Melvin Wells

 

Ray Van Cleef on Melvin Wells at the 1949 Mr, America in Cleveland . . . 

Melvin Wells placed second with a score of 63.5 points. The enthusiastic response that greeted this muscular marvel in the competition was only surpassed by Jack Delinger. A month earlier this new physique sensation won the "Mr. New York State" title by a comfortable margin. At Cleveland again justified the praise that has been showered on him so liberally since he came into sudden prominence at Bob Hoffman's birthday show in York last November. 

His unassuming nature is particularly evident in a contest of this kind. The majority of the contestants are puffed up like pouter pigeons when exposed to the audience. Some make themselves ludicrous with the exaggerated postures they assume endeavoring to accentuate their development. 

The naturalness of Wells' stance and actions is by contrast especially admirable. Wells differs from the majority of physique contestants in other respects. This superman from Buffalo does not participate in the self-inflation orgies that take place in the dressing room prior to a contest, when the frenzied "pumping up" activities dominate the atmosphere. 

In the Mr. America competition it was noticeable that Wells confined his posing display to the restricted number of poses. Some of the other contestants took advantage of the situation by doing a series of poses much in excess of the specified number. Wells' good sportsmanship in this connection added to his prestige. 

His greatest liability is his comparatively poor calf development. But his drawback is overshadowed by the extraordinary features of his physique, particularly the remarkable development of his upper arms, shoulders and upper back. Wells won more individual honors than any other contestant at Cleveland. In addition to placing second in the Mr. America event, he was selected as Most Muscular Man and won the subdivision contests for Best Arms and Best Back. It was truly a field day for this popular athlete. 

From Joe Roark: 

After his final try for the Mr. America, Melvin Wells stopped competing but did guest pose for approximately ten shows, some of them in Canada. In October, 1993 I spoke on the phone with him, a black bodybuilder in an era when being black, in some cases, blacklisted you from the best placing. His wife Julia joked that maybe he should have painted him white so he would have a chance of winning at the AAU Mr. America. Melvin stopped most exercise in 1990 due to kidney problems and bone cancer. 

Melvin Two articles on Wells, the first from HEALTH and STRENGTH, March 24, 1949 . . . 

Heralded as the greatest discovery since John Grimek, sensational Melvin Wells, the Buffalo Hercules, hit the headlines when he stole the show at Bob Hoffman's 50th birthday show held at York last November. This dusky superman is no doubt a phenomenon and I prophesy a tremendous future for him in the body-building world. 

Twenty-nine years of age, this outstanding discovery who was brought out of oblivion, says Frank Wrzesinski in the (second article to follow) in the January issue of Strength & Health, just simply grew up strong. 

At the age of eight Melvin began to use rocks as weights. Anything that was heavy fascinated him and he would try to lift it. Rock-lifting was his hobby for many years, though he did not understand nor could he explain this unusual urge. While serving overseas in the USAAF he kept in trim by lifting small car wheels. 

Returning from overseas he took some professional tuition. He is now lifting 281 pounds Clean & Press, cleaning the weight without splitting. His one-arm military press is at about 150 pounds and he performs deep knee bends with 450. 

Employed at the Ford Motor Corporation, Melvin plays softball for the work's team and is a keen swimmer. 

His measurements?

Height - 5'10"

Weight - 203 pounds

Neck - 17-1/4"

Upper Arm - 18-3/8"

Cold forearm - 13-7/8"

Waist - 30-3/4"

Thigh - 25-1/4"

Calf - 16-1/8"

What I can't understand is that the chest measurement is 48" normal, 48-3/4" expanded. 

I wish that all authorities would adopt the standard Health & Strength form and give normal inflated and expanded measurements, from which much can  be learned. Anyway, it will be interesting to compare the lifting abilities of "wedge-torso" Wells with the "square-torso" Johnny Davis! 

From Strength & Health, January, 1949 . . . 

The Buffalo Hercules, by Frank Wrzesinski

The average person today seems to have the erroneous impression that strong men and perfect physical specimens are totally extinct in this 20th century of ours and that the crowded and unhealthy conditions of our big cities in which most of us live are not conducive to the growth and development of strong and healthy bodies. 

Oh, that pesky modern world. 

When speaking of strong and physically developed men most everyone seems to think first of the circus or fall back on their knowledge of history which recounts the daring feats of the bold and powerful Vikings or some other barbaric tribes that lived a long time ago. Those were supposed to have been real he-men in comparison with whom the men of today are mere weaklings. 

Berserkers? Average height and weight 5'8" and 160 pounds. When the legend becomes fact, print the legend. 

Such supposition is far from truth. As a matter of fact, today we have more physically strong men in this so-called "soft" world of ours than they did in the days of yore. [but then, where's the marketable sales hype in facts when a guy wants to sell supplements and pre-workout crap to kids of all ages and levels of intelligence?) Recent research has shown that even an average college athlete of today would have quite a difficulty fitting into one of those steel armor outfits which were worn by these supposedly strong heroes of the Middle Ages. 

Strong and physically developed men are right in our midst and walk the sidewalks of our big cities today, their powerful muscles and marvelous physiques hidden from our eyes by the ethical and fashion requirements of our civilization. The age of mechanization in which we live overshadows them entirely as they are seldom called upon to perform unusual feats exhibiting their strength. It is only a sheer incident that leads to their discovery, otherwise in the privacy of some gymnasium, garage or a cellar they train their beautifully developed bodies and get into play their bulging muscles that could be the object of admiration by many.

In recent years the trend in physical culture as well as the fine publicity and promotion by such magazines as "Strength and Health" in glorifying the strong men of today has done a great deal for those forgotten physical specimens. Until recently they were like the pearls on the bottom of the ocean bed waiting to be discovered and brought to the surface where they can dazzle the eyes of onlookers with their brilliance and beauty. 

You've guessed by now that the author is getting wordy in an attempt to make a full article out of the limited knowledge of how Wells trains . . . 

Such was almost the fate of Melvin Wells, the strong man from Buffalo who possesses a most phenomenal physique and herculean strength. 

Melvin, who only recently was brought out of oblivion, just simply grew up strong. This was as natural for him as for the eagle to soar high into the sky or the panther to slink noiselessly and gracefully while stalking her prey. 

