Did Wilt Chamberlain really beat NFL legend Jim Brown in a foot race?

[Scott Pippen]

Legend has told of this but I was wondering any older posters know if this true? Also that he could bench press 550 - 600 lbs lifting weights with Arnold Schwarzenneger (sp?). Thanks. :applause:

[Scott Pippen]

Wilt is a freak. I also heard that he beat a horse in a race as well. :bowdown:
This may be exaggeration but based on his multi sport excellence, strength, size, jumping ability, I think he may be the most gifted athlete in any major sport history. Argable of course with Deion, young MJ, LeBron, Jim Brown, etc...

[sunsfan1357]

Legend has told of this but I was wondering any older posters know if this true? Also that he could bench press 550 - 600 lbs lifting weights with Arnold Schwarzenneger (sp?). Thanks. :applause:

Wilt was rumored to press 500 pounds on the set of Conan with Arnold, never heard the Jim Brown story though he did beat Al Attles in footraces who was believed to be the fastest guy on the Warriors.

*edit* I did a search for the Jim Brown thing and found this


Chamberlain loved gossip and enjoyed the tales that Huey brought back to his hilltop home. After a night with Jim Brown, the great football player, Huey beat him in a foot-race. Brown never invited Huey to another party. Chamberlain loved that story, which fed into his own competitiveness; he would cheat at board games.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C03E7DC133AF930A25753C1A9649C8B 63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all

Huey is Lynda Huey who was a sprinter for San Jose State back in the day.

[Meticode]

God white people make horrible athletes. I hate my slow-twitch muscles.

[Mr. Bryant]

I met and chatted with Wilt Chamberlain back in 1994 as he was riding his bicycle through Marina Del Rey, CA. He credited LEMONS to his strength, stamina and great health. He said that he drinks 2 gallons of fresh-squeezed lemonade everyday (picked from a lemon tree in his backyard).

Probably the best player to ever play in the NBA.

:oldlol: :oldlol: :oldlol: :applause:

[Odomize]

If Wilt ran today, he would've beat my Dodge Durango in the freeway.

[db23]

Wilt wasnt benching anywhere near 500 pounds, that myth needs to die a death right now.

[Odomize]

Wilt wasnt benching anywhere near 500 pounds, that myth needs to die a death right now.
I agree...he was benching 700 pounds

[Meticode]

Didn't Wilt use to unscrew nuts with his teeth?

[FindingTim]

my dad grew up in Hermosa Beach and said he used to see Wilt playing volleyball on the strand; said he was a beast (granted, he was 7 feet tall)

by the way, i am drinking a ton of lemonade from now on. :hammertime:

[Meticode]

I had a friend of my father's tell me he saw Chamberlain wrestle a great white shark to the beach shore near Miami. The shark weighed 901 pounds. So it was fairly small for a great white. If he played today in the NBA he'd make Shaq look like Shawn Bradley.

Here's a picture of him before he ran out to sea to capture the small beast.
http://www.internationalbasketball.com/fetsih-chamberlain-williechamberlain.jpeg

[FindingTim]

I had a friend of my father's tell me he saw Chamberlain wrestle a great white shark to the beach shore near Miami. The shark weighed 492 pounds.



that is total BS. It was a tiger shark.

[stephanieg]

Wilt Chamberlain once got into a knife fight. The knife lost.

[trig]

but can he beat chuck norris?

[-primetime-]

Legend has told of this but I was wondering any older posters know if this true? Also that he could bench press 550 - 600 lbs lifting weights with Arnold Schwarzenneger (sp?). Thanks. :applause:
No way to the Jim Brown race...I would be completely shocked if that was true...

Brown was rumored to have an amazing combo of size and speed like Bo Jackson...

supposedly he was very fast...


the bench press thing sounds hard to believe as well...since it is harder for tall people to lift than short people....

