The GNC Grip Gauntlet (officially the GNC Pro Performance Grip Gauntlet) is a strength athletics contest that tests the grip strength of competing individuals over three disciplines, each designed to test one of the three recognised facets of hand strength: crushing; pinching; and supporting. It was developed by Wade and Brad Gillingham and became an internationally recognised contest featured at some of the world's most prominent strength athletics events and expos, including the Arnold Strongman Classic and the various WSM Super Series Grand Prixs. The last time the GNC Grip Gauntlet was run in a competitive format was the 2010 Arnold Classic. Since that time the challenge has changed to an informal challenge with no official results maintained. Prizes are still awarded for successful completion of the challenge.
In 2002 Wade and Brad Gillingham (GNC Pro Performance Sponsored Athletes) and General Nutrition Center (GNC) introduced The Blob Challenge in the GNC booth at the Mr. Olympia in Las Vegas, NV. The Blob Challenge was run in the GNC booth at 4 events from 2002 - 2003. Late in 2003 Wade and Brad Gillingham wanting to expand the challenge came up with the idea to test 3 main facets of grip strength: Crushing Strength, Pinching Strength, and Supporting Strength. Upon approval from GNC to expand the challenge Wade approached Randall Strossen from IronMind to get permission to use Captains of Crush grippers as part of the challenge. In conversation with Randall it was decided that Wade and Brad's original idea to use a Thomas Inch Dumbbell replica for the supporting grip challenge should be replaced with the IronMind Rolling Thunder. The GNC Pro Performance Grip Gauntlet debuted at the 2004 Arnold Expo Challenge. The three implements used were the No. 3 Captains of Crush gripper, the Rolling Thunder, and an implement called the Blob. Cash prizes were available for succeeding with all three elements of the challenge. [1] An estimated 20,000 competitors at Fitness Expos over a 7-year run from 2004 to 2010 tested their hands at the GNC Grip Gauntlet.
As to the stature of the Gauntlet, Gillingham is quoted as saying in 2008: "If you think this challenge isn't world class, think again. Over the past four years, an estimated 10,000 attempts have been made to complete the three challenges on the GNC Grip Gauntlet stage and only two individuals have ever completed all three in the ‘heavy’ format. [lower-alpha 1]
The Gauntlet eventually settled on three formats, Light, Medium and Heavy. In early 2009, the weight of the Rolling Thunder was dropped from 212 lbs to 207 lbs, to correspond with Ironmind's new version of the Rolling Thunder. [2] In 2010 due to changes in the Rolling Thunder and a change from Captain's of Crush grippers to the new GNC Pro Performance Hand Grippers, it was decided by Wade Gillingham that the historical integrity of the event was not longer sound enough to continue compiling a list of winners.
The disciplines of crushing, pinching and supporting are tested. Crushing, uses the IronMind Captains of Crush grippers. Supporting is tested using IronMind Rolling Thunder. Pinching (or pinch gripping) uses the Blob.
Implement | Light Format | Medium Format | Heavy Format |
---|---|---|---|
Rolling Thunder | 187 pounds (85 kg) | 197 pounds (89 kg) | 207 pounds (94 kg) |
Blob | 50 pounds (23 kg) | ||
Crush Grippers | #2 | #2.5 | #3 |
Although often referred as a part of the GNC Grip Gauntlet, the Rolling Thunder's history goes back more than a decade before the Gauntlet first existed. IronMind developed the Rolling Thunder in 1993 and it is now known by strong men worldwide. One-hand deadlifts had long been a preferred means of testing and building grip strength and Rolling Thunder itself is a thick revolving deadlift handle (length: 7 1/2" (rotating portion is 6") and diameter: 2 3/8") to which can be attached weights. Such is the rise of its popularity that Rolling Thunder competitions are often held in conjunction with major strongman events including the Mohegan Sun Grand Prix 2008 and the Hawaii-based Beauty and the Beast Strongman Contests. As part of the GNC Grip Gauntlet it is also seen around the world at expos. Early on in its history, in 1993, Ironmind issued a challenge to the world of strongmen to lift 300 lbs with Rolling Thunder, and it took 15 years for this challenge to be met when Mark Felix performed the feat at the Mohegan Sun Grand Prix 2008, in the process becoming Rolling Thunder World Champion. In May 2009 Felix defended his Mohegan Sun title, although this was not considered the world championships. [3] He defended the world title in June 2009 in Quebec as a lead-in event to the Fortissimus championships.
