learn to fall in love with the process;

It’s a journey, not a sprint”.

Those were the closing words of my interview with Nonso Chinje.

He encouraged young people to truly fall in love with the goals they’re chasing. However, to understand how Nonso got to this undefeatable mentality, we must go back a few years.

Like thousands of other young people, 17-year-old Nonso Chinje joined the Harlequins academy, with dreams of playing professional rugby. Dreams don’t always go exactly to plan, but it doesn’t mean they failed, it just means they’re different.

Despite experiencing such big change and disappointment at a young age, Nonso expressed the knowledge and valuable experiences he gained whilst at Harlequins academy. There were many challenges that Nonso divulged.

“Trying not to doubt myself as much and feel imposter syndrome. In a sense of... I feel like I’m not supposed to be there, and that I got lucky, but I’ve earnt just as much of a right to be there as anyone else”.

The self-doubt experienced by Nonso and many more can be shattering at times. It leads to people entering fight or flight mode.

Despite the pressure, Nonso said: “It definitely pushed my mental health to its limits, it made me more resilient as a person because you had to back yourself”.

He pushed through. He wouldn’t let it beat him. The constant threat of being dropped from a lineup or the academy as a whole was an element that led to a downward spiral for Nonso.

“Do worse, perform worse, feel worse” was the way he phrased it. Thankfully, he spoke on the good support from family, friends and coaches which kept him afloat and mentally strong.

At the core of everything let-downs are lessons in life. Rejection is a part of success and Nonso is proof of that. His experience emulates that of many more people.

“Not everything is going to go your way”.

His strength is reflected through his mentality, he knew: “I deserve to be here... but it’s not about if it goes your way or not; it’s about how you react”.

After being let go from the academy at 18, Nonso took up powerlifting began casually, lifting weights with friends at the gym and developed into something he would never have imagined – all because of hard-work and dedication.  

“A friend said I should look at entering a powerlifting competition, and I thought why not, I signed up and did quite well”.

Nonso made his IPF debut in 2022. Competing in the 120-kilogram weight class. He went on to win a silver medal at the 2022 World Sub-Junior Classic Powerlifting Championships, representing Great Britain.

A year later, at the same Championships, Nonso broke three sub-junior world records, squatting 308.5 kilograms, deadlifting 360.5 kilograms and totalled 851.5 kilograms.

He went on to win a gold medal.

He extended the sub-junior deadlifting world record by 40.5 kilograms. He is the current world record holder in the junior deadlift category, totalling a weight lifted of 938 kilograms. He said his three biggest personal achievements in powerlifting have been.

“Holding a deadlift record, qualifying for the open world championships and being a junior world champion”.

As a result of his work, Nonso has had deals with MyProtein and GymShark, allowing him to develop his powerlifting career further.

“It (the deals) definitely wasn’t something I expected when I started powerlifting. I’d hoped for it, but I didn’t expect it to come. So, when it came it was a surreal moment for me – and just from the fact of lifting weights and sticking to something I achieved this was something I was so, so proud of, so I’m just honoured and grateful I could be there in that position”.

“It’s opened more doors and opportunities for me. They take me to events where I can meet people; they’ve put me on platforms where I can show the world what powerlifting is”.

When asked about his biggest future goal, Nonso said: “My biggest goal is to reach a competition for the best of the best called ‘Sheffield’ – only 12 people are invited, no matter age or weight”.

The competition, ran by SBD Apparel, sees 12 women and 12 men battle against each other to claim the title of the ultimate champion with the highest percentage of the world total record. They also offer the opportunity to win a prize fund of £25,000 thousand pounds, and £5,000 every time a new record is beaten.

Nonso has a long and successful powerlifting career ahead of him. From being in a rugby academy to a gold medallist, he’s learnt a lot about resilience and strength. Now that he’s becoming more successful each year, he has inspirational advice young people with a passion.

The biggest priority is keeping yourself healthy, enjoying what you do and always looking for ways to progress. It may not be in terms of weight, it could be form or mental fortitude – just your mindset every time you step into the gym”.

Staying healthy is a massive priority for Nonso, the advice he gives to others is the same standard he gives himself. Taking advice from those with experience will take you far: “I see young people come in and they just want to pb, pb, pb (personal best); they push themselves and break. It’s a big issue”.

Being over two years into powerlifting gives Nonso the ability to reflect and appreciate the journey he’s been on.

With 2025 promising to be another record-breaking year, Nonso is destined for success.