World's Ultimate Strongman Explained

World's Ultimate Strongman
Location:	,
Number:	4
Format:	Multi-event competition
Final Year:	2021
Final Champion:	Oleksii Novikov

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.

History

The inaugural edition of the competition was held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates and out of a very stacked field of 12 athletes, the Icelandic Giant Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson emerged victorious and was crowned the inaugural champion. The 2019 edition was also held in Dubai and was won by Poland's Mateusz Kieliszkowski.

On February 22, 2020, World's Ultimate Strongman announced the competition would be expanding and would hold the championship in Bahrain at the Bahrain International Circuit with a purse of $350,000 which was the largest for any strongman competition.^[1] However, on March 13, 2020, they released a statement entailing that it had to be postponed due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, until a new date would be announced when it's logistically feasible.^[2] The 2020 competition was finally held in March 2021 in Muharraq under the name '2021 WUS Strength Island' and in September they hosted the 2021 competition back in Dubai. Both competitions were won by Ukraine's Oleksii Novikov.

Championships

2018 World's Ultimate Strongman

See main article: 2018 World's Ultimate Strongman. Events: Truck pull, Arm over arm pull, Silver Dollar Deadlift, Overhead Medley, Super Yoke, Atlas stones

Rank	Name	Country	Points
1.			60.5
2.			57
3.			52.5
4.			48
5.			42.5
6.			38
7.			34.5
8.			31.5
9.			31
10.			27.5
11.			25
12.			18

^[3]

2019 World's Ultimate Strongman

See main article: 2019 World's Ultimate Strongman. Events: Deadlift, Truck pull, Log lift, Medley, Atlas stones

Rank	Name	Points
1.		55.5
2.		50.5
3.		47.5
4.		44.5
Co 5.		42.5
Co 5.		42.5
7.		39
8.		36
9.		31.5
10.	Ramin Farajnejad	30
11.		28
12.		24
13.		21.5
14.		15

^[4]

2020 World's Ultimate Strongman (a.k.a. 2021 WUS Strength Island)

Events: Axel Deadlift, Flag Hoist, Circus Dumbbell press, Loading race, Atlas stones

Rank	Name	Points
1.		70
2.		58
3.		55
4.		47
Co 5.		43
Co 5.	Ramin Farajnejad	43
Co 5.	Mohammed Ezatpour	43
8.	Bobby Thompson	41.5
9.		33.5
10.		33
11.		32
12.	Ervin Toots	30.5
13.		26.5
14.		24
15.		17

^[5]

2021 World's Ultimate Strongman

Events: Log lift, Super yoke, Farmer's walk, Chain Railway carriage, Atlas stones

Rank	Name	Points
1.		45.5
2.		44.5
3.		34.5
4.		32
5.		27
6.	Bobby Thompson	26.5
7.	Mohammed Ezatpour	18
8.	Ervin Toots	17
9.		15
10.	Ramin Farajnejad	12

^[6]

Championship breakdown

Year	Champion	Runner-Up	3rd Place
2018^[7]			Mateusz Kieliszkowski
2019^[8]	Mateusz Kieliszkowski	Luke Stoltman	Tom Stoltman
2020^[9]	Oleksii Novikov	JF Caron	Aivars Šmaukstelis
2021^[10]	Oleksii Novikov	Mateusz Kieliszkowski	Aivars Šmaukstelis

Championships by country

Country	Titles
	2
	1
	1

Feats of Strength series

Due to the postponement of worldwide sporting events and travel restrictions being in place for many countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic, World's Ultimate Strongman announced an at home/private gym Feats of Strength series with differing strongman record attempts to be live streamed for free. Below are the record attempts (Men's World Record unless otherwise stated):

