Sixty-four years separated from his graduation, Lamb is still kicking; in fact, he stands tall — as three-time defending champion and a world-record holder — among powerlifters in his age class.
Lamb picked up the sport five years ago and has since taken part in four competitions, setting world records in every one but the first. In July 2008, Lamb raised his deadlift record from 315 to 325 pounds. He said he will lift 335 pounds in 2009.
Does he aim to break his own world record?
“That’s the purpose of the exercise,” he said. “I don’t get old physically … people think I’m 60 or 65.”
Lamb has not always been a powerlifting dynamo, but he has strived to stay in shape for years.
“For 30 years, I ran six miles per day,” Lamb said. “From when I was 40 to 70 … then I developed a knee [problem]. The doctor said I had three choices: Quit running, keep on running and get a new knee or … keep running after that and get another new knee.”
Lamb quit running, but “every morning, seven days per week, I speed-walked two-and-a-half miles in 39 minutes,” he said.
The walking did not completely quench his desires, though. Then, five years ago, he met Moses Timbal, a 61-year-old weightlifter who holds six world records, and his life changed.
That moment still clearly sticks out in Lamb’s mind.
“I met [Timbal] at a party, and I complained that my body was leaving me,” Lamb said. “In other words, I was getting weak and old. … He taught me everything I know.”
Now, Timbal is Lamb’s coach, helping the former Tiger shoot for a new record every year.
Lamb’s path to lifting has not been typical, and it is not a story typical of many Princetonians. In college, Lamb was a member of Quadrangle Club, but he “didn’t do anything” else extracurricular, he said.
After Princeton, Lamb went into the world of sales.
“I’ve always been my own boss, I’ve been an entrepreneur,” he said. “A sales force is an expensive thing. I provided sales forces in various fields … for manufacturers who were too small to use their own. I was a manufacturer’s agent … That’s where the money is. Working on commission.”
At 48, Lamb retired and moved to Australia. He was tired of life in the United States, but he didn’t stay abroad for long.
“My mistake was that I was too young to retire,” he said. “I was driving myself crazy, and my wife divorced me because she couldn’t stand me around the house all the time.”
Lamb moved back to the United States, bouncing around North Carolina, Washington and New York before moving to his current setting, Hana, on the Hawaiian island of Maui, where he has lived for the last 10 years.
“There’s no comparison. This is paradise,” he said.
Until recently, Lamb used his surroundings for exercise in addition to his morning walks and lifts.
“I did all the work on my 10-acre place. It was a tropical fruit business, and I just sold it,” he said.
Despite the tropical surroundings and inevitable distractions of his home state, Lamb said that he will keep going for the lifting record books.
“I’m lifting against myself,” he said. “I’m already the record holder. … Really, you compete with everyone in the world who is a weightlifter … but when you get old in the physical world, you don’t see many people following you. You know why? They’re all dead.”
More seriously, Lamb confidently maintained that he will retain his throne on top of the senior weightlifting world for quite a long time.
“There are others,” he said. “I just happen to [lift] better than they do.”
Read More
Women’s ice hockey names Courtney Kessel as new head coach
Lily PampolinaFollowing the resignation of Cara Gardner Morey, Princeton appointed Courtney Kessel as head coach.
Following the resignation of Cara Gardner Morey, Princeton appointed Courtney Kessel as head coach.
Former women’s basketball forward Parker Hill ’25 signs professional contract in Switzerland
Doug SchwartzAfter a successful senior season, women's basketball forward Parker Hill signed a contact to play professional basketball in Europe, following in the steps of her past teammates.
After a successful senior season, women's basketball forward Parker Hill signed a contact to play professional basketball in Europe, following in the steps of her past teammates.
No. 7 women’s lacrosse season ends in NCAA quarterfinals against No. 1 UNC
Hayk YengibaryanWith the loss, the career of senior attacker Mackenzie Blake comes to an end. Blake finished her career with a program-best 231 career goals and three first-team All-Ivy selections.
With the loss, the career of senior attacker Mackenzie Blake comes to an end. Blake finished her career with a program-best 231 career goals and three first-team All-Ivy selections.