Bob Siebold was an exceptionally strong bench presser during the 1990s.
He competed primarily in the early to mid 1990s and was extraordinarily talented in the bench press. Unfortunately, he did not regularly compete at the very biggest bench press events of the era, which meant he never received the recognition his strength truly deserved.
He did, however, compete in two major bench press competitions. One of them was Baddest Bench in Texas, a predecessor to Greatest Bench Press in America. Organized by John Inzer, this competition brought together some of the best bench pressers in the world, or more accurately, the best in the United States at the time. Among the competitors were Chris Confessore, Gil Thompson, Ken Lain, who was a true giant, Anthony Clark, and others.
Bob also competed at the large, televised event Greatest Bench Press in America, for which a significant amount of footage still exists. Unfortunately, he bombed out at that competition. It was exactly the type of event that could have given him a major breakthrough and wider recognition.
There was never any doubt about his strength. The issue was that he never fully managed to express it on the competition platform. His best competition bench press was 260 kg. He competed in the 90 kg or 100 kg weight class, and the 260 kg lift was performed in the 90 kg class using a single-ply bench shirt.
Bob competed raw, single-ply, and multi-ply. However, bench press shirts during that era were far less advanced and provided much less carryover than modern equipment. This was clearly demonstrated by Bob Siebold himself.
At one competition where he was aiming for 600 lb, a weight he attempted many times but never successfully completed, he opened with 250 kg. On his first attempt, his bench shirt tore, resulting in a failed lift due to bar descent. He was allowed to repeat the attempt, this time without a shirt. He did not even wear a T-shirt.
This moment exists on video. Bob walks out completely shirtless and raw benches 250 kg after just missing a lift due to a torn shirt. This demonstrates tremendous strength, not only physically but mentally, as well as the ability to recover and perform after such a setback.
Despite the torn shirt, he still attempted 600 lb at that same competition, but failed once again. His best competition bench press therefore remained 260 kg single-ply. In multi-ply, he attempted 268 kg at Greatest Bench Press in America, but failed due to technicalities.
One of his most impressive performances was a 250 kg raw bench press, approximately 551 lb, at a bodyweight of only 88 kg, about 194 lb. In training, he also pressed 600 lb touch-and-go, wearing only a tank top, which is also documented on video.
All of this clearly shows that Bob Siebold was an outstanding bench presser, incredibly strong, and powerful in all upper body movements. He also handled extremely heavy weights in other upper body exercises closely related to the bench press.
Bob Siebold’s Best Competition Lifts
Classic (Raw)
Class –90 kg
Bench Press: 250 kg / 551 lbs
Class –100 kg
Bench Press: 250 kg / 551 lbs
Single-ply
Class –90 kg
Bench Press: 260 kg / 573 lbs
Class –100 kg
Bench Press: 250 kg / 551 lbs
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