What is more amazing is that Melvin never had any professional training in the development of his almost mythical physique nor had he any forethought of ever cashing in on his strength or physical prowess. He simply grew strong by responding to that urge or rather a yearning to become physically fit which all men possess to a certain degree but in most cases never follow up. 

Next is something from John McKean in 2015 . . . 

It will surprise many that during Grimek's heyday there was another competitor who pressed and curled better, but according to serious, expert officials of the time, actually displayed more impressive arm musculature! 

His name was Melvin Wells, a physique man who placed second in a few early 1950s Mr. America contests, while always winning best back, and most muscular awards. It is said that no photo did this man justice, but he achieved the first REAL 19" arm, so full, thick, and defined as to defy description during those times. 

And he got size and strength with a very basic, all-round training scheme. 

Mel's entire arm program consisted of only 3 x 10 in the strict curl and press! Yet, when I say STRICT, Wells took this to a whole 'nother level. Our USAWA rules tell us for curling to put a sheet of paper behind our head and butt, backed up to a wall, then curl (without the paper slipping) for training. Wells didn't use the paper thing, but very reliable witnesses observed him ALWAYS performing very SLOW, picture-perfect barbell curls, full range, with 150 pounds for his 3 sets of 10. One writer counted him doing 12 perfect strict reps with 145 in front of a large crowd at the famous York picnic. 

 

His presses were perhaps even more noteworthy -- 3 sets of 10, super strict with 120 pounds. 

Oh, wait . . . 

I forgot to mention these were ONE-ARM PRESSES. Absolutely no side leaning or back bend either. 

And finally, "Marvelous Marvin Wells" by Charles A. Smith:

Since Melvin Wells appeared at the Bob Hoffman birthday strength show there have been requests for more information and photos of this sensation. We are glad to be able to present the following interesting story and the accompanying photos. Whether you agree with the author that Melvin is the finest built man in the world you must admit that he has the type of physique that is distinctly different and very outstanding. We will have still better photos to show you at a later date. In the photos Melvin is 5'10.5" tall and weighs 205 pounds, with a 48" chest, 18-3/8" arm (cold), 14" forearm, 31" waist and 26" thighs. His arms and shoulders are outstanding. -- Peary Rader

As I begin this story, I have a picture of Melvin Wells in front of me. Looking at it, I suddenly realize how incapable I am of doing justice to this most remarkable athlete. Not if I strummed a million minutes away on this typewriter could I give you any idea of the superhuman development of this man.

It is quite a few weeks ago since I first met Melvin at the Bob Hoffman birthday show. Ever since then, I have been wondering about him. How did he get this way? What exercises did he use? Was he always well built? 

You and I have perhaps seen the top flight physique men. We may have witnessed Ross pose, thrilled to the superb development of Grimek, admired the beauty of Reeves' statuesque musculature. We think we have a pretty good idea of what makes a man a strength athlete, an outstanding specimen of manhood. 

Right here and now, we will have to scrap those ideas and opinions. Melvin Wells sets standards which will in all probability, never again be approached in our time. 

Those who know me have wondered at what I have had to tell them about Wells. They know I am not the kind of guy to go overboard about anything or anyone. They regard me as a bit of a cynic, a hard man to please. Many frankly disbelieved my statements about Melvin, upon my return from York. They ate their words when I let them see the pictures. They were frankly and openly amazed. 

And yet, astonishing as these pictures are, they simply do not do the man justice. To gaze upon the flesh instead of the image, is an experience no one is ever likely to forget. 

There are many wonderfully developed athletes in our world of weights. There are men of gigantic power. Melvin Wells ranks with the best. His is the perfect combination of bulk, definition and strength.

Melvin Wells was born 29 years ago (article is from IronMan, Jan-Feb 1949), in Sulligent, Alabama. His mother had a family of three boys with Melvin being the firstborn. Mrs. Wells soon knew that her son was something above the ordinary boy. When the family moved to Buffalo in upstate New York, Melvin was but a child, but a child with a remarkably sturdy frame for his eight years. Even at that early age, the desire for health and strength was making itself apparent. Melvin cluttered up his bedroom with rocks and large stones which he used to lift in as many ways as his imagination conjured up. 

In school, he excelled as an all round athlete. During the years he attended Hutchinson High, he played basketball, baseball, and football. He was a letterman in baseball and football and an ALL HIGH in basketball.

In his after-school years, Melvin played basketball for a transportation company, helping them to win five titles in 1940. It might be mentioned here that at present Melvin plays softball for the Ford Motor company, his present employers, as first basemen and has belted out the most home runs on the team. 

The natural desire for strength, which had always been with him since his earliest childhood days, prompted him to take up weight training. In 1942, Melvin bought his first set of weights. They scaled 205 pounds. Such was his natural strength, and the progress he made during the first three months, that he soon found the original set much too light for his needs, and he was forced to make another purchase. 

Although his training was rather haphazard, his power and presence was such that his friends soon began calling him Hercules. They of course now realize that the term is a trifle inadequate. 

Melvin served in the armed forces during the was as a member of the Air Force. He rose to the rank of First Sergeant and out of 25 months, served 14 overseas. His opportunities for weight training did not come very often, but he managed to keep in trim with small railroad car wheels. 

It was upon his return from military service that Melvin really started to go to town. The prewar years' training was irregular, but now he took his workouts seriously and made astonishing strides. 

Melvin is an advocate of HEAVY training. He has never had professional tutelage or training of ANY description. 

When he first commenced his weight workouts, he was told that he should never use more than eight repetitions, as this was the best number for strength and development. Melvin has kept to this advice, and it has certainly worked out wonderfully well with him.

He told me that on the nights when he feels in form, he does several sets of 8 reps, but on the training days when he doesn't feel so energetic, he uses up to 15 reps with less sets. 

The measurements listed for Wells are of course interesting. They were ALL TAKEN COLD. No pumping up beforehand. 

During the Hoffman birthday show, Melvin gave ample proof that his muscles are not merely for show. He performed several strict curls with 145 pounds -- 12 reps as I counted them. 

