Leeds grandfather, 90, turns to powerlifting after losing wife to dementia

• Video report by Jonathan Brown

A 90-year-old grandfather says powerlifting has helped him stave off depression following the death of his wife.

Jim Petch, from Leeds, took up the sport after losing his wife, Yvonne, to dementia in may earlier this year.

"We were married for 65 years," Jim said.

"When I lost her, I felt I'd lost an arm and a leg."

Yvonne's death came four years after the loss of his daughter, Karen, a former ITV News reporter and presenter, who was 50 when she died of breast cancer in 2019.

Helped by his granddaughter Beth, who is a personal trainer, Jim turned to powerlifting to help deal with his grief.

With her guidance, he adapted his garage to become a gym, where she now trains him, also using it for her budding personal training business.

Jim said Yvonne would likely be looking down on his new hobby with amusement.

"She'd say, 'what are you doing that for you silly old fool?', and would have a laugh," he said.

"[Powerlifting] has pulled me back from being depressed."

On Sunday, Jim made his competitive debut at a powerlifting competition hosted by Viking Strength in Ossett, West Yorkshire.

His winning deadlift was 75 kilograms.

"He's always talking about how he's getting older, he's never competed in any sport before and I think it was just one to tick off the bucket list," Beth said.

Jim said the competition was "hopefully" the first of many.

"But you never know at my age!" he added.

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