Gallagher’s GOAT - Top Ten Greatest Powerlifts Of All Time

Top Ten Greatest Powerlifts of All Time

The hippest societal sport cliché is GOAT, the acronym for Greatest of All Time. My natural instinct is to be dismissive and snide toward modern trends and clichés, including this particularly catchy phrase, GOAT. One of my training partners recently asked me, “Seriously Dude, if you were forced to identify the ten greatest powerlifts of all time — what would they be?” Here is my list, in more or less sequential order.

This is a Gallagher list, not a sanitized record-book list. Some of these are official competition lifts. Some are gym lifts, exhibition feats, eyewitness moments, or strength-history lore. The common denominator is simple: each lift rewired what I thought possible.

The Paul Anderson photo that created a technical archetype: note depth, knees over ankles, vertical torso, and barbell behind the knees. Hugh Cassidy adopted this as his technical archetype.

1. Paul Anderson Squats 900 for Reps Raw

In 1965 Paul Anderson appeared at the Silver Spring Boys Club to put on an exhibition. He was on a thirty-city tour; the previous night he had been in Richmond and was to be in Philly the next night. His Silver Spring exhibition was just another whistle stop. I hitchhiked three miles and watched in the front row as Anderson, at his awesome physical peak, started the exhibition by clean and pressing 420.

He power-cleaned the barbell effortlessly and blasted it overhead like it was made of paper mâché. Anderson’s exhibition pressing belonged in world-record territory. Paul then squatted 900 pounds for five effortless reps. He had no spotters. After pressing in combat boots, he shed the boots and worked up to 900 x 5 wearing socks. It was the most casual display of freaky strength I have ever seen.

Hugh Cassidy bottoms out with 775: note how similar his technique is compared to the Anderson archetype. Hugh changed one thing about the Anderson archetype — he purposefully stared at a spot on the floor ten feet ahead.

2. Hugh Cassidy Squats 800

In 1971 Hugh Cassidy squatted 800 pounds ass-on-heels without a squat suit, without modern supportive apparel, and with no lifting belt. Cassidy had given much thought to squat technique and built his squat style on the Paul Anderson archetype: squat as deep as possible on every rep, stay upright during descent and ascent, thereby making squats 100% about leg power.

The Anderson / Cassidy squat technique stressed keeping the knees over the ankles with the knees pinned out throughout. Upon breaking at the knees, the squatter does not bend forward; upon breaking the knees the squatter sits back. Cassidy did zero leg assistance work: no leg presses, hack squats, front squats, or leg extensions. “Squats alone work best for me.” Narrow the exercise focus, stress technique. Cassidy reiterated the validity of Anderson’s initial squat discoveries.

Monster amongst humans: Jim Williams was massive, muscled-up, and athletic. This photo is a great representation of Williams’ physical stature compared to normal people.

3. Jim Williams Bench Presses 700 in York Gym Lore

Big Jim Williams was a genetic marvel that loved to bench press. Williams stood 6-foot-3 and weighed a few biscuits shy of 400 pounds. In a workout in the famous York Gym, he bench-pressed 700 pounds with a 2-second pause on the chest. Naysayers point out that Williams wore elbow wraps. I would counter that the 2-second pause on the chest — one thousand and one, one thousand and two, PRESS! — was a far more serious impediment than wearing pathetic Ace Bandage elbow wraps.

Williams was a world-record holder in the squat and only his deadlift, low 700s, a lift he never practiced, kept him from world domination. Cassidy defeated Williams to win the first world powerlifting championship in 1971 by coming from 80 pounds behind to win the world title with a clutch 790-pound deadlift. Williams’ training partner was future hall-of-fame powerlifter John Kuc.

Lamar Gant shows how to deadlift five times his own bodyweight. The secret to his legendary pull was his 600-pound squat.

4. Lamar Gant Deadlifts Five Times Bodyweight

Lamar Gant won 16 world championships. From age 16 onward, the mighty mite ruled the powerlifting world. At his peak, Gant, weighing a ripped-to-shreds 132 pounds, squatted 600 pounds, bench pressed 352 raw, with a long pause, and deadlifted in the 680-plus range, an astounding five-times-bodyweight pull.

Gant repeatedly performed deadlifts that should not have been possible at his bodyweight. He was the only man in powerlifting history to simultaneously hold the world record in all three powerlifts. His 600-pound squat and 352-pound raw bench press were done by a man built all wrong for those two lifts. His long arms and twisty spinal column worked to his advantage in the deadlift. He overcame in the bench with an incredible arch that turned the flat bench into a decline with a radically shortened rep stroke. His 600-pound squat was the key to his pull.