Several rowing motions with 250, an uncounted number of squats with 350 and many ridiculously easy presses with 205 pounds. 

He has made 10 reps with 400 pounds in the deep knee bend. Some of his other lifts are as follows: 

Military press. Strick style, no back bend. 281 pounds. 

One arm military press. 150.

Squats (Melvin says "several"). 450 pounds. 

Bench press, several reps. 330.

For his military press, Melvin cleans the weight WITHOUT SPLITTING OR BENDING THE LEGS. He aims to train for competition lifting, and his greatest ambition is to represent his country in the next Olympics.

Melvin has no diet fads. He eats whatever he fancies. "Good and wholesome food is the best" he tells me. He does however, eat regularly and PLENTY. 

He reads all the weight training magazines avidly, and his favorites are, needless to say, IronMan and Strength & Health. Effing Weider A-holes. 

Contrary to popular supposition about weight men, Melvin does not have a single track mind. He likes quiet entertainment, music, the theater, swimming, and plenty of rest. 

So, not much in the way of brand spankin' new and innovative wonder layouts with the weights. Heavy training on the basic lifts of the time. The ones we all use. Good food in abundance. Plenty of rest. A tranquil mind that enjoys life while it lasts. Simple enough! 

Enjoy Your Lifting! 

 

  

Report on Trip to Bulgaria - Philippe Hedrich (1975)

 International Olympic Lifter October 1975

*Full disclosure: I know they kept spelling Ivan Abadjiev's name wrong throughout the entire article - not sure if it was a French to English thing or what, but for historical integrity I left it as printed.

The Quebec Weightlifting Federation, being a little more fortunate than the rest of the provincial associations, were able to send in December of 1974 a group of four lifters and two coaches to Bulgaria to study the training methods and the lifting program of that country. Following is a translation of the report on their experience as given by Philippe Hedrich, a member of the group, and published in the Quebec Newsletter. PARTICIPANTS Athletes: Yves Carignan, 60kg Pierre Charbonneau, 75kg Gabriel Voisard, 82.5kg Claude Hardy, 110kg Coaches: Jules Sylvain Philippe Hedrich Except for a slight delay in leaving Paris for Sofia, the trip Montreal-Paris was made without difficulty. I will not dwell on these unimportant details anymore than on the return trip, since it is my lot to write this report, on the eve of our departure in our “Pliska” hotel room in Sofia. There was six inches of snow and it was still snowing upon our arrival at the Sofia airport at 8:40 pm on Monday, December 16. We were met by Mr. Abadchiev (Edit: Abadjiev is referred in this spelling throughout the piece), the Bulgarian national coach; Mr. Kanelov, his assistant; and Mr. Alexandar Stefanow, the interpreter place at our disposal by the Bulgarian Weightlifting Fed. The latter is a young international commerce student who speaks very good English, a little French, fairly good German and very good Russian. Having arrived at the “Pliska” Hotel which is considered to be a fairly good hotel in Sofia, Mr. Abadchiev immediately concerned himself about our accommodation and having assured us that our supper would be served shortly, informed us that training would start at 10:30 the next day. We had just set foot in the life of the Bulgarian Weightlifting Elite, at least we believe that this was the way the “Elite” does things. I have presented this report under five headings for ease of reference: 1. Organization of the Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation 2. Recruitment and Training 3. Competitions 4. Different “Elite” groups and their training 5. Middle and long-range aims

1. Organization

The Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation is subsidized, on the one hand directly by the Government, and on the other hand by the benefits accruing from a government controlled lottery called “TOTO” where bets are placed on the outcome of various sports events. 

In Bulgaria, it is there possible to bet on weightlifting competition results, amongst others, and athletes’ photos such as Kolev, Bikov, Todorov, Nikolov, Nurikjan, etc. are prominently displayed in cafes for publicity purposes. 

The Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation is divided into 28 regional communities (in a fashion similar to that of the Bulgarian Government itself.)  Heading the Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation is a committee of 71 persons comprising:

a. Regional delegates

b. Coaches

c. Referees

d. A representative appointed by the Ministry of Finance

e. A representative appointed by the Ministry of Education

f. A representative appointed by the Ministry of Public Health

g. A representative appointed by the Communist Party

h. Several other representatives from different organizations (depending on the sports involved)

This committee selects amongst its members, the Executive Committee which consists of 11 persons and is in office for four years (after each Olympic cycle.)  The Executive Committee form sub-committees as follows – 

a. Athletes’ sub-committee (President in office, Kolev)

b. Coaches’ sub-committee (9-11 persons)

This sub-committee’s main task is to attend to methods (methodology) and training programs.  It may, if needed, be assisted by specialists in different fields, e.g.: medical, educational, psychological, etc.  Once a year this sub-committee meets with the full time paid Bulgarian Coaches (there are approximately 120) during a Convention of two to thee weeks’ duration, as required, to update the knowledge of the country’s coaches.

c. Referees sub-committee (9-11 persons) chosen from the Federation’s 71 member committee

c. Medical sub-committees

c. Sub-committees assigned for looking after children (the mandate of the last two sub-committees (d) and (e) will be revised January 1975)

All of the sub-committees meet at least once a month.

The “patron” of the Federation, who in Bulgaria is the Secretary-General (Technical Director) is Mr. Stoev.  His is employed by the Federation, although elected for a 4 year period.  Mr. Stoev has been in office since 1964 (after Tokyo.) He has requested to be relieved of his functions this year but his Federation requested that he complete his term, which he accepted. Mr. Stoev is also Secretary of the European Weightlifting Federation. 

2. Recruitment

There are in 1974, sixty weightlifting clubs in Bulgaria.  They are in fact, “all sports” clubs with weightlifting sections.  The Federation numbers 120 full time coaches and 170 so-called volunteers, all of whom are physical instructors specialized in weightlifting and who do the real recruitment in primary schools. In order to emphasize how these clubs operate and the method of recruitment, let me cite the case of the typical town of Asenovgrad which has a population of 50,000 and is situated 115 miles from Sofia.

Name of Club: Asenovez

It is a “sportsplex” entirely built and subsidized by the Bulgarian Government.  This club can cater to most sports, and has three weightlifting rooms, a medical clinic, a sauna, tennis courts, a chess game room, a projection hall and a rest lounge.

