Jean-Pierre Brulois (born 18 April 1957) is a former world champion

powerlifter Powerlifting is a 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 single-lift effor ...

strongman In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or similar circus performers who performed feats of strength. More recently, strength athletics, also known as strongman competitions, have grown in popularity. These ...

and

Olympic Weightlifter Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lift ...

from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Strength sports

Jean-Pierre is best known for winning the 1990 IPF World Powerlifting Champion title in

The Hague, Netherlands The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

. A former Junior record holder in Olympic weightlifting, he also competed in four World Strongest Man contests: 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1992, finishing 8th in

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, 5th in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, and 7th in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

. Overall, Jean-Pierre Brulois is arguably the strongest Frenchman whose feats have ever been officially verified (along with Louis Uni and Charles Rigoulot).

Personal life

In a 2005 article, Jean-Pierre Brulois explained to French strength sports specialist Emmanuel Legeard that, as a young boy, he was haunted by a recurring nightmare in which he was being crushed by a truck; weight training had helped him overcome this complex. Jean-Pierre started

Olympic lifting Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lift ...

at age 14. As a cadet (16 year old), and then again as a junior weightlifter (17 year old), he broke the French records in both the snatch and the

clean and jerk The clean and jerk is a composite of two weightlifting movements, most often performed with a barbell: the clean and the jerk. During the ''clean'', the lifter moves the barbell from the floor to a racked position across the deltoids, without res ...

, but was then called to fulfill the military service required at the time of all 18-year-old French males. On his return from the military, he was contacted by

Serge Nubret Serge Nubret (6 October 193819 April 2011) was a French professional bodybuilder, actor and self published author. He won numerous bodybuilding competitions, including 1976 NABBA Mr. Universe (1976). Nubret was nicknamed "The Black Panther." Earl ...

who persuaded him to leave Olympic Weightlifting for

Powerlifting Powerlifting is a 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 single-lift effor ...

. In the mid-1980s, Jean-Pierre met with Marc Vouillot, a renowned Powerlifting coach, who instantly understood his athletic potential and started training him. In 1990, he was crowned super heavyweight World champion 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 fe ...

. He retired soon after for professional, as well as familial reasons. In 1990,

Harry Kümel Harry Kümel (born 27 January 1940) is a Belgian film director. His 1971 vampire feature ''Daughters of Darkness'' (''Les lèvres rouges''; Fr, "The Red Lips"), starring Delphine Seyrig became a cult hit in Europe and the United States. He als ...

proposed him for the role of Hercules in

Michel Boisrond Michel Jacques Boisrond (9 October 1921, Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais – 10 November 2002, La Celle-Saint-Cloud) was a French film director and screenwriter. His work spanned five decades, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Career A former apprentice ...

's "Hercule aux pieds d'Omphale" ("Hercules at the Feet of Omphale").

Powerlifting Records

* Squat - 402,5 kg "raw" (IPF World Championships of 1990, cat. +125 kg) *

Bench Press The bench press, or chest press, is a weight training exercise in which the trainee presses a weight upwards while lying on a weight training bench. Although the bench press is a full-body exercise, the muscles primarily used are the pectorali ...

- 250 kg "raw" (Coupe des Flandres, 1991, cat. +125) *

Deadlift The deadlift is a weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting exercises, ...

- 340 kg "raw" (National championships, Federation Française de Force, cat. 125 kg) *Powerlifting Total - 972,5 kg

Notable Records in Olympic Weightlifting

* Snatch - 120 kg (French national Cadet record at age 16) *

Clean and Jerk The clean and jerk is a composite of two weightlifting movements, most often performed with a barbell: the clean and the jerk. During the ''clean'', the lifter moves the barbell from the floor to a racked position across the deltoids, without res ...

- 150 kg (French national Cadet record at age 16)

Personal Records

*Snatch - 150 kg *Clean and Jerk - 180 kg

World's Strongest Man results

* 1985 World's Strongest Man - 8th * 1986 World's Strongest Man - 5th *

1988 World's Strongest Man The 1988 World's Strongest Man was the 11th edition (because there was no contest in 1987) of World's Strongest Man and was won by Jón Páll Sigmarsson from Iceland. It was his third title. 1980, 1981 and 1982 winner Bill Kazmaier from the United ...

- 7th

Filmography

* '' Hercule aux pieds d'Omphale'' as

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

(1990) * ''

La Totale! ''La Totale! (The Total!)'' is a 1991 French spy comedy film directed by Claude Zidi. The film was the basis for director James Cameron's 1994 action comedy ''True Lies''. Plot François Voisin is a telecommunications employee with an ostensibly ...

'' as a villain (1991)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brulois, Jean-Pierre 1957 births Living people French male weightlifters French strength athletes