The thought of lifting 400 pounds might make some 50-year-olds’ knees tremble, but for one Fairfax County sheriff's deputy, it led to four world records at the World Police and Fire Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, earlier this month.

"Some people collect stamps at my age," said Master Deputy James Pope, a Bluemont resident who currently works at the Fairfax Adult Detention Center and has worked in the Sheriff’s office for 20 years. "I prefer to lift weights."

On Aug. 5, Pope, 50, competed in the age 50-54 super heavyweight (weight over 275 pounds) category. He shattered the bench-pressing record with a lift of 418 pounds. The previous record was 352 pounds.

Three days later, Pope earned a gold medal in the push and pull competition with a bench press of 423.5 pounds and a dead lift of 705 pounds for a combined total of 1,127.5 pounds. All three were world records for his age group.

"That's just impressive," said Bruce Blechl, a lieutenant in the Fairfax County Police Department and advocate for the World Police and Fire Games. "He's earned medals before, but getting records is even better."

Pope's records even earned him praise from the Fairfax County Sheriff.
"We are very proud of Jim and his accomplishments," said Sheriff Stan Barry in a statement. "His athletic excellence epitomizes the spirit of the games."

POPE HAS been power lifting competitively since 1988. He participated in the 2007 World Police & Fire Games and earned a gold medal in the push and pull contest and silver medal in the bench press.
He said that he had never heard of the games, until a request to research the games piqued his interest.

"Four years ago, Fairfax County put in a bid to host the games," Pope said. "The lieutenant in charge asked me to look [into the games] and I got interested in competing."

Pope said that he trained two days a week with a 3 1/2-hour cardiovascular workout.
While competition is the focus, the games’ intent isn’t just to prove whose safety department is the best in a variety of sports.

They also help develop relationships with other public safety officers from abroad.
"I competed against departments from 55 countries," Pope said. "Most of the guys I competed against in Canada I saw from the 2007 games in Australia. It's just one big family there."

Pope's recent success also is helping to promote the World Police and Fire Games locally. The biannual games are coming to Fairfax County in 2015, marking the games’ 30th anniversary.

Blechl said he thought Fairfax would be a great host when he competed in the 1991 games in Sweden.

"I met the captain of the Fairfax Fire Department in Sweden when I was competing," he said. "We both thought, wouldn't it be great to bring the games here?"

After numerous failed bids to bring the games to Fairfax in past years, the selection committee selected Fairfax over Winnipeg and Toronto for 2015.

Blechl said that the organizers of the games cited Fairfax's accessibility, cost effectiveness and law enforcement memorials in the surrounding area as determining factors.

"I think they saw the passion and excitement we could bring to the games," said Sarah LaRose, director of communications for Fairfax County's tourism Web site.

"The games started in the United States, so it's natural they wanted to celebrate the anniversary here."

With the 2015 games looming, Pope said he hopes that he'll be around to enjoy the fanfare and competition.

"I'm just trying to keep my foot out of the grave," he said. "Hopefully, I'll be around for the 2015 games