The weightlifting staff consists of three professional coaches and three volunteer physical instructors. The responsibility of the three professional coaches is to train young (and not so young) athletes but not weightlifting.

The young athletes, recruited by the physical instructors, start weightlifting training at about 11 to 12 years of age.  For one year at the rate of three times a week, they train under the supervision of the instructors but the first year is devoted entirely to theoretical and technical work, without real weights (wooden discs on the bars), films and explanations of basic movements.  After a year or more, they begin proper training under professional coaches but lift in proportion to their potential only at about the age of 14 or 15. 

The medical sub-committee is at the present time in co-operation with the Coaches sub-committee carrying out experiments with typical groups, 9 to 10 years old. 

In Bulgaria there are weightlifting classes in sports schools, but this will be covered under the heading dealing with the “Elite.”

The training of the lifters in the clubs is more or less based on that followed by the National Team and the “Elite.”

3. Competitions

Here, I will only deal with competitions at the national or international level and not with those at the regional or club level. 

Teams – Bulgaria has two championship leagues at the level:

“A”League: 19 teams

“B”League: 15 teams

These two leagues take part in three competitions a year: February, June and September.  There are nine men to a team, with a maximum of two per class.  Depending on the group (league), these competitions may last two or three days.  Points are awarded by classes, as follows:

1st in each class – 12 points

2nd “ – 10 points

3rd “ – 8 points

4th “ – 7 points

5th “ – 6 points

6th “ – 5 points

7th “ – 4 points

8th “ – 3 points

9th " – 2 points

10th " – 1 point

The Champion club for the year is that which has scored the most points durin the three competitions. 

At the end of each year the “A” league teams which have placed 9th and 10th transfer to the “B” League and the “B” league teams which have place 1st and 2nd transfer to the “A" league. 

The Juniors also have two leagues of 25 clubs each, the difference being that one league is formed of lifters 18 years of age or less while the other consists of 19 and 20 year old lifters.

An athlete may compete in a higher age group for all of that year, but he may not revert to a lower age class.  These two leagues take part in two competitions, one in April and one in July.  The first ten clubs in each league take part in the “finals” in October or November. 

The winner of the “finals” is determined by adding the points of the members of each club, of the 18 year old group and of the 19 and 20 year old groups, this to prevent the possibility of a club putting its best lifters in the same age group (19 and 20 years old.) 

The winning Junior Club is awarded the “Crystal” Cup. A club that wins the cut three times in five years retains it and an equivalent cup replaces it.  The clubs which place 1st and 2nd in the “A” league and in the Junior Leagues acquire the right to take part in the team competitions abroad. The clubs located near the border may also compete with those of adjoining countries.  The athletes who are members of an “Elite” group or of the National Bulgarian Team, must rejoin their parent clubs for team competitions. 

Individual Championships

The Bulgarian individual Championship, (also regional or club Championships) is divided into 4 age groups:

A. Senior (open)

B. 23 years of age and below (21 to 23)

C. 19 to 20 years of age

D. 18 years of age and younger

An athlete may not take part in two individual championships during the same year. A Junior may take part in a Senior Championship but in that event, he may not compete in the championship for his age group. The participation and qualifying standards for the different classes are as follows:

1. Weight class

2. Master in Sport, Bulgaria

3. Candidate, Master in Sport

4. National Senior Championship

5. Championship, 23 years of age and under

6. Regional Senior Championship

7. Championship, 19 and 20 years of age

8. Championship, 18 years of age and under

To be an Honours, Master-in-sport in Bulgaria one must have placed as follows:

a. First in European Championships

b. In the first three in the World’s Championships

c. In the first four at the Olympic Games

A Bulgarian athlete who qualified as:

a. Master in Sport receives a 15% salary bonus if he works in the sports field

b. Honours, Master in Sport receives a 25% salary bonus under the same circumstances.

An athlete who has qualified as Honours, Master in Sport, may register in any faculty of a Bulgarian university, without having to pass entrance examinations. He may follow the courses at his own speed and write his examinations on request. Athletes under 15 years of age may not compete without the approval of the medical sub-committee. 

The present Bulgarian records are:

4. The “Elite” and Their Training

In Bulgaria, there are 4 weightlifting “Elite” Groups, as follows:

a. Sport schools

b. Juniors

c. 23 years of age and under (national team reserve)

d. National Team

The number of athletes in these groups are, respectively:

a. 8 x 32 athletes

b. 32 athletes

c. 32 to 36 athletes

d. 32 to 36 athletes

At the present time there are in Bulgaria, also about 10 sports who benefit from the advantages offered by the Sports Schools, including weightlifting to be sure, which has 8 classes spread out between the end of primary school courses and the secondary level.  These athletes follow the same programmes as the regular schools, with the exception that half the day is devoted to sports and the academic programme takes into account the requirements for extensive competition training periods. These schools are not under the direct jurisdiction of the Federation but under that of the regions which ensure the attendance of their most promising material. This is a boarding school under state control. The students only return periodically to their families. If a pupil is particularly gifted in sports but has difficulties in his academic studies, he is sent home. 

The directors of the Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation believe that the achievement of accomplishments in sports cannot be done without high intellectual qualities (!). More often than not, athletes who arrive at a tender age in their schools learn the basics of their sports before doing any serious training 

The training programme for the older athletes is closely related to that of the “Elite” (see training programme.)

Juniors – 16 to 18 years of age: For this age group, there is a single class of 32 students, engaged in secondary studies and preparation for “phy-ed” professorship. This school is located next to the “Diana” residence which houses the National Teams of most of the sports. The Juniors often train with the National Senior Team. 

23 years of age and under (National Team Reserve): The concept for this group is as for the preceding one, except that more time is available for training since most of the participants are students at university level.  As for the National Team, the three main events of the season are the Danube Cup, The European Championships, and the World Championships. 

