In the gritty, burnt out, hardscrabble town of Scranton, PA life was simple, but tough. A former coal mining town, about 2 hours due west of the Big Apple, Scranton, named for industrialist brothers George and Selden Scranton, was the anthracite coal capital in the 1930s and the third largest city in Pennsylvania with 140,000 hard working people. But as alternative sources of energy such as oil and natural gas were tapped in the 1950s, the coal industry suffered and the city, along with its sister city Wilkes-Barre, lost about half of its population through natural attrition. In 1992, the State of Pennsylvania declared Scranton a distressed city, a designation it still holds. Still life went on without too much complaint for a mostly immigrant and definitely blue collar population. There was also a small, but growing Black community who interacted reasonably well with their immigrant counterparts despite being at the end of the old Jim Crow era of racial segregation . It was in this environment that one of Powerlifting’s true legends was born and raised- the great Jim Williams- the Scranton Superman. This is his story, one of triumph and pain, of scintillating World Records and many years of humbling incarceration, of unreal training methodologies and finally of redemption and inner peace.

In the gritty, burnt out, hardscrabble town of Scranton, PA life was simple, but tough. A former coal mining town, about 2 hours due west of the Big Apple, Scranton, named for industrialist brothers George and Selden Scranton, was the anthracite coal capital in the 1930s and the third largest city in Pennsylvania with 140,000 hard working people. But as alternative sources of energy such as oil and natural gas were tapped in the 1950s, the coal industry suffered and the city, along with its sister city Wilkes-Barre, lost about half of its population through natural attrition. In 1992, the State of Pennsylvania declared Scranton a distressed city, a designation it still holds. Still life went on without too much complaint for a mostly immigrant and definitely blue collar population. There was also a small, but growing Black community who interacted reasonably well with their immigrant counterparts despite being at the end of the old Jim Crow era of racial segregation . It was in this environment that one of Powerlifting’s true legends was born and raised- the great Jim Williams- the Scranton Superman. This is his story, one of triumph and pain, of scintillating World Records and many years of humbling incarceration, of unreal training methodologies and finally of redemption and inner peace.

In the gritty, burnt out, hardscrabble town of Scranton, PA life was simple, but tough. A former coal mining town, about 2 hours due west of the Big Apple, Scranton, named for industrialist brothers George and Selden Scranton, was the anthracite coal capital in the 1930s and the third largest city in Pennsylvania with 140,000 hard working people. But as alternative sources of energy such as oil and natural gas were tapped in the 1950s, the coal industry suffered and the city, along with its sister city Wilkes-Barre, lost about half of its population through natural attrition. In 1992, the State of Pennsylvania declared Scranton a distressed city, a designation it still holds. Still life went on without too much complaint for a mostly immigrant and definitely blue collar population. There was also a small, but growing Black community who interacted reasonably well with their immigrant counterparts despite being at the end of the old Jim Crow era of racial segregation . It was in this environment that one of Powerlifting’s true legends was born and raised- the great Jim Williams- the Scranton Superman. This is his story, one of triumph and pain, of scintillating World Records and many years of humbling incarceration, of unreal training methodologies and finally of redemption and inner peace.

Press Release

WORCESTER, Mass. (April 27, 2010) – The first 5-time World’s Strongest Man, Polish icon Mariusz “Dominator” Pudzianowski, makes his United States debut May 21 against 2-time UFC heavyweight champion Tim “Maine-iac” Sylvia (25-6-0) in the super heavyweight main event, headlining the first major mixed-martial-arts show in Massachusetts history, “God of Martial Arts” pay-per-view event, at the DCU Center in Worcester.

“God of Martial Arts” is being presented by Moosin, the South Korea-based promotional company, which has promoted MMA shows in South Korea and the United States. Moosin, in conjunction with the International Taekwon-Do Federation, plans expansion into to China, Poland and Australia.

