Bench press world records are the international records in

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 ...

across the years, regardless of weight class or governing organization, for bench pressing on the back without using a bridge technique. The advent of bench press shirts, which support the lifter's shoulders and provide upward force, have increased records significantly since 1985 (for example, when the shirted record was , the unshirted record was ). As of 2021, the world record bench press without any equipment ('raw') was set by

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Julius Maddox at surpassing his previous record of . The current world record (equipped, with shirt) is held by Jimmy Kolb: on Feb. 27, 2022, at the 2022 IPA Pennsylvania State Powerlifting Championships, he successfully locked out , beating the previous record by more than . The women's equipped bench press record belongs to Rae-Ann Coughenour-Miller from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, who lifted (2022, Metal Militia Powerlifting standards), and the raw bench press record belongs to April Mathis also from the

, who lifted (2016, Southern Powerlifting Federation standards).

Before 1973

Foundation of the IPF

With the foundation 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 f ...

(IPF), the federation began keeping "official" powerlifting world records as the international governing body for the sport of powerlifting. Previous records which hadn't been set within the newly established rules, were reset (for example, elbow bandages had been allowed prior to the formation of the IPF, but were later outlawed). These are the official bench press records after the IPF-reset until they surpass the previously set mark of 306 kg (675 lb) by Jim Williams.

Equipped (with bench shirt)

* ''note: Anthony Clark performed a controversial 800-pound bench press at the Arnold Classic in 1997, 2 years before Tim Isaac. This lift was, however, later turned down.''

Unequipped (without bench shirt)

For the bench press to be considered raw, no bench shirts are allowed; however, wrist wraps, singlets and belts are allowed. Elbow bandages had been allowed prior to the formation of the IPF, but were later outlawed.

Unofficial ''raw'' records

IPC powerlifting

International Paralympic Committee The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and func ...

regulates unequipped paralympic powerlifting competition without wrist wraps or belt.

References

{{Reflist, 30em Powerlifting

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 ...