Competing at the Christmas Strength Shootout in Melbourne on Sunday, Gray squatted a remarkable 222.5kg to better the previous record by 34.5kg.

His new national mark was just 5kg shy of a world record.

Gray, who has been competing for a little over six months, has won an invite to an international record breakers competition in Sydney.

His coach Dean Mawby, from Real Strength Studio Castlemaine, said Gray had on several occasions broken the previous Australian record in training, but the weekend was the first time he had done it during a competition.

"He has managed to put on a staggering 62.5kg in his squat since joining us at Real Strength six months ago, " Mawby said.

"He is now eligible to lift internationally. 

"Kevin lives in Bendigo, and makes the trip down the Midland three times a week to train.

"He is naturally gifted, but he throws himself right into his training - a perfect recipe for success."

The Sydney competition is four months away, which gives Gray the chance to break the world record of 227.5 kg, currently held by a professional lifter and Russian legend Sergey Fedsienko, who won 10 world titles between 2003 and 2015.