James Talbot Williams (February 25, 1940 – January 23, 2007) was a record holder professional competitive

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 ...

from the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

. He competed in powerlifting just prior to the formation of the

International Powerlifting Federation The International Powerlifting Federation is an international governing body for the sport of powerlifting as recognized by the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF). The IPF was founded in 1972, and comprises member f ...

(IPF). During the early 1970s he set

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 ...

national and

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 organizatio ...

in the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU). On November 9, 1972, he performed bench press of 675 lbs (with ace bandages on elbows/without a

bench shirt A bench shirt is a stiff supportive shirt, used to improve performance in the bench press, most often in powerlifting competitions. Bench shirts are usually made of polyester, denim, or canvas Canvas is an extremely durable Plain weave, p ...

). Jim Williams was the first man to

300 kg (661.41 bs) in competition the international governing body for the sport of powerlifting.

Early career

Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, Williams was exceptional in size and strength from a young age. By the time he was 12 years old, he weighed 200 pounds and excelled in both football and track and field. Williams reached the state finals in the shot put four times, ultimately winning once. Even when he weighed 340 pounds, he was capable of dunking a basketball.

Early life

In his early life Big Jim Williams became involved in criminal activity and in 1961 was sentenced to ten years in prison for assault, battery and strong-arm robbery. It was there in captivity when Williams took up lifting weights seriously. When he was released, he was a success in the powerlifting world, along with his training partner John Kuc.

Powerlifting career

Williams' first major goal was to break the world record of 615 pounds of Pat Casey, the first man to bench press 600 pounds. On August 30, 1969, he crossed the magical 600 lb barrier to become only the second man in history to achieve an official 600 lb bench press. Williams broke Casey's world record in 1971 at the Eastern USA Open, hitting 635 pounds, which was recognized as the American record. On November 6, 1971, at the inaugural AAU World Championships he set another record with a 660 pound bench press. He was also the favorite to win the World Championships, but came in second to

Hugh Cassidy Truman Hugh Cassidy (born December 31, 1935), better known as Hugh Cassidy, is an American metal sculptor, jazz musician, and former powerlifter who competed in powerlifting just prior to the formation of the International Powerlifting F ...

, who totaled 2160 pounds as well, but being lighter got the victory for having the lower bodyweight. On November 9, 1972, in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...

, at the second World Powerlifting Championships ever, Williams achieved second place again, this time behind fellow training partner John Kuc. He also made his best official bench result with a 675 pounds press with only ace bandages of a specified length on his elbows, wearing a T-shirt and singlet. This lift would have been recognized as the official world record, but it was done one year before the

(IPF) was formed and began keeping "official" world records. Still, Williams' 675 pound bench press went into the books as an American Record and it was the all-time bench press

world record 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 organizatio ...

, regardless of governing organization. In addition to that, it stood as the American record in the AAU and later in the USPF for over 20 years from November 9, 1972, until July 31, 1994, when Anthony Clark established a new mark at 683 pounds with the help of a

. Williams had attempted 700 at the 1972 World Championships and got it 3/4 of the way up. Although he never did it in competition, Williams had reportedly done 700 pounds in training, with a best of 720 pounds. The powerlifter John Kuc was one of the witnesses of Williams' 700 pounds bench press (as well as three international referees) at the York Gym and stated: "That was more enjoyable to watch than the 675 (official) lift, but it wasn't official." Williams always lifted in a raw fashion – supportive equipment was not available in his day, and a two-second pause at the chest was required. Many experts consider him to be one of the greatest bench pressers of all time. Although known for his bench pressing, Williams also broke the world record in the squat, with 865 lbs, and did 1,200 lbs in a half squat unofficially, which he said was about 3-4 inches above parallel. His best training lifts included a squat of 900 and a deadlift of 815, even though he did not have good leverages for the deadlift and did not focus on it in his training.

Life after competition

His lifting career was not long and Williams did not compete officially after 1973. Shortly after the 1972 World Championships the U.S. Secret Service arrested Williams and charged him with counterfeiting. In late 1979 he trained for a comeback, but suffered a serious quad tear, which ultimately ended his attempt as well as his lifting career.

