As a Placer High junior Ray Hickman was one of the smallest guys on the Auburn campus, but bigger kids knew he wasn’t a guy they wanted to mess with.

More than 20 years later, Hickman’s still a tough guy despite his modest stature. He’s one of the best wrestlers in Placer history and as of earlier this month, he’s a three-time world champion in the bench press.

Competing in the 165-pound weight class at the World Bench Press and Dead Lift Championships in Reno, Hickman bench pressed 557.6 pounds. He not only won his third world title, he broke Mike Hall’s four-year-old world record for his division.

“I hadn’t been to the world championships in four years,” Hickman said. “I knew of the record set in 2005 and I decided I wanted to beat it, so I just started training consistently.”

Prestigious titles are nothing new for Hickman. Under renowned Placer wrestling coach Bill Flake, he won the section title in the 98-pound weight class in 1988. As a senior in ‘89, he took the 119-pound title.

He went on to become one of the top wrestlers in the country at Boise State University. He met his wife Tracy and gave up wrestling, but he did not leave the gym. After dabbling in weight lifting while at Placer, Hickman really caught the weight lifting bug in Boise.

Hickman eventually won world championships in the bench press in 2002 and 2004.

Wrestling is still a big part of his life. He coaches the high school team in Joseph, Ore., where his athletes get a distinct advantage in strength training.

“They definitely have an advantage in the weight room,” Hickman said. “It’s hard for them to believe what I lift unless they see it.”

Hickman built a gym on his property in Oregon, where he trains four days a week. He works as an electrician along with coaching. His son Brock is showing great promise on the wrestling mat at age 13.

Though Hickman didn’t win any award money for his world record lift, he said he does win modest sums at competitions throughout the year.

“It’s not a whole lot of money, but they usually pay for my trips,” Hickman said. “Everyone wants to see an 800-pound bench (in the heavyweight division). But pound for pound, it’s pretty tough to beat guys our size.”