Marcel Paterni (September 22, 1936 – July 13, 2019) was a French weightlifter of the 1950s and 1960s, who was dubbed "the French strongman of the Gaullian era" by European expert in heavy athletics Emmanuel Legeard.

[2] Of Corsican descent, Paterni was born in Casablanca, Morocco, on September 22, 1936.

He was introduced to weightlifting by his older brother and started training in Casablanca at 16 years of age.

In 1954, he was drafted into the French Army and stationed in Algeria during the Algerian War.

He eventually became head coach of the French Olympic weightlifting team in the mid-eighties.