Weightlifting began in its ancient roots over 2000 years ago tracing back to ancient Chinese and Greek civilizations. There is evidence that Chinese military recruits had to weight lift as far back as 300BC to pass physical tests.

When was lifting weights invented?

Weightlifting was first introduced in the Olympics in the 1896 Athens Olympic games as a part of track and field, and was officially recognized as its own event in 1914. The 1960s saw the gradual introduction of exercise machines into the still-rare strength training gyms of the time.

Who invented free weights?

The concept of the dumbbell was first introduced nearly 2,000 years ago. The ancient Greeks invented a piece of equipment called the haltere, which was a crescent-shaped stone with a handle. This forerunner of the dumbbell was used as a lifting weight as well as a weight in long jump events.