If you have little or no knowledge of powerlifting, Lamar Gant is one name you should get to know from this demanding strength sport. Lamar is quite simply an incredible legend in powerlifting, one of the sport’s strongest ever in his weight classes and one of its greatest achievers.
He was strong in all three of the powerlifts, but it was his phenomenal deadlift accomplishments that made Lamar truly stand above the rest, intrigued? Continue on for Powerlifting Legends – Lamar Gant!
He is the first ever man to have deadlifted FIVE times his own bodyweight, pulling a spectacular 661lbs from the floor at a bodyweight of slightly under 132lbs. To put this into perspective for non-powerlifters, lifting three times bodyweight is superb, so lifting five times bodyweight is simply superhuman.
Lamar Had Scoliosis but that didn’t Stop Him
Despite having scoliosis, a spinal condition which could have potentially hindered him in powerlifting, Lamar excelled in the deadlift. He went on to deadlift 688lbs in the 132lbs class and it is believed he lifted over 700lbs in training.
Lamar’s bench press and squat numbers were also world class. Even though his 5′ 2″ inch frame and long arms were favourable for deadlifting, those arms weren’t particularly advantageous for the bench press.
Lamar Possessed Amazing Lifts for a Man Weighing Just 132lbs
Not one to make excuses, Lamar trained hard on the bench and lifted a mighty 352lbs in the 132lb weight class. His exceptional lower body strength and an iron core prepared him for his huge competition best squat of 595lbs.
For a man who had such superb strength, it’s only to be expected that he’d have a long list of achievements and records under his belt, pun intended. He became the youngest ever lifter to win an IPF (International Powerlifting Federation) World Championship when he competed in Birmingham, UK in 1975.
During his career he competed in two weight classes (123lbs and 132lbs) and held world records in all 3 of the powerlifts, an achievement very few powerlifters ever make.
Lamar Gant was the first man to total (the combination of one’s best squat, bench and deadlift numbers in a competition) 12 times his bodyweight in this sport. In 1980, he was inducted into the IPF Hall of Fame for his lifting achievements.
Lamar Won 16 World Championships
By the end of his powerlifting career he’d won an incredible 16 world championships. Naturally, you’d want to know how Lamar trained to get such incredible strength. Believe it or not, his training structure was nothing over complicated nor did it require any fancy equipment.
He would add weight to the bar each session, over the course of a few weeks, to build his strength for his next competition meet. In his early training days, Lamar performed some very high volume workouts: he had been seen doing 25 sets of 5 reps in his deadlift workouts, pushing his body hard to build extreme strength.
Not surprisingly, Lamar was totally committed to his training and rarely, if ever, missed any workouts.
This American powerlifter shows the true capabilities that humans have (even despite obvious handicaps or disabilities) when they live to fulfil their dreams and constantly aim high. If this man doesn’t inspire you, who will?