Season 1

Date	Attempt	Athlete	Existing Record and Holder	Record Broken?	New Record if Broken
May 2, 2020^[11] ^[12]		Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson	500abbr=onNaNabbr=on (Eddie Hall)		501abbr=onNaNabbr=on
May 16, 2020^[13]		Luke Stoltman	228abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Žydrūnas Savickas)		-
May 23, 2020^[14]	Maximum Atlas Stone Lift	Tom Stoltman	273abbr=onNaNabbr=on (Tom Stoltman)		286abbr=onNaNabbr=on
May 30, 2020^[15]	100abbr=onNaNabbr=on Dumbbell Press for Repetitions	Oleksii Novikov	10 repetitions ( Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson)		11 repetitions
June 6, 2020^[16]	Maximum Atlas Stone Lift Women's Under-64kg Record	Rhianon Lovelace	139abbr=onNaNabbr=on		141abbr=onNaNabbr=on
June 13, 2020^[17]	Maximum Log Lift American Record	Rob Kearney	214abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Rob Kearney)		216abbr=onNaNabbr=on
June 20, 2020^[18]	400abbr=onNaNabbr=on Deadlift (standard bar) for Repetitions		5 repetitions ( Jean-François Caron) ( Konstantine Janashia)		-
June 20, 2020^[18]		Rauno Heinla		-
June 20, 2020^[19]		Julius Maddox ¹	349abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Julius Maddox)		-
June 27, 2020	Maximum Deadlift (standard bar) Masters (Over-40s) Record		430abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( James Hickey)		-
June 27, 2020	Maximum Deadlift (standard bar) Masters (Over-40s) Record	Mikhail Shivlyakov		-
July 4, 2020	Maximum Log Lift Women's Record	Andrea Thompson	129abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Danielle Vaji)		135abbr=onNaNabbr=on
July 11, 2020	400abbr=onNaNabbr=on Deadlift (standard bar) for Repetitions	Adam Bishop ²	5 repetitions ( Jean-François Caron) ( Rauno Heinla) ( Konstantine Janashia)		-
July 11, 2020		Jean-François Caron		-

¹ It was found during the event that Maddox's bar had been misloaded with one side being 25 kg heavier than the other.
² It was found during the event that Bishop had 402.5 kg on the barbell, rather than 400 kg, causing an unofficial world record of 402.5 kg for 4 repetitions.

Season 2

Date	Attempt	Athlete	Existing Record and Holder	Record Broken?	New Record if Broken
September 13, 2020	400abbr=onNaNabbr=on Deadlift (standard bar) for Repetitions	Rauno Heinla	5 repetitions ( Jean-François Caron) ( Rauno Heinla) ( Konstantine Janashia)		6 repetitions
September 13, 2020		Konstantine Janashia		-
September 20, 2020		Trey Mitchell	6 repetitions ( Rauno Heinla)		-
September 27, 2020	Maximum Atlas Stone Lift	Tom Stoltman	286abbr=onNaNabbr=on (Tom Stoltman)		-
September 27, 2020	Maximum Atlas Stone Lift Women's Record	Donna Moore	162abbr=onNaNabbr=on (Donna Moore)		171abbr=onNaNabbr=on
October 4, 2020	Maximum Deadlift (strongwoman) - standard bar Women's Record	Andrea Thompson	275abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Melissa Edwards)		290abbr=onNaNabbr=on
October 11, 2020		Rob Kearney	228abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Žydrūnas Savickas)		-
October 11, 2020		Luke Stoltman		-
October 18, 2020		Rauno Heinla	501abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson)		-
		Ivan Makarov		-
	Maximum Deadlift (standard bar) Masters (Over-40s) Record	Mikhail Shivlyakov	435abbr=onNaNabbr=on ( James Hickey)		436abbr=onNaNabbr=on

