Tournament information | |
---|---|
Sport | Strongman |
Location | Various locations in United Kingdom and Ireland |
Established | 1995 |
Format | Multi-event competition |
Teams | 8 |
World's Strongest Team is an annual strongman contest organized by Ultimate Strongman that consists of two men teams (occasionally even three or four) from various countries all over the world. The teams are named according to their ancestral traits and geographical locations.
The contest was first held in 1995. Some of the famous annual events include team deadlifts, team deadlift static holds, super yokes, rock lifts, Atlas stones, four-man pole push, tug of war, medley, railway track farmers walk, Basque circle and arm over arm vehicle pull. In recent years it has been organised by Strongmen Glenn Ross and Eddie Hall in Stoke-on-Trent.
Jón Páll Sigmarsson was an Icelandic strongman, powerlifter and bodybuilder who was the first man to win the World's Strongest Man four times and the first and only man to win the World Muscle Power Classic five times. Jón Páll is widely regarded as one of the greatest strongmen of all time, and is credited with developing Iceland's national identity. He was named Icelandic Sportsperson of the Year in 1981, and was one of the best-known Icelandic athletes. In 2012, Jón Páll was inducted into the World's Strongest Man Hall of Fame.
Grip strength is the force applied by the hand to pull on or suspend from objects and is a specific part of hand strength. Optimum-sized objects permit the hand to wrap around a cylindrical shape with a diameter from one to three inches. Stair rails are an example of where shape and diameter are critical for proper grip in case of a fall. Other grip strengths that have been studied are the hammer and other hand tools. In applications of grip strength, the wrist must be in a neutral position to avoid developing cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs).
Jouko Ahola is a Finnish former strongman, powerlifter and actor. He is a two time World's Strongest Man winner, a two time Europe's Strongest Man winner, and is regarded as one of the best pound for pound strongmen in history.
William Kazmaier is an American former world champion powerlifter, world champion strongman and professional wrestler. During the 1970s and 1980s, he set numerous powerlifting and strongman world records, and won two International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Championships and three World's Strongest Man titles. In the 1980s, Kazmaier became famous for his claim to be "the strongest man who ever lived" by equaling and surpassing spectacular and versatile feats of strength of famous strongmen of the 20th century. He is widely considered to be one of the all-time greatest competitors in strength competitions and was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.
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 the world and was a European Arm Wrestling champion prior to becoming a professional strongman.
Europe's Strongest Man is an annual strength athletics competition which began in 1980. The event is held in various locations throughout Europe, and features exclusively European strongman competitors. Mariusz Pudzianowski holds the record for most wins with 6 titles. Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson holds 5 titles, Geoff Capes, Riku Kiri, Žydrūnas Savickas each hold 3 titles & Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Jamie Reeves, Manfred Hoeberl, Jouko Ahola each hold 2 titles. As of 2010, the Europe's Strongest Man contest has become a part of the Giants Live season of annual grand prix events. The contest serves as a qualifying event for the World's Strongest Man contest, with the top 3 placings qualifying for that year's WSM contest.
Mark Felix is a Grenadian-English strongman competitor and regular entrant to the World's Strongest Man competition. He has competed at a record 17 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.
Manfred Hoeberl is an Austrian former strongman and powerlifter who was known as having the largest arms in the world during the early-mid 1990s. Hoeberl was born in the same town as bodybuilding legend and former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Stefán Sölvi Pétursson is an Icelandic strongman and a finalist of the World's Strongest Man competition, winning 4th place in the 2010 World's Strongest Man competition held in Sun City and 9th place in the 2011 World's Strongest Man competition held in Wingate, North Carolina. He has also won Icelandic Strongman competitions multiple times including Iceland’s Strongest Man in 2009 and 2010.
Laurence Cristiaan David Shahlaei is an English YouTuber, strength sports commentator, analyst, coach, and a retired strongman and powerlifting competitor. Shahlaei is a winner of England's Strongest Man, Britain's Strongest Man and Europe's Strongest Man competitions, and an 11 time entrant and 5 time finalist of the prestigious World's Strongest Man competition.
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 competitions, and in 2011, 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.
Strongest Man of the Netherlands is an annual strongman competition held in the Netherlands and featuring exclusively Dutch athletes. The contest was established in 1979, with Gerard Du Prie winning the inaugural contest. Berend Veneberg and Jarno Hams hold the record for most wins with 7. Kelvin de Ruiter holds 4 wins, Ted van der Parre holds 3 wins, and Ab Wolders and Gerard Du Prie each have 2 wins in the contest.
Strength athletics in the United States refers to the various strongman events throughout United States and North America in the sport of strength athletics in association with the World's Strongest Man ("WSM") contest. America has both an amateur and a professional sanctioning body.
Jean-François 'JF' Caron is a Canadian strongman and powerlifter from Les Hauteurs, Quebec, Canada. Having competed in 72 International strongman competitions and winning 10 of them, Caron is among the 20 most decorated strongmen of all time.
Edward Stephen Hall is an English television presenter, and retired strongman. Hall was the winner of the World's Strongest Man 2017 competition. Hall has also won national competitions such as UK's Strongest Man, Britain's Strongest Man and England's Strongest Man multiple times.
Mateusz Kieliszkowski is a Polish strongman competitor, notable for winning the 2019 World's Ultimate Strongman competition. He is also a two-time World's Strongest Man runner-up, two-time Arnold Strongman Classic runner-up, one time Europe's Strongest Man runner-up, and five-times Poland's Strongest Man.
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.
Oleksii Novikov is a Ukrainian professional strongman. He won the 2020 World's Strongest Man competition, becoming the second Ukrainian to win the title since Vasyl Virastyuk in 2004, and at 24 years, 278 days, he is also the second youngest winner in history, being only seven days elder than Jón Páll Sigmarsson in 1984. He is also a two time World's Ultimate Strongman, Rogue Invitational champion and Europe’s Strongest Man.
Jarno Antero Jokinen is a competitive Strongman from Finland.