Hugh Cassidy

Early life Cassidy was born in San Francisco, California. He is of Irish and Scottish descent.

Powerlifting career Cassidy's lifting career was quite short, starting in 1965 and ending in 1971. Formerly, he wanted to become an Olympic weightlifter but had problems mastering the necessary technique. Being naturally lean and standing 5-foot-10-inches tall, he knew he had to put on a lot of weight to become a successful powerlifter, so he pushed his bodyweight quickly from 175 to approximately 290 pounds. At his maximum body weight, he became a world-class super-heavyweight lifter in the early 1970s and got his nickname "Huge" for his bodyweight and appearance. Cassidy achieved his best performance at the inaugural AAU World Championships with his personal record total of 2160 lbs (800 lbs squat, 570 lbs bench press, 790 lbs deadlift). Within 6 months after his World Championship win, he suffered a knee injury which ended his lifting career.

Powerlifting meet results 3rd place in the AAU US National Powerlifting Championships 1970, +110 kg (+242 lb) Class (New Orleans, Louisiana) Squat: 729.95lb, Bench: 539.91lb, Deadlift: 740.09lb — Total: 2009.95lb

1st place in the AAU US National Powerlifting Championships 1971 110 kg (242 lb) Class (Dallas, Texas) Squat: 760lb, Bench: 520lb, Deadlift: 780lb — Total: 2060lb

1st place in the AAU World Powerlifting Championships 1971 +110 kg (+242 lb) Class (York, Pennsylvania) Squat: 800lb, Bench: 570lb, Deadlift: 790lb — Total: 2160lb

Personal powerlifting records

done in official competition

Squat: 800 lbs (363 kg) raw with ace-bandage knee wraps without a belt Bench Press: 570 lbs (258.6 kg) raw (with a 2 second pause) Deadlift: 800 lbs (363 kg) raw Powerlifting Total: 2160 lbs (800-570-790) / 979.8 kg (363-258.6-358.2) raw with ace-bandage wraps

Personal life Besides being a world class powerlifter, Cassidy was a teacher and a jazz musician as well as a nationally known metal sculptor. In the military he was an army medic. He is married to Barbara Kratzer Cassidy, a German horticulturist. They have four children, including the well-known singer Eva Cassidy, who died at age 33.