Scot Mendelson (born February 21, 1969) is an American armwrestler and

powerlifter Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight single-lift effor ...

, who specializes in the bench press. He has broken multiple

world records A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

and was the raw (unassisted) world record holder in the 308-pound weight class with a bench press from 2002 to 2020 and the equipped world record holder in the 275-pound class with a bench press from 2009 to 2021. He also held the all-time world record in the raw bench press, regardless of weight class with for 8 years. Working as a self-employed

personal trainer A personal trainer is an individual who creates and delivers safe and effective exercise programs for apparently healthy individuals and groups, or those with medical clearance to exercise. They motivate clients by collaborating to set goals, p ...

, he runs his own gym called F.I.T.

Early life

Scot Mendelson is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

, and grew up in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

.Menches You Don’t Want to Mess With at jewishjournal.com
/ref> His maternal grandfather, Morris Reif, known as the “Bronxville Bomber,” was

Rocky Marciano Rocco Francis Marchegiano (September 1, 1923 – August 31, 1969; ), better known as Rocky Marciano (, ), was an American professional boxer who competed from 1947 to 1955, and held the world heavyweight title from 1952 to 1956. He is the onl ...

’s stable mate and scored 75 knockouts in 115 fights. In his youth Scot Mendelson loved sports and played

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

and

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

. Starting strength training when he reached his teens, he moved into the sport of

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

and

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

, where he first recognized his rapid growth in strength.Muscle-Munch Interview with Scot - 2012
/ref> Then he moved into

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...

. With his pure strength showing even more through his bodybuilding training, Scot decided to become a powerlifter.Scot Mendelson biography at musclepowershop.com
/ref>

Powerlifting career

On October 12, 2002, at 308.0 pound bodyweight Scot Mendelson bench pressed 701 lbs (318 kg) without a bench shirt in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

(American Powerlifting Association (APF)) for an all-time raw (unassisted) world record in the heavyweight class (308 pounds
All-time RAW Powerlifting world records compiled and updated by PowerliftingWatch.com
He became the all-time raw world record holder regardless of weight class for the first time when he pressed 713 lbs (323.4 kg) on February 8, 2003 @ Stark's Gym San Carlos Ca surpassing the previous 711 lbs-mark of

Big James Henderson James Gregory Henderson, also known as Big James Henderson and James "Hollywood" Henderson, (born April 9, 1965) is a former American powerlifter who specialized in the bench press. He competed in the International Powerlifting Feder ...

held for 5 years. At the age of 36, improving his own world record in the raw bench press, Mendelson pressed 715.0 lbs (324.3 kg)All-time RAW Powerlifting world records compiled and updated by PowerliftingWatch.com
/ref>
/ref> with

Ed Coan Edward "Ed" Ignatius Coan (born July 24, 1963) is an American powerlifter. He is widely regarded throughout the powerlifting world as the greatest powerlifter of all time. Coan has set over 71 world records in powerlifti ...

as head judge at the New England Bench Press Classic (Atlantis) on May 22, 2005. This record was not broken for 8 years until

Eric Spoto Eric D. Spoto (born October 22, 1976) is an American arm-wrestler and powerlifter, who specializes in the bench press. He previously held world record in the raw ( unequipped) bench press with 722 lb (327.5 kg) achieved on Ma ...

bench pressed 722 lb (327.5 kg) raw in 2013. Mendelson also held the former all-time world record in equipped bench press: On February 18, 2006 at the Fit Expo at the 2006 Iron Man Bodybuilding contest, he pressed 457.5 kg (1008.6 lbs) on his first attempt, beating the previous record by

Gene Rychlak Eugène Rychlak Jr. (1968 – 26 July 2019) was a powerlifter from the United States, who specialized in the bench press. He was the first man to perform a bench press of over both and .EASTER, M., & TSEVIS, C. (2012). Your Best Bench Ever. Men's ...

. He then attempted 1031 pounds and 1048 pounds on that same event, but failed. The event also included the APF Mendelson Bench Press Classic in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...

. The new all-time equipped world record is now held by

Ryan Kennelly Ryan Shawn Kennelly (born March 23, 1974) is an American powerlifter who specializes in the bench press. He held the World Powerlifting Organization (WPO) record and held the all-time world record in the assisted (geared) benc ...

with a weight of 488.6 kg (1075 lbs). Currently, Mendelson holds the

World Powerlifting Congress The World Powerlifting Congress (WPC) is a powerlifting federation hosting meets around the world. The federation hosts competitions which allow multi-ply equipment, but hosted a Raw world championship for the first time in 2009. The WPC was esta ...

