The Olympic Athletic Club of Stephanois

Posted on Monday, October 29th, 2018 by John Wood
A look at the members of The Olympic Athletic Club of Stephanois (central France) and their awesome equipment, circa 1900. Check out that studded kettlebell!
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.

German Weightlifting Club ~ 1905

Posted on Sunday, December 3rd, 2017 by John Wood
A German weightlifting club circa 1905 with a selection of classic equipment. Of note are the large and rather impressive kettlebells. If you are familiar with your kettlebell history you know that the Germans were particularly fond of kettlebell juggling which is the reason for the squared off handles.
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.

The Dammarie-les-Lys Weightlifting Club, 1906

Posted on Thursday, November 2nd, 2017 by John Wood
A look at the Dammarie-les-Lys Weightlifting Club and their awesome training equipment, circa 1906. (Dammarie-les-Lys is a suburb of Paris) Note the chest expander, and ring weights and, of course, an excellent selection of globe barbells and dumbbells. The president of the club, M. Gustave Dechelpretre, sits front row center holding the sign.

The Vindobona Athletic Club

Posted on Saturday, October 8th, 2016 by John Wood

A look a the Vindobona Athletic club (Vienna) and some of their excellent training equipment, circa 1900. Their most famous member, the great strongman and wrestler Stanislaus Zbyszko, sits front and center.
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.

The 1891 Bowdoin College Tug Of War Team

Posted on Friday, March 18th, 2016 by John Wood

This hardy looking bunch is the 1891 Bowdoin College Tug of War Team: Top row, left to right: John Roberts Horne Jr. ’91 (Anchor); J. P. Cilley, Jr., ’91; G. C. Mahoney, ’91; and G. B. Sears, ’90. (The manager H.H. Hastings; (’90) was not pictured.) They were undefeated that season, beating Colby College (at Waterville) by four inches and Bates College (at Bowdoin) by sixteen inches.
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.

The La Seyne-sur-Mer Athletic Club

Posted on Wednesday, December 17th, 2014 by John Wood

A look at the few, but hardy, members of the La Seyne-sur-Mer athletic club, circa 1906. La Seyne-sur-Mer is a port town located in south eastern France, and like most all French strongmen, they have an excellent array of training equipment: globe dumbbells, barbells and ring weights.

1904 German Lifting Team

Posted on Thursday, September 18th, 2014 by John Wood

Here’s a rare look at a German weightlifting team circa 1904, and below, a closer look at their outstanding equipment. As was standard for the time period, the kettlebells had large, open handles as they were frequently used for juggling.

All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.

The 1932 Olympic Weightlifting Lightweight Class

Posted on Tuesday, June 10th, 2014 by John Wood

A look at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic games weightlifting Lightweight Class. From right to left (also in order of final standings): Raymond Suvigny of France (287.5 kg. total, also an Olympic record), Hans Wolpert of Germany (282.5 kg. total), Tony Terlazzo of the United States (280 kg. total), Helmut Schafer of Germany (267.5 kg total), Attilia Bescape of Italy (262.5 kg. total) and Richard Bachtell of the United States (252.5 kg. total).

The 1936 U.S. Olympic Weightlifting Team

Posted on Thursday, May 8th, 2014 by John Wood

The 1936 US Olympic Weightlifting Team

A look at the U.S. weightlifting team, taken in the Olympic village in Berlin, Germany during the 1936 Olympics. From left to right: Mark Berry, Dave Mayor, Bill Good, John Grimek, Stan Kratkowski, Joe Miller, John Terpak, Walter Good, Bob Mitchell, Tony Terlazzo, John Terry and Dietrich Wortmann. Terlazzo won the Featherweight class with a 312.5 kg total to become America’s first ever weightlifting gold medal winner.

The Treubund Sport-Club, 1903

Posted on Monday, March 24th, 2014 by John Wood

The Treubund Sport-Club, 1903

A look at the members of the Treubund (Lüneburg, Germany) Sport-club, circa 1903, and their fantastic equipment.
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Author: John Wood. All contents, including images and text, copyright © 2005-2021 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc. Not to be reproduced without permission. All rights reserved. We will most likely grant permission but please contact us if you would like to repost. IMPORTANT: Equipment and books, courses etc. pictured in blog posts are generally not available for sale unless specifically noted.