Shaq can only bench 450 lbs...

http://www.criticalbench.com/shaq-bench-press.htm

I serioulsy doubt that Wilt had more upper body strength than Shaq...



where are these rumore coming from???....his book where he nailed half the women in the country???

[Kblaze8855]

I buy it. Wilt was a track star who was near state records in the 400 around the same time Brown was coming up. Im sure a lot of track star high schoolers today could outrun elite nfl level running backs. I doubt many of them are way faster than the elite track stars in high school be in 1955 or 2009.

Say you take a guy currently the 3rd fastest sprinter in Kansas. Would you be blown away if he outran an NFL back?

I dont think he could outrun an olympic sprinter at the time. But an NFL player? Sure. Wilt was according to a few sources offered a contract to be a tight end for the Chiefs in the 60s. His coach from the time said they held a team race and it came down to Wilt vs Al Attles who was considered one of the fastest players in the league. The coach said Wilt blew him away.

Unless a gang of people are flat out lying about things he did for the hell of it(some might be but not this many people) it seems totally reasonable. Jim Brown probably wasnt the fastest player in the NFL. Just the best.

I buy Wilt outrunning him more than d buy him outrunning say.....Bullet Bob Hayes. The worlds fastest man of the time who just happened to be in the NFL as well. Wilt wouldnt be faster than anyone in football. But Jim? Maybe. Its not just absurd.

[barkleynash]

but can he beat chuck norris?

Wilt > Chuck Norris

When Wilt does pushups, he doesn't move up, the world moves down!

Wilt also railed every girl at the miss american padgeant in the same night, Respect!

[-primetime-]

I had no idea a 7 footer could be a track star...

I am just going to take a guess and say Brown ran a 5.3-5.5

I need to know where this story came from...

If it was from Wilt's mouth then it we can take it that seriously...

[Kblaze8855]

I had no idea a 7 footer could be a track star...

Bill russell was 6'10'' and was the #2 ranked high jumper in America in 1955. He was an olympic level athlete in 2 sports.

And Wilt in 1957 finished second in the high jump...in the entire nation. Won his conference. He was beat by one of the first men to high jump 7 feet. And this was back before they jumped with the modern backwards form. He just jogged up and basically jumped and scissor kicked his way over a bar the height of Kobe. not to mention he long jumped 22 feet back when the world record was like 23 or 24. And thats not some theory...its a recorded fact.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/images/nba/1999/chamberlain/wilt2.jpg

Wilt was just an absurd total athlete.

[-primetime-]

I am reading now that Wilt was more of a high jump star and shot put star at Kansas University...

that doesn't really require speed...

but then I saw a rumor that said he ran the 100 meter in 10.9 seconds...

they talk about his track stuff here...and the brown rumor was brought up....and then was made mocked right away because Wilt has so many rumors like this...

http://mb.trackandfieldnews.com/discussion/viewtopic.php?t=698&highlight=&sid=a63c5d4511d079fb9b685a38d1c61742


knowing now that he may have been third fastest at kansas (school, not state) I am wondering if this rumor is true now...

[Kblaze8855]

How many people who are high jump stars cant run?

I respect Jim Brown but I see no evidence he was the fastest person in the NFL. The 3-5 fastest people at any major school can probably run with NFL players. But being Jim Brown isnt just about being fast. He was hard to tackle...relentless. Evasive when he had to be.

Like I said Bob Hayes I dont buy Wilt beating. Jim? Very possible. We are talking about a legit world class athlete here. This isnt Jim Brown vs some random tall guy. Wilt was by any measure one of the great athletes of his(or any) time. I dont think Wilt could break a tackle or rush for 200 yards like Jim Brown.

Straight line over a set distance one time? Wouldnt shock me.

[-primetime-]

How many people who are high jump stars cant run?

I respect Jim Brown but I see no evidence he was the fastest person in the NFL. The 3-5 fastest people at any major school can probably run with NFL players. But being Jim Brown isnt just about being fast. He was hard to tackle...relentless. Evasive when he had to be.

