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Strongman competitions usually involve non-traditional, often sensationalistic, challenges of strength.

Strength athletics is the collection of strength sports which measure physical strength,^[1] based on both: non-standard and historical implements as seen in Strongman and Highland games,^[2] and standardized and calibrated equipment as seen in Powerlifting^[3] and Weightlifting.^[4]

Some of the disciplines have similarities to each other and although it is very difficult to master more than one, some athletes participate in several of them and perform at world class levels. Weightlifting consists of two main lifts (snatch and clean & jerk)^[4] and powerlifting consists of three main lifts (squat, bench and deadlift)^[3] where all test the maximal strength (one rep max output). Highland games consists of up to about ten different disciplines (including stone put, Scottish hammer throw, weight throw, weight over bar, caber toss, keg toss and sheaf toss)^[2] while strongman span across more than thirty different lifts and events (including deadlift, vehicle pull, log lift, axle press, stonelifting, stone carrying, circus dumbbell press, yoke carry, farmers walk, squat, basque circle, loading medleys and grip events), testing both maximal strength and physical endurance.

At present day, Strongman takes the bulk of the strength athletics domain, owing to involving both standardized and non standardized tests of strength,^[5] as well as for its highly diversified nature.

History

Origins

Strength competitions pre-date written history. The first Olympics (running, throwing, jumping) were believed to be held in 776 BCE.^[6] There are records in many civilizations of feats of strength performed by great heroes, perhaps mythological, such as Heracles, Goliath, Orm Storolfsson and Milo of Croton.^[7]

Competitions that modern strongman events are modeled on, Scottish Highland Gatherings, were formalized around 1820 by Sir Walter Scott. In 1848, Queen Victoria attended the Braemar Highland Games.^[8]

In the 18th and 19th centuries, circus strongmen lent sensationalism to their acts such as bending iron bars, breaking iron chains worn around their chests, and lifting heavy objects.^[9] Famous strongmen from this era included Thomas Topham, Eugen Sandow, Louis Cyr, Thomas Inch, Arthur Saxon, Angus MacAskill, and Alexander Zass.

In the 20th century, strength sports such as weightlifting and powerlifting were popularized through the Olympic Games. However, feats of strength akin to the circus performances also gained in popularity. David Prowse (who played Darth Vader in Star Wars) was initially famous in 1964 for his lifting the famed 733 pounds (332 kg) Dinnie Stones, the first man to do so since Donald Dinnie himself a century earlier.^[10]

Television

Perhaps the most famous event is the World's Strongest Man competition, still described by a number of highly respected authorities in the sport as the premier event in strength athletics.^[11]^[12]

The concept behind 'The World's Strongest Men', as it was originally named, was developed in 1977 for CBS by Langstar Inc. David Webster, a Scot who later received an OBE for his services to sport, was the head coordinator of the competition from its inception. Dr Douglas Edmunds, seven-times Scottish shot and discus champion and twice world caber champion,^[13] worked with Webster. When Webster retired from his position, Edmunds took over. These two men were responsible for inviting the competitors and choosing the events. They selected men who had shown prowess in the mainstream fields of strength sports and field athletics events, such as shot put, American football, powerlifters, bodybuilders and wrestlers. The idea was to create a spectacle that would test competitors against one another.

The show was enough of a success that it began to be replicated in other countries, such as Britain's Strongest Man (1979). Competitors began shifting from unpaid amateurs to professional strongmen. By the end of the 20th century, and in to the 21st, other strongman programs and events were created such as Strongman Championship hosted by Errol Silverman. Other competitions have been televised, such as the World Muscle Power Championships, World Strongman Challenge, Arnold Strongman Classic, Giants Live, Highlander World Championships, World Strongman Federation, and Europe's Strongest Man.