On March 8, 2012 Laine Snook lifted an unofficial 332.0 pounds (150.6 kg) during training at his home gym [4] and on May 22, 2012, at the Bodypower Expo in Birmingham Mark Felix set an official record by lifting what was thought to be 332.2 pounds (150.7 kg), but it was later revealed that the actual weight was 323.5 pounds (146.7 kg) and it was a computational error on the scoresheet. [5] [6] On July 30, 2013 Russia's Alexey Tyukalov managed to officially lift 331.8 pounds (150.5 kg) at the A1 Armwrestling Tournament, Moscow and officially broke the world record and also became the first man to officially break the 150 kg barrier. [7] [8]
Event name and Location | Champion | Weight | Date |
---|---|---|---|
Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | Jan Bartl | 265.4 pounds (120.4 kg) [9] | 1 May 2000 |
Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | Jan Bartl | 258.5 pounds (117.3 kg) [9] | 31 May 2001 |
Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Magnus Samuelsson | 262.0 pounds (118.8 kg) [10] | 3 June 2003 |
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Andrus Murumets | 267.0 pounds (121.1 kg) [11] | 16 June 2003 |
Luton, United Kingdom | Laine Snook | 274.2 pounds (124.4 kg) [12] | 1 August 2006 |
Uncansville, Connecticut, United States | Mark Felix | 301.0 pounds (136.5 kg) | 18 January 2008 |
Birmingham, United Kingdom 2012 Bodypower Expo | Mark Felix | 323.5 pounds (146.7 kg) [5] | 22 May 2012 |
Moscow, Russia 2013 A1 Armwrestling Tournament | Alexey Tyukalov | 331.8 pounds (150.5 kg) [13] | 30 July 2013 |
Date | Champion | Weight |
---|---|---|
22 September 2012 | Ludmilla Gaiduchenko | 170.2 pounds (77.2 kg) |
26 May 2012 | Jaana Tanner | 152.7 pounds (69.3 kg) |
28 January 2012 | Jaana Tanner | 147.2 pounds (66.8 kg) |
7 April 2007 | Elizabeth Horne | 144.4 pounds (65.5 kg) |
1 July 2002 | Becca Swanson | 135.0 pounds (61.2 kg) |
The Strongman Super Series, known from 2001 to 2004 as the IFSA World Strongman Super Series, from 2005 to 2008 as the World's Strongest Man Super Series, and reverting in 2009 to the World Strongman Super Series, is a sequence of grand prix events in the sport of strength athletics. It was introduced in 2001 in response to concerns that, unlike other individual sports such as golf or tennis, there was no recognized international "tour" in strength athletics. The Strongman Super Series ensures that there are a number of high-profile, professionally run contests during the year, with competitors' placings being used to decide the overall Super Series Champion.
IronMind Enterprises, Inc. is an American niche market business based in Nevada City, California, that specializes in "tools of the trade for serious strength athletes." Though many of its products include strength-training equipment and accessories, IronMind also publishes books, DVDs and the quarterly magazine MILO: A Journal For Serious Strength Athletes.
Dr. Randall J. Strossen is an American strength and physical culture advocate, kinesiologist, equipment manufacturer, historian, journalist, author, teacher and an expert in grip strength training.
Magnus Samuelsson, is a Swedish actor, former strongman and winner of the 1998 World's Strongest Man contest in Morocco. He has also made it to the World's Strongest Man podium 5 times and the finals 10 times and is regarded as one of the best strongmen in history. The son of a former Swedish arm wrestling champion, he has also been ranked among the best arm wrestlers in Europe during his active years with a second place in 1993 as his best performance.
Grippers, sometimes called hand grippers, are primarily used for testing and increasing the strength of the hands; this specific form of grip strength has been called crushing grip, which has been defined as meaning the prime movers are the four fingers, rather than the thumb.
Carl Myerscough is an English former track and field athlete specialised in shot put and discus throw and a world record holder grip strength specialist. His imposing height of 208 cm earned him the nickname 'The Blackpool Tower'.
