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Strongman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Strongman is a competitive strength sport that tests athletes' physical strength and endurance through a variety of heavy lifts and events. Strongman competitions are known for their intensity, pushing athletes to their physical limits.[1] In modern strongman, athletes compete to score points based on their relative position in an event.[2] An athlete who engages in the sport of strongman is also called a 'strongman'.[3]

Etymology

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Many sources state that strongman is a man who performs remarkable feats possessing enormous amounts of strength.[4][5] In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength during circus performances.[6]

History

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BERJAYA
A 19th century Strongman doing a bent press using a circus dumbbell.

Modern strongman generally credits its origins to circus strongmen who became popular in the 19th and 20th centuries. In the first half of the 20th century, strongmen performed various feats of strength such as the bent press (not to be confused with the bench press, which did not exist at the time), supporting large amounts of weight held overhead at arm's length, steel bending, chain breaking, etc. They needed to have large amounts of wrist, hand, and tendon strength for these feats, as well as prodigious oblique strength.[7] Athletes including Louis Cyr, Apollon, Donald Dinnie, and Arthur Saxon are credited as major innovators in the sport. Many events today, including the Cyr dumbbell, Apollon's axle clean-and-press, Dinnie stones, and Saxon bar deadlift bear their names.

In the late 20th century, the term strongman evolved to describe one who competes in strength athletics – a more modern eclectic strength competition in which competitors display their raw functional strength through exercises such as deadlifts, squats, overhead log lifts, lifting stones, toting refrigerators, pulling heavy vehicles and tossing or loading weights. With the advent of the World's Strongest Man competition, strongman began to be formalized as a competitive sport rather than a non-competitive spectacle. Since the advent of the modern sport, competitions including Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man, Strongman Champions League, World's Ultimate Strongman, World's Strongest Viking, World Muscle Power Classic, Fortissimus, Pure Strength, Rogue Invitational, Shaw Classic, Giants Live, IFSA World Championships, Strongman Super Series, World Strongman Challenge and Siberian Power Show have adopted a standardized format based on the original World's Strongest Man.[3]

More than 30 countries also hold national-level strongman competitions.[8] Local competitions featuring amateur athletes are also common.

Modern format

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In its modern format, a strongman competition will typically consist of several events (ranging from as few as five to as many as eight at the international level) testing different aspects of strength. These may include static lifts such as a deadlift, overhead press, or squat or a dynamic event involving moving with weight. Athletes may, for example, pick up a heavy apparatus and carry it for a certain distance or drag a vehicle attached by a harness.

Strongman competitions score competitors by comparing their relative place in an event and awarding more points to competitors with better finishes. Typically, first place in an event will receive a number of points equal to the number of competitors. For example, if an athlete finishes first in the deadlift in a competition with 10 competitors, they will receive 10 points, with second receiving nine, and so on, until last place receives only one point.

Most competitions award zero points if an athlete could not complete a lift or start the event--if, for example, an athlete could not pick up a stone in a stone-carrying event, they would be awarded zero points. Competitions will also normally split points based on ties, adding up the combined points for their places and averaging them out. For example, if two athletes finish tied for first in a 10-athlete competition, the scores for first and second (10 and 9 points) will be added up and divided by two, resulting in each athlete being awarded 9.5 points.

Training

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Training for strongman involves building overall strength in the gym and training with competition implements to gain familiarity. In the gym, it is necessary to train the entire body for strength, especially with variants of the squat, deadlift, and overhead press. Explosive power is also important, which is developed by weightlifting style lifts and cardiovascular conditioning. Additionally, grip strength must be developed and it is also imperative to improve mental toughness and pain tolerance.[9]

Although you can do general strength training, at a typical gym, training with a strongman regimen requires equipment not typically found in a gym. Some equipment used in a strongman competition would have to be found custom-made or at a strongman gym. Some of these equipment includes natural stones, tree trunk logs, farmers walk frames, yokes, kegs and various sorts of vehicles.

Another part of a strongman's training is its intense diet regime. The biggest strongman competitors would need to ingest around 8,000 - 10,000 calories a day.

Events

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BERJAYA
Brian Shaw performing the Rogue Elephant bar raw deadlift at the 2017 Arnold Strongman Classic

Though competitive strongman events are ever-changing, there are a number of staples that frequently appear on the international stage,[10] including:

Notable strongmen

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Traditional strongmen

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The strongmen are listed according to the chronological order of their birth.

