Louis Cyr was a French Canadian strongman with a career spanning the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His recorded feats, including lifting 500 pounds (227 kg) with one finger and backlifting 4,337 pounds (1,967 kg)(2 tons), show Cyr to be, according to former International Federation of BodyBuilding and Fitness chairman Ben Weider as stated in 2000, the strongest man ever.
Strength athletics, also known as Strongman competitions, is a sport which tests competitors' strength in a variety of non-traditional ways. Some of the disciplines are similar to those in powerlifting and some powerlifters have also successfully competed in strongman competitions. However, strongman events also test physical endurance to a degree not found in powerlifting or other strength-based sports, such as carrying refrigerators, flipping truck tires, and pulling vehicles with a rope.
Eugen Sandow was a German bodybuilder and showman from Prussia. Born in Königsberg, Sandow became interested in bodybuilding at the age of ten during a visit to Italy. After a spell in the circus, Sandow studied under strongman Ludwig Durlacher in the late 1880s. On Durlacher's recommendation, he began entering strongman competitions, performing in matches against leading figures in the sport such as Charles Sampson, Frank Bienkowski, and Henry McCann. In 1901 he organised what is believed to be the world's first major bodybuilding competition. Set in London's Royal Albert Hall, Sandow judged the event alongside author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and athlete/sculptor Charles Lawes-Wittewronge.
Douglas Ivan Hepburn was a Canadian strongman and weightlifter. He won weightlifting gold medals in the 1953 World Weightlifting Championships as well as the 1954 British Empire Games in the heavyweight division. He is also known as the first man to bench press 400, 450, 500, and 550 pounds (raw). During the 1950s he was publicly known as the "world's strongest man" for his many feats of strength. Hepburn has been inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame (1953), Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (1955), and the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame (1966).
Angus MacAskill was a Scottish-born Canadian giant. In its 1981 edition the Guinness Book of World Records stated he was the strongest man, the tallest non-pathological giant and the largest true giant in recorded history at 7 feet 9 inches (2.36 m), he also had the largest chest measurements of any non-obese man at 80 inches (203 cm). MacAskill was said to have accomplished feats of lifting a 2,800 lb (1,270 kg) ship's anchor to his chest and holding over 250 pounds (113 kg) with only three fingers.
In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or similar circus performers who performed feats of strength. Today, strength athletics, also known as strongman competitions, are composed of a variety of events in which competitors have to move the highest weights possible, the winner being the one having the highest tally across all events.
Siegmund Breitbart, also known popularly as Zishe or Sische Breitbart, was a Polish-born circus performer, vaudeville strongman and Jewish folklore hero. He was known as the "Strongest Man in the World" and Eisenkönig ("Ironking") during the 1920s.
Joseph L. Greenstein, better known as The Mighty Atom, was a 20th-century strongman.
Katie Sandwina was an Austrian-American circus strongwoman.
Apollon the Mighty, born Louis Uni, was a French strongman, especially famous for his grip strength.
Thomas Inch was a British strongman, who held the titles of Britain's Strongest Youth and Britain's Strong Man.
Hermann Görner, was a famous German strongman. Görner performed in various countries and achieved feats of strength rarely matched to this day, most notably in lifts requiring exceptional grip strength.
Otto Acron is an Australian strongman.
Steve Pulcinella is an American former powerlifter, strongman, and Highland games competitor. He is the owner of Iron Sport Gym in Glenolden, Pennsylvania.
William Bankier billed as 'Apollo, the Scottish Hercules', was a strongman stage performer who in 1915 and 1919 was also 'King Rat' of the showbusiness charity the Grand Order of Water Rats.
For the cricketer, see George Jowett.
Martins Licis is a Latvian-American professional strongman, notable for winning 2019 World's Strongest Man, 2022 Arnold Strongman Classic, and 2021 Rogue Invitational strongman championships.
World's Ultimate Strongman was an annual strongman competition which was held from 2018 to 2021 with the participation of top strongmen from all over the world, determining who is the strongest man in the world. The event was noted for its brute-strength-centricity and expanded the sport to a wider audience outside of Europe and USA. It also introduced the 'feats of strength' series in 2020, ensuring the continuous expansion of the sport during the Covid-19 pandemic. The competition has a number of rival and parallel competitions, including the World's Strongest Man, the Arnold Strongman Classic and the Giants Live Tour.
Gilman Low was an American physical culturalist, strongman and promoter of vegetarianism.