Commonly contested events

Deadlift – Lifting weights or vehicles straight off the ground until knees lock in a standing position. The 2018 edition consisted of a max Silver Dollar Deadlift, a variation in which the weight is lifted from . Straps are allowed for this variation. The 2019 edition used the conventional strongman version of the deadlift, using a standard deadlift bar with straps and a deadlift suit.^[20]
Super Yoke – Apparatus composed of a crossbar and two uprights. The uprights each have a heavy weight attached to them, such as a refrigerator or diesel engine, and the competitors must carry the yoke on their shoulders for a short distance.^[21]
Shield Carry – Athletes compete in carrying a 'shield' usually weighing between 160– for distance or a set distance for the fastest time. The Shield Carry can be its own event or be used alongside the super yoke.
Press Medley – Athletes must press various equipment overhead such as a log, axle, circus barbell, and giant dumbbell. The event is scored based on the number of implements completed, then the fastest time.
Vehicle pull – Vehicles such as transport trucks, trams, boxcars, buses, or planes are pulled across a 100feet course as fast as possible. One variation sees the competitors pull the object with a rope toward them. Another has them attached to a rope which is attached to a vehicle, while they use another rope to pull themselves down the course.^[22]
McGlashen Stones / Atlas Stones – Five heavy round stones increasing in weight from 170– are lifted and set on platforms. When the stones were first introduced to the competition, it was an individual event and the platforms were all of equal height. The modern Atlas Stones event takes place on a 16– long course and the competitors participate two at a time. In the 2019 edition, a 10 stone event was introduced with stones ranging from 100–, a first of its kind.^[23]

Notes and References

News: Owen . Dan . WUS Bahrain announced on weekend with biggest prize pool in strongman history . December 26, 2020 . Sport 360 . February 22, 2020.
Web site: 2020 World's Ultimate Strongman Bahrain postponed due to Covid-19 . https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/s/instagram/B9qixkdA8Gw . December 26, 2021 . registration. March 13, 2020 . . en-GB . December 26, 2020.
Web site: 2018 WUS Dubai. 12 April 2022. strongmanarchives.com. 26 October 2018.
Web site: 2019 WUS Dubai. 12 April 2022. strongmanarchives.com. 25 October 2019.
Web site: 2021 WUS Strength Island. 12 April 2022. strongmanarchives.com. 13 March 2021.
Web site: 2021 WUS Dubai. 12 April 2022. strongmanarchives.com. 17 September 2021.
Web site: Sunderland . Tom . Hafthor Bjornsson Wins World's Ultimate Strongman, Beasts in the Middle East . Bleacher Report . February 2, 2020 . October 27, 2018.
Web site: Balf . Celia. Mateusz Kieliszkowski Wins World's Ultimate Strongman With A Torn Biceps . BarBend . February 2, 2020 . October 25, 2019.
Web site: Oleksii Novikov Wins World's Ultimate Strongman "Strength Island" Contest . BarBend . Roger . Lockridge . March 13, 2021 . March 14, 2021.
Web site: Novikov, Chapman Victorious — 2021 World’s Ultimate Strongman Results . BarBend . Roger . Lockridge . September 17, 2021 . September 18, 2021.
Web site: Heaviest Deadlift . Guinness World Records . guinnessworldrecords.com . 10 May 2020 . 25 March 2022.
Web site: Hafthor Bjornsson breaks world record with 1,104-pound deadlift . . May 2, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Luke Stoltman FAILS To Break Log Lift World Record . Fitness Volt . Goran . Odrljin . May 16, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Strongman Tom Stoltman Lifts World Record 286kg/630lb Atlas Stone Over Bar . BarBend . David . Tao . September 22, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Strongman Oleksii Novikov Sets World Record In Giant Dumbbell For Reps . BarBend . Phil . Blechman . June 1, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Rhianon Lovelace (-64kg) Hoists a Massive 141kg/311lb Atlas Stone for New World Record . BarBend . Phil . Blechman . June 8, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Rob Kearney Sets 475 Pound American Log Lift Record . BarBend . Roger . Lockridge . June 16, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Rauno Heinla Victorious In 400kg/880lb Deadlift For Reps World’s Ultimate Strongman Event . Fitness Volt . Matthew . Magnante . July 11, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
Web site: Julius Maddox Misses 800 Pound Raw Bench Press Record . BarBend . Roger . Lockridge . June 22, 2020 . December 26, 2020.
News: Deadlift. February 2, 2020.
News: Yolk. February 2, 2020.
Web site: Vehicle Pull. February 2, 2020.
News: Atlas Stones. February 2, 2020.