Modern strongmen

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The following 78 strongmen have reached the podium (1st, 2nd or 3rd place) of World's Strongest Man since 1977 and/or World Muscle Power Classic from 1985 to 2004 and/or Arnold Strongman Classic since 2002 and/or World's Ultimate Strongman from 2018 to 2021 and/or Rogue Invitational since 2021 and or Strongest Man on Earth since 2023. They are listed according to the chronological order of their podium appearance.

25 of them have won the World's Strongest Man (WSM), 11 have won the World Muscle Power Classic (WMPC), 9 have won the Arnold Strongman Classic (ASC), 3 have won the World's Ultimate Strongman (WUS), 3 have won the Rogue Invitational (RI) and 4 have won the Strongest Man on Earth (SMOE) or Shaw Classic (SC).

7 men have won both WSM & WMPC (Kazmaier, Capes, Sigmarsson, Reeves, Magnússon, Ahola, Karlsen). 5 men have won both WSM & ASC (Savickas, Shaw, Björnsson, Licis, Hooper). 2 men have won both WSM & WUS (Björnsson, Novikov). 3 men have won both WSM & RI (Licis, Novikov, Hooper). 2 men have won WSM, ASC & RI (Licis & Hooper). 1 man has won WSM, WUS & RI (Novikov). 1 man has won WSM, ASC, RI & SMOE (Hooper).

Additionally, the following 53 strongmen have reached either 4th or 5th places of World's Strongest Man and/or World Muscle Power Classic and/or Arnold Strongman Classic and/or World's Ultimate Strongman and/or Rogue Invitational and or Strongest Man on Earth:

International accolades

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  • The table below summarizes the most decorated strongmen in modern history with the most number of international wins in their careers.[11][12] Entry criteria: a minimum of 5 international wins (1st places only) in open weight and age categories.