The 6-1,275-pound Pudzianowski (1-0), a national hero in Poland, won his cage debut last December, forcing Marcin Najman to tap-out to punches and kicks in only 43 seconds. In addition to his feats of strength as the World’s Strongest Man, Marius practices karate and finished second in Poland’s version of “Dancing With The Stars.”

During his sensational career, Ellsworth, Maine-native Sylvia (6-8, 280 lbs.) has defeated many of the top MMA heavyweights and super heavyweights – Andrei Arlovski (2) Brandon Vera, Jeff Monson, Wes Sims, Ricco Rodriguez, Mike Whitehead (2), Ben Rothwell and Jason Lambert.

“The owner of Moosin, Mr. Oh, is an affluent Korean businessman who owns a global Yaekwon-Do company in South Korea,” Moosin’s Corey Fischer explained. “This (Moosin) isn’t about money; it’s about prestige. He wants to leave his legacy as the man who brought MMA to the forefront of the world, bringing it back to being a traditional sport. We’re coming to Massachusetts to put on the first major, sanctioned MMA show there because of its reputation for having great fight fans. ‘Butterbean’ (Eric Esch), who works with our promotional company, has fought in Worcester a few times. He loves it there and has developed a lot of good contacts in that market, too. Sylvia’s experience against Pudzianowski’s brute strength makes for a classic contrast of fighting styles. We’re going to feature some other big names, mix in some of the best talent in New England, and produce an awesome pay-per-view show.”

In the co-main event, Korean heavyweight Mu Bae “The Heavy Tank of Busan” Choi (9-4-0) battles veteran Travis “Diesel” Wiuff (59-14-0). Brazilian middleweight Rafael “Sapo” Natal (11-2-0) takes on Travis “The Serial Killer” Lutter (10-5-0), while Bahamian lightweight Yves “The Texas Gunslinger” Edwards (37-15-1) faces New England’s rising-star Mike Campbell (7-2-0).

A special female attraction has been added featuring two of the premier women MMA fighters in the U.S., Tara LaRosa (18-1-0) and Roxy Modafferi (13-4-0), at a 130-pound catch-weight.

“God of Martial Arts” is being distributed by Integrated Sports Media at 9:00PM ET/6:00PM PT in North America on cable and satellite Pay-Per-View via iN Demand, DIRECTV, TVN and DISH Network, as well as Viewer’s Choice, Bell TV and Shaw PPV in Canada, for a suggested retail price of only $29.95 (also available in HD).

The show has worldwide appeal but also features several local favorites on the undercard: Korean light heavyweight Chang Seob Lee (2-4-0) vs. Lukasz “Juras” Jurkowski (5-6-0), Clinton’s Matt Lee (11-8-1) vs. Bridgewater’s Brett Oteri (5-0-0) in a match-up of Massachusetts lightweights, unbeaten Worcester (Mass.) welterweight Ralph Johnson vs. NAAFS champion Forrest “The Meat Clever” Petz (23-7-0 undefeated Rockland (Mass.) heavyweight Paul Barry(3-0-0) vs. Stipe Miocic (1-0-0),Stoughton (Mass.) middleweight Fred “French Foot Fighter” Belleton (6-2-0) vs. Anthony “The Recipe” Lapsley(14-5-0).

Also, fan favorite Eric “Butterbean” Esch (98-18-5, all-fighting) squares-off against former Boston Bruins enforcer and popular WAAF sports personality, Lyndon “LB” Byers, in a charity fundraiser. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

Tickets, priced at $35.75, $55.75, $75.75, $150.75 and $250.75, are on sale at the DCU Center Box Office (50 Foster St., Worcester, MA), all Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com, or by calling 1.800.745.3000.

Doors open at 7:30 PM/ET, first bout 8:00 PM/ET, first PPV bout 9 PM/ET (6 PM/PT).

