Video - Offbeat: Mum-of-two is Britain's strongest woman

A powerhouse mother-of-two from Melton has been crowned Britain's strongest woman - dead lifting as much as a pygmy hippopotamus on her way to the title.

By The Newsroom

Published 3rd Sep 2016, 10:24 BST

Updated 3rd Sep 2016, 11:26 BST

Andrea Thompson, 33, of Hall Farm Road, topped the leader board at Sunday’s competition in Northampton winning four out the five gruelling events, and now has her sights set on the European and world titles.

Andrea, who only started strength training around 18 months ago, said she was overjoyed at the win.

“I was a little bit giddy when I found out,” she said.

“My husband came with me and we opened up a bottle of fizz but I just couldn’t drink it.

“It was quite overwhelming.” First off on Sunday was the deadlift, where competitors haul a weighted bar from the floor to a standing position. Andrea won the event, lifting a whopping 215kg - the equivalent of almost 34 stone.