  Active   Retired

# Name Country Active Competitions Wins Win %
1 Žydrūnas Savickas BERJAYA Lithuania 1996–2022 147 79 53.74%
2 Mariusz Pudzianowski BERJAYA Poland 2000–2009 61 43 70.49%
3 Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson BERJAYA Iceland 2010– 72 32 44.44%
4 Aivars Šmaukstelis BERJAYA Latvia 2014–2025 86 28 32.56%
5 Brian Shaw BERJAYA United States 2007–2023 65 27 41.54%
6 Krzysztof Radzikowski BERJAYA Poland 2005–2019 112 24 21.43%
7 Ervin Katona BERJAYA Serbia 2003–2015 100 18 18.00%
8 Mitchell Hooper BERJAYA Canada 2022– 29 18 62.07%
9 Matjaž Belšak BERJAYA Slovenia 2014–2025 71 16 22.54%
10 Hugo Girard BERJAYA Canada 1998–2008 37 15 40.54%
11 Dainis Zageris BERJAYA Latvia 2009–2022 87 15 17.24%
12 Riku Kiri BERJAYA Finland 1986–1999 28 14 50.00%
13 Jón Páll Sigmarsson BERJAYA Iceland 1982–1992 29 13 44.83%
14 Magnus Samuelsson BERJAYA Sweden 1995–2008 64 13 20.31%
15 Jouko Ahola BERJAYA Finland 1994–2003 25 12 48.00%
16 Mateusz Kieliszkowski BERJAYA Poland 2014– 48 12 25.00%
17 Magnús Ver Magnússon BERJAYA Iceland 1987–2005 55 12 21.82%
18 Oleksii Novikov BERJAYA Ukraine 2016– 46 11 23.91%
19 Mikhail Koklyaev BERJAYA Russia 2005–2014 50 11 22.00%
20 Svend Karlsen BERJAYA Norway 1996–2006 69 10 14.49%
21 JF Caron BERJAYA Canada 2007–2023 73 10 13.70%
22 Rayno Nel BERJAYA South Africa 2023– 13 9 69.23%
23 Geoff Capes BERJAYA England 1979–1988 20 9 45.00%
24 Čestmír Šíma BERJAYA Czech Republic 2012–2021 26 9 34.62%
25 Bill Kazmaier BERJAYA United States 1979–1990 18 8 44.44%
26 Derek Poundstone BERJAYA United States 2006–2017 22 8 36.36%
27 Martins Licis BERJAYA United States 2015– 26 8 30.77%
28 Vytautas Lalas BERJAYA Lithuania 2007–2018 30 8 26.67%
29 Kelvin de Ruiter BERJAYA Netherlands 2011– 43 8 18.60%
30 Janne Virtanen BERJAYA Finland 1998–2009 50 8 16.00%
31 Kostyantyn Ilin BERJAYA Ukraine 2007–2020 54 8 14.81%
32 Laurence Shahlaei BERJAYA England 2007–2021 58 8 13.79%
33 Evan Singleton BERJAYA United States 2018– 35 7 20.00%
34 Travis Ortmayer BERJAYA United States 2005–2023 51 7 13.73%
35 Manfred Hoeberl BERJAYA Austria 1990–1996 18 6 33.33%
36 Adam Roszkowski BERJAYA Poland 2021– 27 6 22.22%
37 Vasyl Virastyuk BERJAYA Ukraine 2002–2008 28 6 21.43%
38 Didzis Zariņš BERJAYA Latvia 2011– 32 6 18.75%
39 Andrus Murumets BERJAYA Estonia 2003–2009 40 6 15.00%
40 Stojan Todorchev BERJAYA Bulgaria 2005–2017 46 6 13.04%
41 Mikhail Shivlyakov BERJAYA Russia 2011–2025 47 6 12.77%
42 Oskar Ziółkowski BERJAYA Poland 2020– 18 5 27.78%
43 Flemming Rasmussen BERJAYA Denmark 1995–2001 19 5 26.32%
44 Mike Burke BERJAYA United States 2011–2015 21 5 23.81%
45 Gerrit Badenhorst BERJAYA South Africa 1992–2002 24 5 20.83%
45 Mykhailo Starov BERJAYA Ukraine 2004–2006 24 5 20.83%
47 Juha-Matti Räsänen BERJAYA Finland 1996–2006 26 5 19.23%
48 Gary Taylor BERJAYA Wales 1990–1997 29 5 17.24%
49 Pavlo Kordiyaka BERJAYA Ukraine 2017– 33 5 15.15%
50 Glenn Ross BERJAYA Northern Ireland 1997–2011 36 5 13.89%
51 Johannes Årsjö BERJAYA Sweden 2007–2017 39 5 12.82%
52 Jamie Reeves BERJAYA England 1988–1999 41 5 12.20%
53 Raivis Vidzis BERJAYA Latvia 2002–2009 44 5 11.36%
54 Jarek Dymek BERJAYA Poland 2000–2010 46 5 10.87%
55 Heinz Ollesch BERJAYA Germany 1994–2006 49 5 10.20%
56 Jarno Hams BERJAYA Netherlands 1999–2015 56 5 8.93%
57 Rauno Heinla BERJAYA Estonia 2009– 60 5 8.33%
58 Martin Wildauer BERJAYA Austria 2008–2017 68 5 7.35%
59 Tarmo Mitt BERJAYA Estonia 2001–2019 70 5 7.14%

- As of 29 April 2026

Incorrect usage

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Strongman is often incorrectly used to describe a person who does powerlifting, weightlifting or bodybuilding. Due to the circus and entertainment background, nineteenth-century bodybuilders were expected to mingle with the crowd during intermission and perform strength feats like card tearing, nail bending, etc. to demonstrate strength as well as symmetry and size.

Strongwoman

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The sport also extends to female competitors. From 2000s onwards, women's competitions were held internationally and from late 2010s, they received mainstream attention thanks to competitions such as World's Strongest Woman, Arnold Strongwoman Classic and Rogue Invitational.

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ Maanas, Aaromal (2 November 2022). "Who is the World's Strongest Man? Ranking the top five Strongest Men in History". Sportskeeda. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "About Strongman - competitors are tested for their pure strength". Robert Wood for Topend Sports Website. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  3. 1 2 "The origins of Strongman sport, a story of strength and challenge". Kingsbox. 15 June 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  4. ↑ "Strongman". www.collinsdictionary.com. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  5. ↑ "Strongman". www.dictionary.com. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  6. ↑ "STRONGMAN". ERA-FIT Ltd Bespoke Fitness Systems. Retrieved 2019-09-05.[permanent dead link]
  7. ↑ "Notable Strongmen and their fascinating feats of strength". 20 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "STRONGMAN CONTESTS". strongmanarchives.com. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  9. ↑ "Strongman Training at Home". Andre Adams. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  10. ↑ "Strongman Events". strongman.org. Retrieved 2012-12-28.
  11. ↑ "Strength Results - Profile lists". Strength Results. December 31, 2025. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Strongman Archives - Athletes". Strongman Archives. December 31, 2025. Retrieved January 1, 2026.
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