Mike MacDonald, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound man, is shown bench pressing 523 pounds after a long pause on the chest. I was there and saw it. To me, it was an iron miracle. Note: no real arch, no tricks, and his arms were roughly 16 inches.

5. Mike MacDonald: The Unlikely Bench Press Miracle

The most unlikely looking world-record holder I ever saw was Mike MacDonald. In 1979 this 5-foot-10, 180-pound man bench pressed 523 pounds, this wearing a T-shirt, exhibiting no outward psyche and with a long pause. Mike’s arms could not have been more than 16 inches flexed.

At his height, with his skinny body, weighing 180, I would have said there was no way this guy could deadlift over 500 pounds, let alone bench press it. Impossible. This was the front end of a power career that saw MacDonald push raw bench press records across multiple weight classes. Mike was not merely a bench press specialist; he also squatted and deadlifted serious poundage. His world-record-setting battles with Larry Pacifico and Mel Hennessey were epic. These 220-pound-class lifters pushed the raw bench upward toward 600 pounds. Mike was a physiological impossibility.

Bill Kazmaier trimmed down from the 330-pound range to compete in strongman competition. He is shown at a Scottish Games competition chalking up before an event. His physique and athletic abilities diffused his powerlifting focus.

6. Bill Kazmaier Breaks the 2,400-Pound Barrier

Bill “Kaz” Kazmaier was a Division I football player that began concentrating on powerlifting in the mid-1970s. He first appeared on the national powerlifting scene as a muscled-up 275-pound lifter. He attained superstardom when, in an 18-month period, he added 50 pounds of bodyweight and, at roughly 325 pounds, posted historic lifts: a 900-plus squat, 661-pound bench press and 800-plus deadlift.

Kaz became the first man in history to post a three-lift total past 2,400 pounds. He could easily have improved on his historic marks had he focused solely on powerlifting. Kaz, with his incredible body, was seduced by professional football, pro wrestling and strongman competition. His strongman battles with Jón Páll were the stuff of legend. I believe that Paul Anderson and Kaz, with apologies to Hermann Goerner, were the strongest humans of the 20th century.

A rare photo of a young Dan Wohleber setting a world-record squat in the 242-pound class. Dan was the first man in history to deadlift 900-plus pounds, which he did after squatting 960.

7. Dan Wohleber Deadlifts 900-Plus

Dan Wohleber grew up hard on the hard streets of Cleveland. He wandered into John Black’s hardcore gym and, as a 14-year-old, deadlifted 405 for 15 reps. Black was gobsmacked. The boy-child began training with the infamous Wild Bunch. He won the national title in 1982 in the 242-pound class, beating my training partner, Mark Chaillet. Danny squatted a world-record 871 pounds and backed it up with an 826-pound deadlift.

Dan tore his left pectoral muscle clean off the bone, destroying his bench pressing for the remainder of his meteoric career. As a full-fledged 275-pound lifter, Wohleber shocked the world when he squatted 960 and that same day deadlifted 900-plus pounds. His combined squat / deadlift total was science fiction. Wohleber later suffered a catastrophic, career-ending squat injury.

The greatest squat technician of all time: schooled and mentored by his Okie neighbor, world champion and world-record holder Dennis Wright, Doug Furnas squatted this 986 in Hawaii with ease. Ernie Frantz is a spotter.

8. Doug Furnas Squats 986 and Totals 2,400 Twice

Doug Furnas was an elite athlete who grew up on a ranch and had wonderful genetics. A rodeo star as a youngster, nearly killed in a head-on auto collision at age 15, he used weights to rehab. His high school team won the state championship; his junior college team won the national JC championship. Furnas headed to Tennessee, where he was the starting fullback on a team that included Reggie White and Willie Gault.

Chronic hamstring pulls ended his NFL career. He turned his full attention to powerlifting and within a year set his first world record. I competition coached Doug in Maui: he squatted 986 with ease and became, by far, the lightest man to crash the 2,400-pound total barrier. I worked with him six months later in Minnesota when he became the first man to total 2,400 twice. He then began a 20-year professional wrestling career.

I shot this photo in the mirror of the Maryland Athletic Club. Kirk Karwoski was finishing his deadlift workout with a set of thumbless shrugs to failure with 455 when I grabbed my Nikon F2 with a fast 35mm lens and 400 ASA film.

9. Kirk Karwoski Doubles 1,000 and Squats 800 x 5 Raw

I was Kirk’s coach for a decade. He was a thick-boned, bottom-heavy youngster full of strut and swagger. It took many years for his performance to catch up to his ego. For a decade, he centered his life around the sole pursuit of improving. He worked hard to correct his symmetrical imbalances and built an upper body, including a 600-pound raw bench press in the gym, to match his incredible legs.

