Janice Todd (''née'' Suffolk; born May 22, 1952) is an American former

powerlifter Powerlifting is a competitive 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 singl ...

, historian, researcher and a

strength Strength may refer to: Personal trait *Physical strength, as in people or animals *Character strengths like those listed in the Values in Action Inventory *The exercise of willpower Physics * Mechanical strength, the ability to withstand ...

and

physical culture Physical culture, also known as body culture, is a health and strength training movement that originated during the 19th century in Germany, the UK and the US. Origins The physical culture movement in the United States during the 19th century ...

promoter. She is a professor and department chair in the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education at

The University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

. Todd is a member of the sport management faculty, and teaches classes in sport history, sport philosophy, and sport and ethics. An active lecturer, Todd was named the Seward Staley Honor Lecturer for the North American Society for Sport History in 2008.

Early life and education

Todd grew up in Western

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

in a low-income family. She met her husband Terry Todd while in college at

Mercer University Mercer University is a Private university, private Research university, research university in Macon, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the s ...

. He fell in love with her at a barbecue, when he saw her flip a massive log without giggling or showing any false modesty.

Career

Powerlifting

Todd’s interest in the study of sport and physical culture was galvanized by her participation and success in the sport of

powerlifting Powerlifting is a competitive strength athletics, strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: Squat (exercise), squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athle ...

. During her powerlifting career, many publications, including ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' magazine, considered her to be the strongest woman in the world.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

described her as a 'legend' and a "pioneer who led the way for strongwomen". Todd "bent bottle caps with her fingers, lifted her Ford Fiesta for fun and drove nails through wooden boards with her palms". As a powerlifter, Todd set more than 60 national and world records, and was included in the ''

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

'' for over a decade. On 2 February 1978 she appeared on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Johnny Carson, it aired from October 1, 1962 to May 22, 1992, replacing ''T ...

'', performing several lifts along with

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, and writer best known as the host of NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson is a cultural phenomenon and w ...

. Todd was the first woman inducted into the International Powerlifting Hall of Fame. She was inducted in the first class of the Women’s Powerlifting Hall of Fame, and the 2009 class of the US

National Fitness Hall of Fame National Fitness Hall of Fame is an American hall of fame for notable fitness professionals. It includes notable figures involved in fitness instruction, training, education, fitness management and product development. The mission is to recognize ...

. She also received the 2008 Oscar Heidenstam Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award for her contributions in the field of physical fitness. In 2018, she was inducted into the

International Sports Hall of Fame The International Sports Hall of Fame (ISHOF) is a section 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2012 by Dr. Robert M. Goldman to honor exceptional athletes and sporting figures for their accomplishments and dedication to furthering ...

Dinnie Stones

Todd is perhaps best known outside the powerlifting community for being the first woman ever to successfully lift the

Dinnie Stones The Dinnie Stones (also called Stanes or Steens) are a pair of Scottish lifting stones located in Potarch, Aberdeenshire. They were made famous by strongman Donald Dinnie, who reportedly carried the stones barehanded across the width of the Pot ...

in 1979 (which she did assisted with straps). No woman lifted them again until Leigh Holland-Keen did so in 2018.

Personal records

Powerlifting:
''Equipped (single ply):'' * Squat – (1980 USPF Atlanta Women's Open) (former world record) :→ ''First woman to squat and in a sanctioned meet'' *

Bench press The bench press or chest press is a weight training exercise where a person presses a weight upwards while lying horizontally on a weight training bench. The bench press is a Compound movements, compound movement, with the primary muscles involved ...

– (1980 USPF Atlanta Women's Open & 1981 USPF Women's Nationals) *

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

– (1980 USPF Atlanta Women's Open & 1983 USPF Women's Nationals) (former world record) *Total – (1980 USPF Atlanta Women's Open) (former world record) :→ ''First woman to total , and '' ''Raw:'' * Squat (w/ wraps) – (1977 First All American Women's Power Meet) *

– (1977 First All American Women's Power Meet) *

– (1977 First All American Women's Power Meet) (former world record) :→ ''First woman to deadlift in a sanctioned meet'' *Total – (1977 First All American Women's Power Meet) Strongman: *

(assisted lift with straps) – stones (1979) (former world record) :→ ''First woman to lift the stones. ''

Later years

Todd also serves as co-editor of ''Iron Game History: The Journal of Physical Culture'', a scholarly journal for the history of physical culture. She and her husband founded ''Iron Game History'' together in 1990, while she was studying for her PhD in American Studies. In addition, she has written numerous articles on topics such as sport and exercise history, anabolic steroids, and strength training as well as two books: ''Physical Culture and the Body Beautiful: Purposive Exercise in the Lives of American Women'' (Mercer University Press, 1998), and ''Lift Your Way to Youthful Fitness'' ( Little-Brown, 1985). With her husband, Terry Todd, Jan Todd founded the H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports. The Stark Center, which opened in a new facility in the fall of 2009, contains museum exhibits as well as a research library and the largest archive in the world devoted to the study of physical fitness, resistance training, and alternative medicine.

References

External links

* H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sport
H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports
{{DEFAULTSORT:Todd, Jan 1952 births American educators Living people People associated with physical culture