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The sporting world lost a legend this last week when Dr. Fred Hatfield died. Fred was born October 21, 1942, in Williamsport, Massachusetts and died May 14, 2017, in Clearwater, Florida.
He was a nationally ranked gymnast and pole-vaulter and participated in juggling and acrobatic shows. He also ran cross country and could dunk a softball at 5’6” and 235 lbs. A friend and fellow lifter out of Baton Rouge, LA, Raymond Kobetz, said Fred was the most explosive powerlifter he ever saw. I saw Fred shatter a picnic table with his fist.
In powerlifting I’ve seen Fred squat at 181 pounds at the Senior Nationals or “Thee Nationals” in 1978 at the Hyatt Airport Hotel in Los Angeles and in Madison Wisconsin in 1980. He could squat 775 at 181, 826 at 198, 881 at 220, 945 at 242 and 1019 at 247 pounds. The day he squatted 1019 he squatted 1052 parallel and got it turned down 2 to 1.
I’ve promoted 283 meets from March 11, 1977 to the present and competed in 78 contests including a Junior National, four Senior Nationals, and one National Power Cup and four National Collegiates. I also promoted nineteen Hawaii World Record Breakers. The 1052 was the greatest squat I have ever seen anywhere by far! Fred was 5’6”, 247 pounds and 48 years of age. He would take a swig of Jack Daniels before every squat attempt and one after each attempt. He would wear a super-suit from Marathon or Inzar that would give 35 pounds along with underwear, T-shirt, and 78” wraps. There was no monolift, which meant he had to walk with the weight. I’ve seen and heard about many of the current 1100 pound squats from reliable old-school sources and the vast majority were 2-5 inches high from what the IPF required in Fred’s era – 1981-92. If Fred squatted today in the IPF, he could squat 1150, and with the monolift in an APF meet, he could squat 1300-1350!
I trained with him four times and he always emphasized speed. He went down painfully slow with the 1052, but came up like he was shot from a cannon!
Fred worked for Joe Weider for about 8 years before he branched out on his own and wrote numerous books and gave seminars all over the country.
Lest I forget about all the “raw” lifters in today’s game, with Fred in his prime, he could squat 900 raw at 230 and at age 45. He didn’t even start competing until he was 34. Just imagine what he could have done if he started at age 25.
When I would go to Los Angeles to audition for movie parts, I would on occasion take Fred with me. On one occasion Dino DeLaurentis was casting for “Conan the Destroyer.” The part required the actor to be able to ride a horse at a full gallop and then jump onto another horse. I was asked if I could do that. Fred immediately chipped in that I could do it sitting on the horse backwards. I laughed so hard I couldn’t speak. I was told by a stable owner in Hawaii that I was too big (348 pounds) for her horses. I wasn’t a very good horseman and that part wasn’t meant for me. However, when the producer of “Running Man” with Arnold Schwarzenegger called me to tell me I had won the part of Buzzsaw, I was staying at Fred’s house in Northridge, CA. Fred very generously introduced me to his agent, and through him I received a lot of television commercials in the Los Angeles area.
The Hawaii World Record Breakers ran from 1977 to 1995. Every big name in powerlifting you could think of was invited and attended over the nineteen-year run. But the crowd favorite of the Best of the Best was “Dr. Squat.” He was the “voice” of the Best of the Best.
Fred was also an accomplished olympic lifter. His best clean and jerk was 369 lbs at 181. His best snatch was 314 , also at 181.
Besides his sports career, Fred served in the U.S. Marine Corp from 1960-64 and was stationed in the Philippines. He had a BS. From University of Connecticut, a Master of Science from the University of Illinois, and a Ph.D. In Psychology, Sociology, and Motor Learning from Temple University in Philadelphia.
In his later years, Fred became a very strong faith-based Christian. So, Fred, I’m asking you to find favor with our Lord Jesus Christ and to ask Him to have mercy on a bunch of aging, beat-up powerlifters. We’re not too far behind you.
You left your mark, Fred, in a sport that didn’t find you until later in life; but when it did find you, it was one hell of a marriage. You infused charisma, fight, intellect, and the greatest skill in squatting of all time. It was my pleasure to know you as a fine person and a great athlete.
Rest in Peace, Dr. Squat
Gus Rethwisch