Moosin: A global event promoter based out of Seoul, South Korea, in conjunction with the International Taekwon-Do Federation, Moosin is known for bringing fans the finest in mixed martial arts competition. Moosin is revolutionizing the MMA industry by merging an international roster of talented fighters with
recognizable stars from the world or music, sports and popular culture. Moosin pits warrior against warrior, featuring a hybrid of MMA and hard-hitting Moosin-style kickboxing, in hand-to-hand battles of skill, honor and art.

DCU Center: A multi-purpose arena and convention center uniquely designed to accommodate the needs of any size group from 15 to 15,000 DCU Center is owned by the City of Worcester and managed by SMG, the world’s leading private management and developing firm for public assembly facilities. Headquartered on Philadelphia, SMG provides management services to over 200 public assembly facilities internationally and also offers food and beverage operations through SAVOR…Catering by SMG. For more information, please visit www.dcucenter.com.

Integrated Sports Media:North America’s leading distributor of International Pay-Per-View and Closed Circuit sports events has presented World Championship and world-class boxing matches featuring Ricky Hatton, Christian Mijares, Evander Holyfield, Roy Jones, Jr., Ivan Calderon, Rocky Martinez, Nicolai Valuev, Amir Kahn, Marco Antonio Barrera, Arthur Abraham, David Haye, John Ruiz, Wilfredo Vazquez, Jr., and Ruslan Chagaev. In addition, Integrated Sports Media distributed numerous International soccer matches showcasing teams like Club America of Mexico and the National Teams of Argentina, Honduras, El Salvador and the USA, as well as World Championship and world-class mixed martial arts shows featuring Fedor Emelianenko, Tim Sylvia, Bobby Lashley, Bob Sapp, Jeff Monson, and Roy Nelson. For more information on upcoming Integrated Sports events visit www.integratedsportsnet.com.

52-year-old Canadian Ron Strong (275) set a new M2 IPF World Record on April 10 at the CPU Canadian National Powerlifting Championships in Quebec City, Quebec. Strong's 706 pounds (320.5kg) deadlift overtook Ukrainian Viktor Naleikin's mark of 705 pounds (320kg).

Curd Hos has uploaded video of Mat Court (shw) benching 628 pounds on Sunday to win best bencher at the CPU Powerlifting and Bench Press Nationals in Quebec City, Quebec. Court went on to miss two attempts with a CPU National Record of 706 pounds.

Below is video of Alex Mardell (shw) posting the biggest total and Wilks in CPU history on Saturday at the federation's National Championships in Quebec City, Quebec.

The 28-year-old Mardell, who weighed in at 292 pounds, totaled 2,210 pounds (1,002.5kg), good for a 564.84 Wilks. He hit lifts of 826, 661 and 722 pounds and missed a third attempt bench press of 683 pounds.

In news that comes as no surprise to FiveOuncesofPain.com readers, the UFC has confirmed that  Chuck Liddell  will face off with Rich Franklin as the main event of UFC:115 .   The bout which wasreported by FiveOuncesofPain.com  on March 13,  has been the subject of much speculation by some, and flat denials by others.

I guess the only question left to be answered is “What happened to Tito?”

UFC 115 will take place in the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at General Motors Place on Saturday, June 12.

The confirmed fight card thus far includes.

MAIN CARD

• Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin
• Patrick Barry vs. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic
• Paulo Thiago vs. Martin Kampmann
• Carlos Condit vs. Rory MacDonald
• Evan Dunham vs. Tyson Griffin

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Mac Danzig vs. Matt Wiman
• Ben Rothwell vs. Gilbert Yvel
• Peter Sobotta vs. James Wilks
• Ricardo Funch vs. Claude Patrick
• Jesse Lennox vs. Mike Pyle

(updated 4/12)

Pre-meet favorites Heather Ayles and Alex Mardell finished atop the best open lifter standings at the CPU Powerlifting and Bench Press National Championships in Quebec City, Quebec.

Justin Miller held the crown for the biggest Wilks total in CPU history for a mere two days. Lifting yesterday at the National Championships in Quebec City, Quebec, 28-year-old Alex Mardell (shw) took back the crown that Miller had just taken from him.