The National Team – World Champion: The reason for our trip.  We were slightly late on Tuesday morning for the first training session (bus problems.) Around 11, everyone had completed his warm-up and the large machine was already on its way. The Bulgarian National Team normally consists of 36 athletes (4 by weight class). While not luxurious, the training room has 11 platforms (really only two, the remainder being rubber strips to muffle noise caused by the dropping of weights, but the athlete lifts directly from the wooden floor), three fixed squat racks, 7 or 8 pairs of mobile racks, abdominal board, suspension wall ladder, etc.  The room has also at least 25 Olympic bars of which 16 or 18 are “Eleiko” bars, the rest being German “Schnell-Hantle” bars and Polish bars, plus two machines made in Bulgaria and which are still in the prototype stage.  These machines deserve a special paragraph.  

The Bulgarian National Team training schedule is as follows:

The exercises are not necessarily done in the listed order and I only saw two or three athletes doing bench presses during the week that we were there. As you may have already realized the Bulgarian National Weightlifting Team members are full time lifters.  They do no other work except the odd few who devote a few hours a week to studies. They all live in the “Diana” residence and train together. Each day in the training room, there are two coaches, a physiotherapist, and a doctor in attendance. The training pace is fast and with each movement the athletes try to reach their maximum. 

Contrary to our practices, the Bulgarians warm up a lot, then with three or four bars, they immediately try their maximum (sometimes 10 to 15 attempts with maximum load and gradually decrease the load while increasing repetitions.) We were able during our stay, to witness several training attempts at breaking world records (barely missed.) 

Mr. Stoev told me that Nikolov before leaving for the World Champs in September had snatched 180 kg three times during one training session and had jerked 212.5 kg. The world record at that time totalled 385 kg for the 90 kg class.  It is true that a certain Rigert has since surpassed this. 

The current Bulgarian National Team lifters, most of whom were there are: (the performances or titles are official for the 74 season, Olympic champions excluded.)

The three main annual competitions for the Bulgarian National Team are:

1. Danube Cup (April – 10 to 15 days of special preparation)

2. European Championships (June) – 25 days of special preparation

3. World Championship (September) – 25 days of special preparation

During these preparations the athletes train particularly on the control of the Olympic lifts for the first 10 days then attempt anticipated maximum loads. The rest of the time is spent with 90% of maximum loads. 

Mr. Abadchiev explained to us that the main success principles followed by his Federation and the athletes to succeed are:

1. Adaptation of the human being to his environment

2. Provision of a make-shift environment for each sports person, according to their needs

3. Exploration of the potential of the human being with reference to the sport involved

(Edit: I feel like a fourth, highly anabolic principle may be missing from this list)

The Bulgarian athletes have a maximum limit of 6 to 7 competitions per year. 

5. The Machines

The Bulgarian Weightlifting Federation is at present developing electronic equipment especially for weightlifting.  In fact, we were able to try two machines which permit the measurements of

a. The vertical trajectory of the bar to the nearest millimeter

b. The height to which the bar is raised

c. The speed in 1/10 of a second at any moment of the rise of the bar

The engineer who is working on this project has promised to send me details and prospectus to our Federation as soon as the equipment has been fully tested and patented. This same engineer is also working on another project. This is an electronic eye device one of which will be placed in front of each training platform (at least for the “Elite”). After each movement, each athlete can at a glance, read the height and speed at which his lift was done. 

6.  Middle and Long Term Forecast

1975 – 1) open 10 new clubs

             2) 1st sports schools championships

1979 – World Championships – Projection for this event: Competition Centre with 2500 seats (In Sofia) and 4 training rooms for the “Elite” capable of handling 36 athletes each

1990 – Have 50 weightlifting classes in sports schools with 1500 pupils

2000 – Have 120 clubs and 350 full time coaches

Taken from Official Newsletter/Bulletin Officiel-Federation Halterophile Canadienne (Canadian Weightlifting Federation) Volume 5, Number 2

Behind the Cuban Curtain - Tommy Kono (1967)

 Strength & Health February 1967

In 1958, Cuba had but 80 active weightlifters. Today they have 13,000 registered active weightlifters with a growing enrollment all the time. This is a tremendous amount of lifters when you consider the fact that Cuba has a population of less than 7 million people in an area slightly larger than South Carolina.

In the recent Central American Games held in San Juan, Puerto Rico in June of 1966, Cuba won the weightlifting team title by amassing 30 points, one point more than the favored home-town Puerto Rican squad. The well conditioned Cuban team won the team crown despite the fact that their ace heavyweight lifter Verona who had officially totaled over 1,100 was left behind in Cuba for disciplinary action (character building.)

I was especially interested in the training system used by the Cubans so when the chance came to have a brief chat with them prior to judging the middleweight class, I cornered their weightlifting coach Marcelino Del Frade and inquired about their present program for grooming top notch athletes. The story he related and later elaborated on by the delegate and President of the Cuban Weightlifting Federation David Mye at their room in the Olympic village was most enlightening and interesting. I gathered the following story from Del Frade and Moye and pass it on to the readers of Strength and Health magazine.

Cuba is methodically recruiting and developing more weightlifters with an eye toward dominating the sport in future Central American Games. Their long range program is to be able to match strength with the U.S. team and then aim higher for world and Olympic titles.

The campaign to recruit more lifters started in 1958 under the Castro regime. To discourage the immense interest in bodybuilding which did not help to improve the standard of weightlifting and was not developing any new lifters from its ranks, the government under Castro purchased all the gyms one way or another and retained the former owners to instruct ONLY weightlifting.

Between 1961 and 1962 Russia sent to Cuba a total of 250 Olympic sets as a good-will gift and to help encourage the sport. These sets were dispersed all over the island and competition in some type of lifts were held.

In the beginning lifts requiring very little skill were employed in these contests. Lifts such as Squat and Press, or Dead Lift and Jerks were used to interest young adults and teenagers. Gradually the supplementary lifts such as the Squat and Dead Lift were eliminated from the competitions and contests only on the three Olympic lifts were held.

In the meantime thousands of pamphlets on the Olympic lifts and about the sport of weightlifting were printed and distributed among the general public so all the people of Cuba would understand the sport. A “Big Push” was on to educate the Cuban public on the facts of weightlifting and to make it one of the national sports.