Like I said Bob Hayes I dont buy Wilt beating. Jim? Very possible. We are talking about a legit world class athlete here. This isnt Jim Brown vs some random tall guy. Wilt was by any measure one of the great athletes of his(or any) time. I dont think Wilt could break a tackle or rush for 200 yards like Jim Brown.

Straight line over a set distance one time? Wouldnt shock me.
no brown was not the fastest...

he was just very fast...

he is considered by many to be the greatest athlete ever of any sport...

Jim Brown also was in track at Syracuse...but I can't find any numbers...

there are plenty of NFL RBs that were track stars in school as well...

[stephanieg]

Wilt Chamberlin once ate three 72 oz. steaks in one hour. He spent the first 45 minutes having sex with his waitress.

[Juges8932]

Wilt couldn't bench anywhere near 500 lbs IMHO.

Don't know about the speed thing, so I won't comment.

[biisak]

Wilt couldn't bench anywhere near 500 lbs IMHO.

Don't know about the speed thing, so I won't comment.


Why wouldn

[plowking]

[QUOTE=biisak]Why wouldn

[biisak]

You bench 250?

How tall are you and how much do you weigh?

Well this was six years ago.. I

[Juges8932]

[QUOTE=biisak]Why wouldn

[plowking]

I find that really hard to believe, especially at your weight.

[biisak]

Well, I am 19, turning 20 in 1.5 months, and I also work out and can do roughly 330? Last time I maxed I was 17 and got 315, so I know I didn't get weaker. And since somebody is going to ask, I'm 6' and 195 lbs. I don't really have any evidence other than he was 7' tall and being that tall with a long wingspan makes benching more harder. The longer your arms are, the harder it is. Also, apparently Shaq only benches 450, and IMHO, from what I have seen, Shaq is much stronger than Wilt, and having been a track star, I just don't see 500 lbs being realistic. Yeah, and Magnus was a strongman Champion, not just a competitor (If my memory is correct), so he was a "Freak" of nature, so to speak. Also, what relevance does Magnus, a strongman champion, being able to bench 360 lbs have anything to do with Wilt's physical abilities?

Well if you can bench 360 the first time you set your foot in a gym at age 16, why is it so hard to see someone benching 500 who was obviously a freak of nature in several ways?

And yes, I benched 250. Worked out a lot for about four or five years among some friends of mine and we pushed hard in the gym ~3 times a week all year round. Always did lift much with my pecs, although it wore down my shoulders and I pretty much had to re-do my whole work-out-routine after that.

[Juges8932]

Well if you can bench 360 the first time you set your foot in a gym at age 16, why is it so hard to see someone benching 500 who was obviously a freak of nature in several ways?

And yes, I benched 250. Worked out a lot for about four or five years among some friends of mine and we pushed hard in the gym ~3 times a week all year round. Always did lift much with my pecs, although it wore down my shoulders and I pretty much had to re-do my whole work-out-routine after that.

It's hard for me to see because looking at his performance and what he was able to do in comparison to Shaq, someone who benches 450, is much larger, doesn't show him to be that strong. Again, I'm not saying he definitely couldn't, just saying in my humble opinion, Wilt couldn't bench 500 lbs. If I saw him bench 500 lbs, I wouldn't be like OMFG OMFG, did you just see that?!?!?:wtf: :wtf: but I would be like wow, didn't expect that.

[JJ81]

Legend has told of this but I was wondering any older posters know if this true? Also that he could bench press 550 - 600 lbs lifting weights with Arnold Schwarzenneger (sp?). Thanks. :applause:

That sounds absolutely insane.