Common disciplines

There is no set rule about what specific events will occur in a contest, except that to prevent single-event specialists from gaining an advantage, each event will be different (a single contest will not include two squat events, or two overhead lifting events, for example). Normally, a strongman contest comprises five or six events, though at the top level of competition, seven or eight events may be held. Among the most common events are:

Farmer's Walk – competitors race along a course while carrying a heavy weight in each hand. A variation is the Giant Farmer's Walk, with a much heavier weight carried over a shorter distance.
Hercules Hold or Pillars of Hercules – contestants stand between two pillars, pivoted to fall outwards. The competitor must simply hold them up for as long as possible.
Vehicle pull – competitors pull a vehicle from a stationary start for a prescribed distance – fastest over the course wins. Trucks are commonly used, but larger spectacles employ trains, boats, and airplanes.
Atlas Stones – a lifting stone event whereby five spherical concrete stones of increasing weight are placed on top of podia of varying height, beginning with the lightest stone lifted to approximately a normal person's head height. Alternatively, the stone is lifted over a bar for reps.
Stone Carry – in Iceland, the original stone carry was performed with the Húsafell Stone, that was to be carried for a stretch to achieve the title fullsterkur (full-strong). This stone was not round but irregular, increasing the difficulty.
Refrigerator Carry – a staple of earlier WSM events that has made a comeback in recent years. The competitors carry two refrigerators, attached to an iron bar they hold on their shoulders, and walk it across the finish line as fast as they can.
Carry and Drag – an object (usually a heavy anchor) is run across half of the course. The competitors then must attach it to a chain of almost equal weight and pull it across the rest of the course.
Fingal's Fingers – under a timer, lift and flip a series of progressively heavier, hinged poles from a horizontal starting position.^[14]

Major titles and title holders

Year	World's Strongest Man	World Muscle Power Classic	World Strongman Challenge	Arnold Strongman Classic	Europe's Strongest Man	Strongman Super Series/ Pure Strength	World Strongman Cup Federation	World's Ultimate Strongman/ Fortissimus/ Defi Mark Ten	Strongman Champions League	IFSA World Championships	Shaw Classic	Rogue Invitational
2024	Tom Stoltman			Mitchell Hooper	Luke Stoltman						Mitchell Hooper	Mitchell Hooper
2023	Mitchell Hooper			Mitchell Hooper	Pavlo Kordiyaka				Oskar Ziółkowski		Brian Shaw	Mitchell Hooper
2022	Tom Stoltman			Martins Licis	Oleksii Novikov				Aivars Šmaukstelis		Trey Mitchell	Oleksii Novikov
2021	Tom Stoltman				Luke Stoltman			Oleksii Novikov	Kelvin de Ruiter		Trey Mitchell	Martins Licis
2020	Oleksii Novikov			Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson	Luke Richardson			Oleksii Novikov			Brian Shaw
2019	Martins Licis			Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson			Mateusz Kieliszkowski	Aivars Šmaukstelis
2018	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson			Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson			Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson	Dainis Zageris
2017	Eddie Hall			Brian Shaw	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson				Matjaz Belsak
2016	Brian Shaw			Žydrūnas Savickas	Laurence Shahlaei				Dainis Zageris
2015	Brian Shaw			Brian Shaw	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson				Krzysztof Radzikowski
2014	Žydrūnas Savickas			Žydrūnas Savickas	Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson				Martin Wildauer
2013	Brian Shaw			Vytautas Lalas	Žydrūnas Savickas				Krzysztof Radzikowski
2012	Žydrūnas Savickas			Mike Jenkins	Žydrūnas Savickas				Žydrūnas Savickas
2011	Brian Shaw			Brian Shaw					Ervin Katona
2010	Žydrūnas Savickas			Derek Poundstone	Žydrūnas Savickas	Brian Shaw			Terry Hollands
2009	Žydrūnas Savickas			Derek Poundstone	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Brian Shaw		Žydrūnas Savickas	Andrus Murumets
2008	Mariusz Pudzianowski			Žydrūnas Savickas	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Derek Poundstone	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Derek Poundstone	Žydrūnas Savickas
2007	Mariusz Pudzianowski			Žydrūnas Savickas	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Mariusz Pudzianowski			Vasyl Virastyuk
2006	Phil Pfister		Žydrūnas Savickas	Žydrūnas Savickas		Mariusz Pudzianowski	Mariusz Pudzianowski			Žydrūnas Savickas
2005	Mariusz Pudzianowski			Žydrūnas Savickas	Jarek Dymek	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Raivis Vidzis			Žydrūnas Savickas
2004	Vasyl Virastyuk	Hugo Girard		Žydrūnas Savickas	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Žydrūnas Savickas	Raivis Vidzis
2003	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Hugo Girard	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Žydrūnas Savickas	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Mariusz Pudzianowski
2002	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Svend Karlsen	Hugo Girard	Mark Henry	Mariusz Pudzianowski	Hugo Girard
2001	Svend Karlsen	Hugo Girard	Magnus Samuelsson		Svend Karlsen	Magnus Samuelsson
2000	Janne Virtanen	Jamie Reeves	Janne Virtanen		Berend Veneberg
1999	Jouko Ahola	Hugo Girard	Jouko Ahola		Jouko Ahola
1998	Magnus Samuelsson	Jouko Ahola	Magnus Samuelsson		Jouko Ahola
1997	Jouko Ahola	Raimonds Bergmanis	Magnús Ver Magnússon		Riku Kiri
1996	Magnús Ver Magnússon	Forbes Cowen	Nathan Jones		Riku Kiri
1995	Magnús Ver Magnússon	Magnús Ver Magnússon	Jouko Ahola		Riku Kiri
1994	Magnús Ver Magnússon	Manfred Hoeberl	Andrés Guðmundsson		Hoeberl & Magnússon
1993	Gary Taylor	Manfred Hoeberl	Gerrit Badenhorst		Manfred Hoeberl
1992	Ted Van Der Parre	Jamie Reeves	Jamie Reeves		László Fekete			Mark Higgins
1991	Magnús Ver Magnússon	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Riku Kiri		Taylor & Cowan			Mark Higgins
1990	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Mark Higgins		Henning Thorsen	Kazmaier & Wilson		Mark Higgins
1989	Jamie Reeves	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Mark Higgins		Jamie Reeves	Árnason & Magnússon		Magnús Ver Magnússon
1988	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Bill Kazmaier	Riku Kiri		Jamie Reeves	Kazmaier & Thompson		Hjalti Árnason
1987		Geoff Capes	Geoff Capes		Ab Wolders	Jón Páll Sigmarsson		Bill Kazmaier
1986	Jón Páll Sigmarsson	Jón Páll Sigmarsson			Jón Páll Sigmarsson			Tom Magee
1985	Geoff Capes	Jón Páll Sigmarsson			Jón Páll Sigmarsson			Tom Magee
1984	Jón Páll Sigmarsson				Geoff Capes			Tom Magee
1983	Geoff Capes				Simon Wulfse
1982	Bill Kazmaier				Geoff Capes
1981	Bill Kazmaier				Lars Hedlund
1980	Bill Kazmaier				Geoff Capes
1979	Don Reinhoudt
1978	Bruce Wilhelm
1977	Bruce Wilhelm