Personal records

Powerlifting competition records

In official Powerlifting full meets. * Squat - 865 lbs (392.35 kg) raw with ace-bandage knee wraps *

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 ...

: 675.0 lbs (306.2 kg) raw with ace-bandage elbow wraps, performed with a 2 second pause, which was required in those days **former official all-time bench press AAU (later USPF) American record in SHW class (+regardless of weight class and equipment) for more than 21 years from November 9, 1972, to July 31, 1994 **former all-time bench press world record in SHW class (+regardless of weight class and federation) for more than 12 years from November 9, 1972, to March 3, 1985 **former all-time raw bench press world record in SHW class (+regardless of weight class and federation) for more than 23 years from November 9, 1972, to July, 1996 *

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 ...

: 725.1 lb (328.9 kg) raw * Total: 2240 lbs (860/655/725) / 1016.0 kg (390/297/329) raw with ace-bandage wraps (2235 lbs (855/655/725), which later weighed out at 2240 lbs (860/655/725)) on 5/6/1972 (AAU)

Powerlifting gym records (unofficial)

* Squat: 900 lbs raw with ace-bandage knee wraps *

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 ...

:720 lbs raw - personal gym record :700 lbs raw - multiple times under eyewitnesses including in York Gym in 1972 in the presence of three international referees and in the basement of Bob Gaynor :715 lbs raw - in Pfeffer's Athletic Club in Scranton in 1979 or 1980 *

: 860 lbs raw

Death

Williams died on January 23, 2007, at age 66, after having diabetes for over 12 years.

Quotes about Williams

Former super heavyweight world powerlifting champion John Kuc said about Williams: :"Jimmy had more potential than anyone other than Paul Anderson. I truly think with proper training he could have totaled over 2,500 pounds without equipment." His friend and fellow powerlifting legend

Don Reinhoudt Donald C. Reinhoudt (March 5, 1945 – July 3, 2023) was an American powerlifter and strongman. He won the IPF World Powerlifting Superheavyweight Championship four consecutive times (1973–1976), and won the World's Strongest Man in 1979. Wi ...

stated that Jim Williams in his opinion is "the very greatest bench presser of all time". Iron game historian Dr.

Terry Todd Terence 'Terry' Todd (January 1, 1938 – July 7, 2018) was an American powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, author, researcher, historian, and a strength and physical culture promoter. Todd was co-founder of the H.J. Lutcher Stark ...

, said Jim Williams was one of the strongest super heavyweight lifters he had ever seen: :"I would definitely place Jim Williams’ benching in the top ten, along with such stalwarts such as Paul Anderson’s squat,

Bill Kazmaier William Kazmaier (born December 30, 1953) is an American former world champion powerlifter, world champion strongman and professional wrestler. During his illustrious career, he set over 40 powe ...

’s dumbbell pressing,

Vasily Alekseyev Vasily Ivanovich Alekseyev (; 7 January 1942 – 25 November 2011) was a Soviet weightlifter. He set 80 world records and 81 Soviet national records in weightlifting and won Olympic gold medals at the 1972 and 1976 games. Biography At the age ...

’s cleaning, Zydrunas Savickas’ overall power,

Mikhail Koklyaev Mikhail Viktorovich Koklyaev (, born 17 December 1978) is a Russian weightlifter, powerlifter, strongman and boxer. He is widely regarded as one of the most versatile strength athletes of all time. Strongman Koklyaev has placed third place ...

’s pull, Andy Bolton’s deadlifting and

Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry (born June 12, 1971) is an American former powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, strongman, and retired professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract. Henry is a two-time Olympian (1992 and 19 ...

’s grip strength." Joe Ladnier, multiple time World Champion: :"I never met Big Jim, but he was one of the strength legends that I admired from Day 1. R.I.P. Big Jim."

References

External links

Starting Strength - Iron Icons Big Jim Williams and John Kuc by Marty Gallagher

Starting Strength - Iron Icons Kuc & Williams, II by Marty Gallagher
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jim 1940 births 2007 deaths American powerlifters American strength athletes Sportspeople from Scranton, Pennsylvania