[Psileas]

Whether Wilt could or couldn't bench 500 lbs, just ask Arnold himself. There was an online chat of 60-62 year old Wilt with NBA fans and one of them claimed he had recently watched him bench 465 without a problem and asked Wilt how much he could bench then. I'm not ready to call both him and Arnold liars just because Wilt's feats are not featured in Youtube (the only footage from him at the gym is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDHDg5pPrOc). The "Shaq being much stronger" argument, apart from being exaggerated (he may be stronger, but definitely not much stronger), can't be used when only one feature (bench press in this case) is concerned. Ben Wallace is claimed to bench more than Shaq. Araujo was claimed to bench more than Shaq. How about them?

As for the Jim Brown reference, like blaze said, Wilt was a track star and for many years used to be the fastest player (not just big man) in the NBA. They even used to make small bets to the Warriors on who the fastest player was and Wilt easily beat Al Attles in the final. Attles was black and a guard, in case you wondered.

PS. To the ones who can't offer anything else but Chuck Norris jokes: At least try to be creative...

[guy]

Didn't Wilt also say he once won a fight against a mountain lion or something?

[Psileas]

Didn't Wilt also say he once won a fight against a mountain lion or something?

Cal Ramsey was the one who spread the story. Here's a reference:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE4D7153FF932A35750C0A9619482 60&n=Top%2FReference%2FTimes%20Topics%2FPeople%2FC%2F Chamberlain%2C%20Wilt

[-primetime-]

Whether Wilt could or couldn't bench 500 lbs, just ask Arnold himself. There was an online chat of 60-62 year old Wilt with NBA fans and one of them claimed he had recently watched him bench 465 without a problem and asked Wilt how much he could bench then. I'm not ready to call both him and Arnold liars just because Wilt's feats are not featured in Youtube (the only footage from him at the gym is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDHDg5pPrOc). The "Shaq being much stronger" argument, apart from being exaggerated (he may be stronger, but definitely not much stronger), can't be used when only one feature (bench press in this case) is concerned. Ben Wallace is claimed to bench more than Shaq. Araujo was claimed to bench more than Shaq. How about them?

As for the Jim Brown reference, like blaze said, Wilt was a track star and for many years used to be the fastest player (not just big man) in the NBA. They even used to make small bets to the Warriors on who the fastest player was and Wilt easily beat Al Attles in the final. Attles was black and a guard, in case you wondered.

PS. To the ones who can't offer anything else but Chuck Norris jokes: At least try to be creative...
this is why I have trouble taking this very seriously...

because Wilt is the Chuck Norris of the NBA...

I am trying to find any creadable link to these rumors...I can't...

For all I know these came straight out of his book and neither Arnold or Jim even know about this story...

[inclinerator]

r u stupid all pro strongmen are on roids. wilt doesnt bench 500, first of all his arms are long making it even harder to bench than a 6 feet guy

[Jasper]

http://www.internationalbasketball.com/fetsih-chamberlain-williechamberlain.jpeg

This is when Wilt played beach volley ball against Willy. :lol

[JJ81]

Wilt is a freak. I also heard that he beat a horse in a race as well. :bowdown:

True mark of a legend. Someone says something about him and nobody can really dismiss it because nobody knows yet it seems to amazing to be true!:ohwell:

[PierceISTruth]

they say that scientist wanted to make a toilet paper out of the hair of wilt chamberlain but failed because the toilet paper wouldn't take **** from no one.

[-primetime-]

Is there anyone here that has some decent input to back this rumor up???

I would really like to know if there is any truth behind this...

[-primetime-]

anyone???

[1987_Lakers]

I read Wilt's bio of couple of years back and it mentioned that Jim Brown actually beat Wilt Chamberlain in arm wrestling, but I don't remember reading anything about Wilt beating Jim Brown in foot racing, although I wouldn't be surprised if he did since Wilt was a track star in High School.

For those who haven't read Wilt's bio...go pick it up. It's a fantastic read.
http://www.triumphbooks.com/filebin/fixed_images/Fullsize/1572436727.jpg

[inclinerator]

arm wrestling is like more than 50 percent technique rather than all strength. i know plenty of weaker ppl beating ppl that can litterally lift 2-3 times more than them