References

^[15]

External links

^ "Your Guide to Strength Sports". Chris Van Nostrand for www.strengthwisebarbell.com. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
^ ^a ^b "Ultimate guide to Scotland's Highland games". Jemima Kirkwood. May 27, 2022. Retrieved September 11, 2024.
^ ^a ^b Dunn, Will Freeman (2018-01-10). "The History of Powerlifting". Taylor's Strength Training. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
^ ^a ^b "Lift Up, History of Olympic Weightlifting". chidlovski.net. Retrieved 2022-11-04.
^ "About Strongman - competitors are tested for their pure strength". Robert Wood for Topend Sports Website. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
^ See, for example, Alfred Mallwitz's article "Cult and Competition Locations at Olympia" p.101 in which he argues that the games may not have started until about 704 BC. Hugh Lee, on the other hand, in his article "The 'First' Olympic Games of 776 B.C.E" p.112, follows an ancient source that claims that there were twenty-seven Olympiads before the first one was recorded in 776. There are no records of Olympic victors extant from earlier than the fifth century BC
^ "Strongest Men in History Hoisted Cattle and Crushed Stones to Show Their Might".
^ Crieff Highland Gathering Archived 2007-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Notable Strongmen and their fascinating feats of strength". 20 May 2017.
^ British Strongmen Archived 2010-08-13 at the Wayback Machine
^ "World's Strongest Man Update". www.ironmind.com. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
^ samson-power.com/archived_news.htm Archived 2005-10-26 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Bring on the war games". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
^ "Fingal's Fingers – The World's Strongest Man".
^