Andrus Murumets is an Estonian strongman and entrant to the World's Strongest Man contest. He reached 5th in the World Rankings according to the IFSA rankings in 2008. Andrus competed in the IFSA World Championships in 2005 finishing 4th, 5th in 2006 and 5th in 2007. Andrus has competed in the Arnold Strongman Classic 3 times, his best finish was 3rd in 2007. In 2009 he became the overall champion of the Strongman Champions League. He has been described by Svend Karlsen as having the strongest grip in the world. Having competed in 40 International strongman competitions and winning 6 of them, Andrus is among the 50 most decorated strongmen of all time.
Mark Felix is a Grenadian-English strongman competitor and regular entrant to the World's Strongest Man competition. He has competed at a record 18 World's Strongest Man contests, reaching the finals three times. He is the winner of the 2015 Ultimate Strongman Masters World Championships, 2016 WSF World Cup India and has won numerous international grip contests, including the Rolling Thunder World Championships in 2008 and 2009, as well as the Vice Grip Viking Challenge in 2011 and 2012. Having competed in over 100 international competitions throughout 19 years, Felix is the 3rd most prolific strongman contestant in history.
Captains of Crush Grippers is a brand of torsion-spring grippers designed, manufactured and sold by IronMind Enterprises, Inc., based in Nevada City, California. They are the official grippers of the Arnold Sports Festival, the GNC Grip Gauntlet, United States Arm Wrestling and the World's Strongest Man contest.
The Fortissimus is a defunct event in strength athletics. The name means "the mightiest" and was a multi-event challenge at the end of which the winner is crowned as the "Strongest Man on Earth". It was set up to bring together the strongest competitors on the planet independent of the organisations to which they were signed, and also as a tribute to the nineteenth-century Canadian strongman Louis Cyr, which gave it many similarities to Le Defi Mark Ten International which last took place in Canada in the early 1990s. After its first airing in 2008, the strength athletics magazine Milo described it as the ultimate strongman competition ever held. Despite a successful edition in 2009, a reported lack of a major sponsor for 2010 resulted in the competition being suspended, no future contests have been announced.
Giants Live was created in 2009 as the official Tour that qualifies strongmen to compete in the annual World's Strongest Man contest. At each Grand Prix, up to twelve international strongmen come together and compete over six events. The top three at each contest will receive an invitation to compete at the World's Strongest Man contest for that same year.
The Beauty and The Beast Strongman Challenge, also known as the Beauty and The Beast World Strongman Challenge was a short-lived annual strongman competition that was notable for the calibre of the entrants it attracted, as well as for the reputation it attained in a short amount of time.
Brian Shaw is an American retired professional strongman who is widely regarded as one of the greatest strength athletes of all-time. He won the 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2016 World's Strongest Man, making him one of only five men to win the World’s Strongest Man four times or more. In 2011, Shaw became the first man to win the Arnold Strongman Classic and the World's Strongest Man competitions in the same calendar year, a feat he replicated in 2015. With 27 international competition wins, he is the fourth most decorated strongman in history behind Lithuania's Žydrūnas Savickas, Poland's Mariusz Pudzianowski and Iceland's Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.
The All-American Strongman Challenge is a leading competition in strength athletics that takes place within the annual Californian FitExpo. Although North America has a number of prestigious strongman events determining the "Strongest Man in America", the "Strongest Man in Canada" and the "Strongest Man in North America", the All-American Strongman Challenge has added kudos because it is open to entrants from overseas with the potential to bring in leading international competitors as well. It is notable for the calibre of entrants it has attracted, with many World's Strongest Man finalists being represented.
Mark Westaby is a British strongman competitor, notable for being a repeat competitor at the World's Strongest Man.
Laine Snook is a former strongman and professional Highland Games competitor. As an athlete he competed internationally but his career was cut short by injury. He went on to specialise in strength based sport and represented both England and Great Britain in various Highland Games and strength athletic events. He also became the world benchpress champion. He has gained international renown in strength sport for being one of the world's foremost exponents of grip strength.
Mike Burke is an American strongman and a grip strength specialist from Aurora, Colorado. Before becoming a strength athlete, he worked as a construction worker.
Richard 'Pops' Sorin is an American strongman and a grip strength specialist.
Odd Erling Haugen is a Norwegian-born American strongman and a grip strength specialist. He has also competed in bodybuilding, weightlifting and powerlifting.
Joe Kinney is an American strongman, grip strength specialist and crush grip innovator from Bean Station, Tennessee.
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