[28] Henry comes from a family in which almost all of the men are larger than average, especially his great uncle Chudd, who was 6 ft 7 in, weighed approximately 500 lb (230 kg), never had a pair of manufactured shoes, and was known as the strongest man in the Piney Woods of East Texas.

[28] As an 18-year-old high school senior, Henry was called "the world's strongest teenager" by the Los Angeles Times, and made it into the headlines in early 1990 for winning the National High School Powerlifting Championships and setting teenage lifting world records in the squat 832 lb (377 kg) and total 2,033 lb (922 kg).

[31] While powerlifting relies primarily on brute strength and power, which Henry obviously possessed, Olympic weightlifting is considered more sophisticated, involving more agility, timing, flexibility and technique.

[1][10] In Henry's first year in competitive weightlifting, he broke all three junior (20 and under) American records 12 times, and became the United States' top Superheavyweight, surpassing Mario Martinez.

[15] At the age of 19,[1] Henry had already managed to qualify for the weightlifting competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics, where he finished tenth in the Super- Heavyweight class.

[1][40] In the months prior to the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, Henry received more attention and publicity than any lifter in recent United States history.

[38] Mark's WWF contract was unique in many ways, allowing him at least three months off each year from wrestling, so he could train for the national and world championships in weightlifting or powerlifting.

[38] :When asked in September 2003, who the strongest man in the world was, Bill Kazmaier, considered by many to be the greatest strongman of all time, stated: "It would have to be Mark Henry.

On the November 17 episode of WWF Superstars of Wrestling, Henry defeated Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Crush, and Goldust in a tug of war contest.

[4] After this twist, Henry turned into a fan favorite, and was seen on television romancing WWF veteran wrestler Mae Young as part of the "Sexual Chocolate" character.

[47][75] On February 22, 2002, in Columbus, Ohio the competition, consisting of four events, designed to determine the lifter with the greatest overall body power, began.

[1] Henry surprised everybody when he won the first event, setting a world record in the process by lifting the Apollon's Axle three times overhead.

[78][4] In August 2003, Henry returned to WWE television on the Raw roster as a heel where he found some success as a member of "Thuggin' And Buggin' Enterprises", a group of African Americans led by Theodore Long who worked a race angle in which they felt they were victims of racism and were being held down by the "white man".

[90] On the March 3 episode of SmackDown!, Henry interfered in a World Heavyweight Championship match between Angle and The Undertaker, attacking the latter when he was seconds from possibly winning the title.

[94] During the rest of April and May, Henry gained a pinfall victory over the World Heavyweight Champion, Rey Mysterio in a non-title match.

[105] He attacked The Undertaker after a World Heavyweight Championship steel cage match with Batista, allowing Edge to take advantage of the situation and use his Money in the Bank contract.

[116] Before WrestleMania XXIV aired, Henry participated in a 24-man battle royal to determine the number one contender for the ECW Championship, but failed to win.

[141] They received a shot at the championship the next week, in a fatal four-way elimination tag team match, which also included The Usos and Santino Marella and Vladimir Kozlov.

[167] On the November 29 episode of SmackDown, Henry defeated Bryan in a steel cage match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.

After the match, Henry knocked Big Show out, resulting in Daniel Bryan cashing in his Money in the Bank contract to win his first World Heavyweight Championship.

[175][176] On the April 16 episode of Raw SuperShow, Punk defeated Henry in a no-disqualification, no count-out match to retain the WWE Championship.

[178] After a nine-month absence, Henry made his return on the February 4, 2013 episode of Raw, brutally attacking Daniel Bryan, Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara.

[200] The following night on Raw, Henry cut a promo to congratulate Cena on his win and asked for a rematch for SummerSlam, but was ultimately attacked by The Shield, turning face in the process for the first time since 2011.

[203][204] On the August 12 episode of Raw, Henry competed in a Battle Royal to determine the number one contender for the United States Championship, but was the last man eliminated by Rob Van Dam.

[209] He returned on February 10 episode of Raw, and answered Dean Ambrose's open challenge for the United States Championship, but was unable to win the title due to interference by the rest of The Shield.

[210] That same week on SmackDown, Henry formed a tag team with Big Show to defeat RybAxel (Ryback and Curtis Axel).

[214] On the October 27 episode of Raw, Henry attacked Big Show during their tag team match against Gold and Stardust, and turning heel in the process.

[222] At WrestleMania 32, Henry entered his third André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, where he made it to the final six competitors until being eliminated by Kane and Darren Young.

[224] On the August 1 episode of Raw, Henry claimed he still "had a lot left in him" when he spoke of reviving the Hall of Pain and his participation in the Olympics.

[230][231] In early 2019, Henry took on a backstage mentoring role helping talent work on their off-air attitude, including cleanliness and respect in the locker room.