To stimulate more interest in the development of the sport and weightlifters the former Russian world’s heavyweight champion Alexi Medvedev spent a period of 3 months in Cuba in 1961 giving clinics and coaching budding future champs. Olympic and world champion Yuri Vlasov was especially flown in to Cuba from Moscow to give demonstrations and exhibitions in various parts of the island.

With the facilities available and the interest created the next step of the Master Plan was a very important one for the development of a powerful weightlifting team. The one important ingredient missing at this point was the availability of good, qualified instructors to groom the vast amount of lifters who were eager to learn the finer points of weightlifting.

The Cuban government, working within a strict budget, employed only a handful of weightlifting instructors and the remaining coaching staff was made up of volunteer instructors. Five of the more talented and knowledgeable men who were better informed about weightlifting techniques were sent to Russia to study under such former world champions and world record holders like Medvedev, Dr. Arcady Vorobiev, chief coach of the Soviet team, and Dr. Roman of the Russian Institute of Physical Education.

After 13 months of intensified schooling in the science of weightlifting in Tbilisi, a “hot bed” for the sport in the Soviet Union, the 5 Cubans of which one was Marcelino Del Frade returned to their native country to disseminate all the knowledge they had acquired to the other coaches and trainers in Cuba.

Through all this work the Cubans now boast of over 100 weightlifting gyms and have over 50 well qualified, full-time, paid weightlifting instructors… and, of course, 13,000 lifters. Because of the great demand and interest in the sport the gyms are also open 24 hours a day!

Despite the fact that weightlifting is enjoying great popularity in Cuba the number one sport is still baseball. But in general sports participation in this Caribbean island is fantastic. The athletic programs take part in municipal meets, then to one of the six regionals and finally to the national championships. The Cuban program for promoting sports run closely parallel to the Russian method in this respect.

In Cuba, as in Russia, there is no such thing as professional athletes. According to the Cuban track and field delegate Ricardo Perez their athletes are never hounded by scouts or tempted with big financial offers to turn professional therefore the athletes can concentrate on developing their potential to the fullest. They compete not for financial gains but because of the love for competition and sport.

One of the phases of their work program was finished with the success of winning the team title in weightlifting at the Central American Games. The next phase might very well be the team title in weightlifting at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada, next year.

With an army of 13,000 lifters to choose from and with some of the lifters on the Cuban team at the Central American Games only 20 years of age Cuba has a very solid foundation to build a strong weightlifting team which may threaten the solidarity which the U.S. now enjoys at the Pan American Games. Cuba has already begun planning to dominate the weightlifting event in the 1970 Central American Games which will be held in Panama.

One of the future plans which they mentioned to me was that of inviting some of the best weightlifters from the various countries in the Caribbean area to take part in a contest held on their island to give additional experience to their team. They also hope to have Leonard Zhabotinsky in Cuba for some weightlifting exhibitions.

If Cuba continues to support its weightlifting program they will eventually be a strong contender for some world titles and world records. They may eventually dominate the weightlifting scene on the western hemisphere. All this by an island with a populate of less than 7 million people.

Related to the Cuban system, this podcast with Arthur Chidlovski and Weightlifting House several years ago has a very nice breakdown of how the Soviet system worked for low and mid-level athletes.  Stuff like increased food allowance, etc... kind of set the table for incentives for the Communist bloc athletes. 

https://www.spreaker.com/episode/arthur-chidlovski-weightlifting-was-made-for-communists--43895154

Also, visit Arthur's site as it's a treasure trove of classic weightlifting information.

http://www.chidlovski.net/liftup/

Training System of the Japanese Lifters - Kenji Onuma (1968)

Strength & Health November 1968 

They didn't mention this as part of their training, but the forearm muscles on the author have to be huge.  3500 words to just say hard work - sheesh.  Still a nice snapshot in time for the lifting happening in Japan in the mid-late 60's. 

Recent issues of Strength & Health have featured a series of very well written articles on the training systems of the Polish, Hungarian, and Soviet lifters. The readier will notice that the current training methods in these countries are entirely positive in their approach to training. They now train five to six days a week, some of them even twice a day, whereas not a long time ago, such a system was regarded as suicidal not only by ambitious lifters but also by even the most aggressive coaches. Their idea is that if a lifter can train six days a week and recuperate from the effects of the hard training, he will improve faster than when he is training less frequently. They try to build endurance and to “rest positively” by participating in other sports. I believe this positive approach has been responsible for the tremendous improvement the Poles, Hungarians, and Russians have made during the past few years. It makes sense, too, because it is evident that if w had unlimited recuperating power, we would no doubt improve faster by training harder. In fact, the main reason why we try to control the among of training is because we know we would simply burn out if we trained too much. Therefore, what matters most is how to build recuperating power through scientific methods.

But it makes me feel glad and a little proud to know that they are using this positive method of training, for it is just what most of the Japanese lifters, more specifically university and high school students, have been using for quite a long time. No doubt the reader will recall the steady rise the Japanese have made during the past few years, the highlight of which being the 1964 Olympic Games. As of February 1968, they hold five world records as well as many junior world records, and I am sure they will set many more in the future. What is responsible for this remarkable rise of the little fellows from the land of the Rising Sun? (I say remarkable because the Japanese have no state support such as the one we find in some countries.) Is there any secret, one of those mysterious things said to be found in the Orient? No, there is no secret. They have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat. Perhaps the only secret behind their methods is the rigorous program under which they have been training for many years. This program is backed with a burning, self-motivated desire to improve. Let me remind the reader here, however, that a lifter must have trained systematically for at least one year before he can condition himself for this kind of hard training, and it may hinder, rather than promote, his progress if he takes up a training system of this sort without proper preparation. With this kind of training, planning becomes very important. Each workout is carefully controlled so that the lifter can get the maximum results and yet not overtrain. Well, the Japanese were using this system at a time when everybody took it for granted that a lifter should not train more than three times a week.