At his physical peak, he stood 5-foot-7 and weighed 275 pounds. He had 33-inch thighs under a six-pack-laden 38-inch waist. He squatted 800 for five reps, every rep below parallel, wearing only a lifting belt and allowing himself one breath per rep. Four weeks later he squatted 1,000 pounds for a double weighing 275 pounds. He set IPF world records in the squat and total. Karwoski is the only man in history I know of to win USPF national championships in three weight classes: 242, 275 and superheavyweight.

Ed Coan locks out 900 pounds weighing 219. The greatest powerlift of all time. Only Lamar Gant’s five-times-bodyweight deadlift can be compared. Ed’s 2,400-pound total placed him absurdly far ahead of the rest of the world.

10. Ed Coan Deadlifts 900 Weighing 220

I had a front row seat to Ed Coan’s greatest competitions. I was his competition coach when, weighing 219 pounds, Coan deadlifted 900 — this after squatting 965 — and totaled 2,400. That was, and remains, science fiction stuff.

A few years later Coan pushed his bodyweight upward to the 240-pound range. He squatted 1,000-plus and totaled over 2,460, the highest three-lift total anyone in history had recorded at that time, regardless of bodyweight. Coan was, and is, a training genius who created a power-bodybuilding training template that saw him attack the core four lifts, the three powerlifts plus the press-behind-the-neck, augmented with a wide range of assistance exercises.

Ed got as strong as possible in the off-season wearing no supportive gear. He would enter the competitive cycle in shape and super strong. Genius. Coan is the GOAT of GOATs.

Safety Note for Maximal Powerlifting Feats

This article preserves Marty Gallagher’s RAW strength-history perspective, eyewitness memories and powerlifting opinions. It is not individualized medical, rehabilitation, coaching, or programming advice.

The lifts described here were performed by historically elite lifters under conditions that ordinary trainees should not copy casually. Heavy squats, bench presses, deadlifts, exhibition lifts, maximal attempts, deep squats, pause benches, lifting belts, wraps, suits, spotters, and rack setup all require technical mastery, progressive loading, proper warm-ups, safe equipment, competent coaching, and honest judgment.

Do not use these feats as a template for daily training. Stop or scale back for sharp pain, dizziness, chest pain, unusual shortness of breath, numbness, uncontrolled bar path, repeated technical collapse, failed warm-ups, fear-driven attempts, or any symptom that feels different from normal training effort.

The useful lesson is not that you should chase these exact poundages. The useful lesson is that technical excellence, genetic gifts, obsession, intelligent progression, ferocious effort, and years under the bar can produce moments that become immortal.

Equipment Notes for Serious Powerlifting Training

Great powerlifting is built on simple tools used brutally well: a strong bench, a trustworthy bar, enough plates, safe loading, solid footing, and a training culture that respects the lift.

For core strength-room setup, lifters and facilities can compare weight benches, Olympic weightlifting bars, and weight plates. Specific examples include the Body-Solid SOFB250 flat Olympic bench press, CAP Barbell 7-foot chromed Olympic weight bar, and Troy Barbell black iron wide-flanged weight plates, when those tools match the lifter, room, floor, spotter plan, and intended use.

The equipment does not create the GOAT lift. The lifter, the coach, the training partners, the logbook, the years, the food, the recovery, and the willingness to strain correctly create the GOAT lift.

Related Powerlifting Reading

For a deeper Marty Gallagher profile of Ed Coan’s career greatness, read Ed “King” Coan: The GOAT of Powerlifting. For a modern powerlifting legend profile, read Forged Passion: Brad Gillingham.

RAW with Marty Gallagher, J.P. Brice, and Jim Steel Podcast.

About the Author: Marty Gallagher

As an athlete Marty Gallagher is a national and world champion in Olympic lifting and powerlifting. He was a world champion team coach in 1991 and coached Black's Gym to five national team titles. He's also coached some of the strongest men on the planet including Kirk Karwoski when he completed his world record 1,003 lb. squat. Today he teaches the US Secret Service and Tier 1 Spec Ops on how to maximize their strength in minimal time. As a writer since 1978 he’s written for Powerlifting USA, Milo, Flex Magazine, Muscle & Fitness, Prime Fitness, Washington Post, Dragon Door and now IRON COMPANY. He’s also the author of multiple books including Purposeful Primitive, Strong Medicine, Ed Coan’s book Coan: The Man, the Myth, the Method and numerous others. Read the Marty Gallagher biography here.