Jim Williams

Who was Jim Williams?

James Talbot "Jim" Williams was a powerlifter from the United States. He competed in powerlifting just prior to the formation of the International Powerlifting Federation. During the early 1970s he set numerous bench press national and world records in the Amateur Athletic Union. On November 9, 1972 he performed his greatest official bench press of 675 lbs, which is considered raw by today's standards. Since that day Jim Williams is officially the first man in history to bench press 300 kg in competition - since 1981 however, Bill Kazmaier is given credit for being the first person to bench press 300 kg after the formation of the IPF - the international governing body for the sport of powerlifting. By consistently pressing 650+ lbs raw and even touching 700+ lbs in training, Williams was without competition in his time and still is one of only 5-10 men in history who bench pressed in excess of 670 lbs officially.