I think I’d better point out here that almost all of the registered lifters in Japan are students or young graduates. In fact, it is not an overstatement to say that the university students support amateur sports in Japan. At any rate, the students are in a particularly favorable position to work out under the program I have described above. Even so, they are distinguished in that they do not waste time. The students know they must improve really fast in order to become an international-caliber lifter within the limited number of years they are at school. As a matter of fact, this was one of the motives that prompted the adoption of the hard training program. Incidentally, I am of the opinion that the United States, with all her tremendous wealth and advanced social conditions, is the only country capable of producing lifters who can compete against those state-subsidized athletes without yielding an inch. The U.S.’s reserve of robust young men is colossal. I have seen so many well-built men in the U.S. of whom I was envious from the lifter’s point of view. There are so many men apparently capable of becoming future world champions. So far as the physique is concerned, the U.S. is the most gifted nation. But let me put it frankly by way of constructive advice. I do not feel this reserve is fully exploited. I do not feel most of the American lifters are training hard enough, or perhaps I should say often enough. As a result, they do not accomplish the maximum they are capable of. Needless to say, “training” does not necessarily mean lifting weights alone. It also includes exercises for flexibility, speed, endurance and so on. The standard of lifting is so high today that it is no longer possible to become a world champion with a take-it-easy training program.

Hiroshi Fukuda at 1964 Olympics

Now then, I will try to give the reader a brief account of how the Japanese lifters train and what the basic ideas of their system are, so that the reader will get some hints on training which may benefit him.

When Bob Hoffman came to Japan back in 1961, he spent one day at our Intercollegiate Meet that was being held in Tokyo. As usual, he sat there for ten hours and enjoyed watching the lifting. What impressed him most was the vast number of lifters competing on the particular day. More than sixty lifters were competing in each of the two classes being held on that day. As a matter of fact, one of the classes, the lightweight, had a little more than eighty entries. He was very much impressed and said to me with a sigh, “Kenji, I wish we had as many lifters in a class back in the States!” The reason why I quote this episode here is to impress the reader just how severe the competition to become a champion in Japan. Let me remind you that this was seven years ago. Now we have more member institutions and naturally more lifters, especially after the 1964 Olympic Games.  The Collegiate Weightlifting Federation has had, therefore, to adopt qualifying totals in order to limit the number of lifters competing in a class. For those who fail to make qualifying totals, we have novice meets which permit any registered lifter to compete in. Anyway, I think competition is one of the most important factors in our system.

Anybody who visits a typical weight-room of a Japanese university will be amazed at the pace training is going on there. The bars have literally no time to gather dust. The lifters form a queue on the platform and wait their turns to lift the bar. As soon as a man returns the bar on the platform, the next man steps out while two other men adjust the weights on the bar. And the waiting men shout to encourage the lifter while the lift is made. There is always a strong sense of common cause. On the floor, others wait in front of the incline-bench or squat racks. They do not waste time. Many college weightlifting clubs have a membership of a hundred or more, and under such circumstance, one cannot afford to fool around or indulge in lengthy conversation between lifts, because one may be skipped over easily and it is quite a long time before the next turn comes around. I hope the reader will not assume we have good gyms over here in Japan. Some of the schools do not have a weight room, and the lifters have to train outdoors summer and winter, rain or shine.

Another thing worthy of special mention is that there is no offseason in Japan so far as weightlifting is concerned. Under the present situation, a young, ambitious lifter is not to lay off completely for, say, a couple of months and then start all over again. He simply cannot afford to do so. Instead, he will train all the year round with continued enthusiasm, although he avoids falling into monotony and staleness. Generally speaking, he prefers taking “positive rest” to laying off completely. Needless, to say, the emphasis at a particular time of the year may be somewhat different from that at another. The intensity of training is controlled according to a year-long schedule. For example, the students train more or less shorter but with heavier weights during the weeks they have annual exams. Also, it so happens that national and collegiate competitions are scattered throughout the year and keep the lifters, particularly the students, busy all the time. Therefore, the students are always prepared for intensive training or competition even though they may take a couple of weeks rest after a big meet. They have to. We in Japan encourage young lifters to enter sufficient number of competitions every year for maximum development and improvement. Under normal conditions, the college lifters, for instance, enter an average of ten competitions in a year, with perhaps three important “peak” competitions. A typical annual schedule will be as follows:

February or March – Record tryout*

May or June – Intercollegiate Meet*

June or July – National Championships

August – World Championships tryout. National Industrial Championships (for working men, exclusive of students)

September – World Championships

October – National Athletic Meet

November – Collegiate Championships*

December – Collegiate Novice Meet*

(* Denotes events sponsored by the National Collegiate Federation.)

Besides all such competitions, a few schools have inter-school tournaments with others. Most of the students will also lift in local competitions, often to qualify for nationals or national athletic meet. Moreover, they must train even harder during the pre-Olympic and Olympic years for, like in other countries, they must not only lift well in most of the major competitions during these years (in order to remain on the list of favorites), but also qualify at the final tryout.

I feel I must point out one more thing in connection with college lifters. Most universities provide the athletes, particularly those in team sports, with special dorms where they can stay so long as they hold membership in the varsity athletic clubs. Lifters are no exception. Some of such dorms are exclusively for lifters and even have a weight room within the building. Moreover, the dorms in most cases provide food at low prices. To say the least, the dorms are a privilege and advantage because, besides many other things, they provide the lifters with an ideal opportunity to live weightlifting. According to Bob Hoffman, to live weightlifting is indispensable if you want to lift really well. Outside of the communist bloc, the Japanese college lifters are, it seems to me, the only group of lifters who want and can afford to live weightlifting. Especially the younger men benefit greatly from living with more experiences international lifters. To live with topflight lifters enables the younger ones to absorb training ideas, to learn about the psychological aspect of competition or about preparations for a big competition. It would be much harder, if not impossible to learn these things if they did not live under the same roof.