(WPC) bench press world record with a 1025.15 lbs (465 kg) press (SHW division in Open and Masters age class), done on November 23, 2008 at the WPC World Championships in Palm Beach Gardens

West Palm Beach West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

.Scot Mendelson Powerlifting statistics (incomplete) posted at en.allpowerlifting.com
/ref> Mendelson has since cut down some weight and became the current all-time equipped world record holder in the 275-pound weight class (in Open and Masters age class) besting the previous world record by 83 pounds"Champion weightlifter presses the issue of cannabis and sports" by CULTURE
with a 467.5 kg (1030.7 lbs) bench press on December 12, 2009 in

Camarillo Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...

(APF).All-time Powerlifting world records compiled and updated by PowerliftingWatch.com
/ref> Scot Mendelson is a three-times national and four-times World Champion in the bench press. He has broken 60 world records during his career.

Personal records

Powerlifting Competition Records: ''done in official Powerlifting meets'' * Raw Bench press – 701.1 lbs (318.0 kg) @308 lb class ''raw with only wrist wraps and a belt'' (APC 2002)ALL TIME HISTORICAL MEN AND WOMEN’S POWERLIFTING WORLD RECORDS
* Raw Bench press – 715.0 lbs (324.3 kg) @SHW class ''raw with only wrist wraps and a belt'' (Atlantis 2005) * Equipped Bench press – 1030.7 lbs (467.5 kg) @275 lb class (APF 2008) * Equipped Bench press – 1025.1 lbs (465.0 kg) @SHW class (APF/WPC 2008) Powerlifting Gym Records (unofficial): ''done in the gym according to Scot himself'' * Equipped Bench Press – 1201 lbsVideo: Scot Mendelson - World's Strongest Bench Press Powerlifter
/ref> * Squat – 900 lbs (not below parallel like a competition lift) *

Deadlift The deadlift is a weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting exercises ...

: 880 lbs * Raw Bench Press: 650 lbs for 8 repetitions

Personal life

He is divorced (2008) to his ex-wife, Maricelle, herself a World Champion Powerlifter, Kung Fu practicant and a martial arts champion."Maricelle Garcia Mendelson: World's strongest Pinay" at asianjournal.com
They have three children, two girls and a boy. In 2004, Mendelson was involved in a devastating car accident, that sent him to intensive care for three weeks with a fractured skull, broken ribs, broken leg and a right foot held on only by the skin. After a dozen surgeries, his right ankle was finally removed and he was left with one leg about 2 ½ inches shorter than the other. He was also left with an addiction to

Vicodin Hydrocodone/paracetamol (also known as hydrocodone/acetaminophen) is the combination of the pain medications hydrocodone and paracetamol (acetaminophen). It is used to treat moderate to severe pain. It is taken by mouth. Recreational use is co ...

. The ankle injury is also the main reason why he is unable to compete in the other powerlifting disciplines – the squat and the deadlift. Mendelson runs his own 6,000-sq. ft. private personal training gym in

Sherman Oaks Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...

called "Fitness Individualized Training" (F.I.T.), which teaches strength training and combat sports. Being a supporter for the legalization of cannabis for medical purposes since his car accident, he also opened up his own medical

marijuana dispensary A cannabis shop, cannabis dispensary, or cannabis cooperative, is a location at which cannabis is sold for recreational or medical use. In the Netherlands these are called coffeeshops. In the United States they exist as an outlet for both recr ...

called "Mendica" in November 2009, which he runs together with the actor

Eric Roberts Eric Anthony Roberts (born April 18, 1956) is an American actor. His career began with a leading role in '' King of the Gypsies'' (1978) for which he received his first Golden Globe Award nomination. He was nominated again at the Golden Globes ...

. The "Mendica Wellness Center" combines the dispensary with the F.I.T. gym to be a one-stop shop for rehab, rebuilding, relaxation and natural pain medication. After a car accident in 2015 that made Mendelson unable to be a top level powerlifter, he started armwrestling in 2016 and has placed high in national level championship and attended the zloty tour 2018.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXFrftmieug http://www.zlotytur.com/tour.php?id=25&photo=yes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendelson, Scot Living people Jewish American sportspeople American powerlifters 1969 births 21st-century American Jews

Early life

Powerlifting career

Personal records

Personal life

See also

References