By now the reader may have come to the conclusion that we in Japan have access to every desirable thing. On the contrary, we do have shortcomings and disadvantages. For example, none of the universities has a paid, full-time coach. Traditionally, a graduate who in most cases is or was a lifter looks after the students as coach on a voluntary basis. And this of course means a large sacrifice on the part of the graduate who has a job to support his family. It is therefore quire natural that he cannot come to the weight-room frequently during the normal training hours, usually from two through six p.m. Even so, one must take advantage of a disadvantage. With the advice of coaches and fellow lifters, the college lifters learn the techniques that befit them best and the proper quantity of training faster than when they are under constant supervision of their coaches. In other words, they are independent lifters when they succeed in making national team and can take care of themselves to a large extent, if not perfectly. Another example is the lack of well equipped gyms such as those we can find all over the United States. As I said before, some schools do not even have a weight room and the lifters have to train in the open air. Others have old, bent bars and worn out platforms. Some have to share the floor with other sports clubs which are not necessarily quiet. This reminds me of a scene at the basement weight room of Meiji University where Tony Garcy and Isaac Berger had a workout during their stay in Tokyo for the 1963 little Olympics. When we arrived there, the gym was being shared by the lifters and Kendo-ka’s or fencers in martial fencing. Fencers raised such a tremendous chorus of kiai (shouts) as they practiced that we could not hear each other. Tony and Isaac were amazed and even Bob shook his head, but the Meiji lifters kept on training undisturbed because they had been accustomed to the environment. Men like Ichinoseki, Myake and Ouchi, three of our current or former world record holders, trained in the open air during their college days, and Meiji has produced many international lifters from its noisy basement weight room. Let me give the reader an idea of how hard the Japanese college lifters train despite such handicaps. At Hosei University’s Weightlifting Club – whose proud products include the Myake brothers, Ichinoseke, and Ouchi – the lifters train outdoors simply because there is no indoor weight room. There they tackle the barbells one after another until the onlooker gets sick of the flying mass of steel. I have seen them practice cleans one day. When one of them failed to clean a weight, others encouraged him to try again and again. After a few futile tries, the senior students had him perform ten deadlifts with the weight. They called, ten, but he ended with 25 reps of grueling deadlifts. I do not mean to say that I accept this method as ideal or scientific. On the contrary, I feel such a method may prove dangerous to some people. What I want to stress here is the burning desire and energy which the Japanese college lifters train.

At Meiji, Bob Hoffman was deeply impressed by the way the fencers and karate men trained down in the basement gym. In both instances, I noticed the coaches and the seniors handled the pupils strictly and in some cases even roughly. But, when they train, they feel this is the most effective way in martial arts for they would learn faster and deeper so to speak because of this serious atmosphere. After all they feel sports is no play, and if someone cannot stand such hardships, he might not be able to stand hard training of any sort, to say nothing of life’s hardships. Similar philosophy underlies the coaching and training methods of some varsity weightlifting clubs. This is another factor I feel I must point out when I give the reader an account of the training methods and approach to lifting of the Japanese lifters. Evan kiai is not mere desperate cries. It is an occasional outburst of the athlete’s controlled mental energy which prepares him for the task he is determined to achieve. More often than not a lifter can reach the stage where he can control his mind almost as an enlightened Zen priest. This is a strong support of Japanese sports, and it is especially characteristic  of weightlifting. Because of this serious approach to training, nobody can afford to fool around while training if he wants to be anybody. Nobody talks while training, but concentrates on his lifting. Often the lifters walk around between lifts so that they can keep moving. Walking not only keeps them warm but also helps deepen the concentration. Of course most of the lifters are ordinary young men even though they are dedicated lifters, and it is quite natural that they joke or fool around in other phases of life. But not while training.

Speaking of young lifters, I want to explain further about the regular training camps organized for them every year. In Japan there are two major vacations at the end of spring and winter terms, each lasting for about two months. During each vacation, every school or university weightlifting club organizes a training camp for its lifters. Such a training camp usually runs for anywhere from ten days to two weeks, during which the lifters literally live weightlifting. Sometimes it may be moved out of the campus for a suitable campsite. This is especially true of summer camp, for most cities are just terrible because of heat and humidity. Regardless of whether they train in the city or in the suburbs, the lifters usually return to the campus in great shape. Besides these vacation camps, the varsity clubs may organize a couple more before important competitions such as intercollegiate meet. Then they usually train after attending class but live together. The only disadvantage of this seemingly wonderful system is that the students have to pay camp expenses, while a part is borne by the varsity clubs. Often the club members work part-time in order to save up enough camp funds.

When the lifters are invited to training camp – normally two weeks long – sponsored by the Japanese Weightlifting Association in preparation for the Olympic Games or world championships, or just to give incentive to younger lifters, they do not have to pay because the expenses are borne by the association. This is another incentive to young lifters. They feel it is not only a pleasure but also an honor and a privilege to be selected among those who are invited to the camp. I believe the Japanese lifters benefit greatly from the various kinds of training camps that are thus made available to them frequently. Training camp provides the young lifters with excellent opportunities to watch top-flight lifters in action and to get firsthand experience on their training methods. In this sense, I want to congratulate the AAU Weightlifting Committee for having insight to launch the Olympic Weightlifting training camp program recently. Although it may take some time, I am sure this effort will bear fruit in plenty in not too distant future.

The last but not the lease important factor in the Japanese system is international experience. Whenever possible, we try to provide our young lifters with opportunities to get international experience by sending them to World Championships and other international competitions. Needless to say, we send our best lifters to world competitions, but we don’t forget to give incentive to younger, rising lifters either. Taking advantage of every opportunity available, we try to have two teams participate in two or more different international competitions. In such a case, one team comprises our best lifters and another is usually made up of young promising lifters. Sometimes we include a couple of young hopefuls in our national team along with top lifters. I can say without hesitation that the high standard of lifting in Japan today is an important direct outcome of our participation in international competitions during the past decade. As the reader will recall, Japan sent only one lifter to the Helsinki Olympics for the first time. Then a team of five lifters was sent to Melbourne in 1956. But it had taken four years before Japan next participated in world competition. However, those who participated in the 1956 Olympic Games made such improvement during these four years as to justify the value of international experience. It was realized that they had not only benefited from their experience at the Games but also given a favorable incentive to other ambitious lifters. Ever since 1960, therefore, we have been sending a 7-man team to world competitions every year, and this effort has paid off well. Without reliable heavier lifters, we can now place among top three or four nations in team standing at world competitions. And the Japanese hold five world records. The rise of the Japanese in  international standing, in the final analysis, is thus attributable at the very least to a great degree to the hard training of the Japanese, the training camp program, and the international competition program Japan has adopted.

Masashi Ouchi at 1964 Olympics