Its that time of year again! Unlike previous years, I won’t be doing a post for every single show until the HEATS (which actually start tonight, so double the strongman content today!). For the 5 Giants Live qualifier events, I’ll just be doing this one post recapping the more interesting parts of each show.
Giants Live 1 – Britain’s Strongest Man 2024
I saw this show live at the start of the year thanks to the live stream, and it has to be one of the better Britain’s Strongest Man shows ever! Going into it, there were 4 favourites to make the podium; Tom Stoltman, the 2 time World’s Strongest Man and 2 time Britain’s Strongest man. Luke Stoltman, former Europe’s Strongest Man. Adam Bishop, the 2 time and reigning Britain’s Strongest Man. Then lastly, the Welsh Bull Gavin Bilton, a 2 time UK’s Strongest Man and runner up at Britain’s Strongest Man last year.
The opening event was one for the record books. Deadlift for reps… but with a slight difference. 2 different weights, and the athletes choose which they want to lift. The first weight is 360kg, and the second weight is 400kg. 1 rep on the 400kg bar beats any amount of reps on the 360kg bar. This adds some strategy to the event, as the strongmen could get a rep or 2 on the 400kg bar, then add a 360kg rep as well to help beat out someone who “only” managed 2 reps at 400kg. The standouts here were Tom Stoltman and Adam Bishop, both known for being BIG deadlifters. They each managed an insane 5 reps at 400kg, but it was Adam who edged out Tom with an extra lift at 360kg. Gavin Bilton also had a fantastic result with 3 400kg reps and 1 360kg to place him in 3rd place above Shane Flowers who had 3 400kg reps but 0 at 360kg.
Event 2 was the Axle Press, and once again Tom had an excellent showing, winning with 5 reps. Bilton and Luke settled for joint second with 4 reps, while Bishop only managed joint 5th place with 4 other men.
Event 3 saw the strongmen race down the course with an anchor, then race back with an anvil, and THEN pull an anvil high into the air in the quickest time possible. Tom again picked up the win, beating out his brother by 0.05 seconds! Bilton got a very respectable 4th place, while Bishop was down in 9th.
Event 4 was the sandbag throw, where 6 bags ranging from 18kg to 28kg need to be thrown over a 4.6m bar. Bishop got himself a WORLD RECORD with 15.94 seconds… only for it to be taken from him in 13.65 seconds by Shane Flowers! Bilton had a shot at breaking the record AGAIN, but he slipped on the final bag and lost himself a second or two. He did beat out Bishop though! Tom also lost out on a few seconds, thinking one of his bags hadn’t gone over, leaving him down in 4th place.
Going into the final event, Tom was around 4 points ahead of Bilton. Third place was Shane Flowers, barely ahead of Luke Stoltman. The Castle Stones would decide the winners as always! Luke and Shane went head to head to determine the 3rd place finish, and Luke did it in style, guaranteeing him a podium finish. Tom and Gavin are the last to go, but with a few points lead and the fact Tom is the BEST stone lifter on the planet, it was no surprise when he got the fastest time to confirm his 3rd Britain’s Strongest Man win. Bilton only managed 4 stones, but still enough to get him second place once again.
So the final results were:
Tom Stoltman looked pretty much unbeatable for most of the show, setting himself up well for World’s Strongest Man for sure. Gavin looked great as well, being incredibly consistent despite not winning an event. Luke looked better here than he has in quite some time, showing that even though he’s almost 40 years old, he can still hang with everyone else. Disappointing result for Adam Bishop, but perhaps the deadlift took it out of him.
Giants Live 2 – Europe’s Strongest Man 2024
As usual, Europe’s Strongest Man was filled with some top talent in the strongman world! Oleksii Novikov, former World’s Strongest Man and former Europe’s Strongest Man. Luke Stoltman, former Europe’s Strongest Man. Pavlo Kordiyaka, the reigning and defending Europe’s Strongest Man.
Event 1 was a brutal event; the Nicol Stones. 2 massive stones that aren’t equal in weight or size must be carried as far as possible. The favourites for the overall competition win didn’t do quite so well here, with Novikov in 10th, Pavlo in 5th and Stolrman in tied 3rd. Ondra Fojtu came out on top with an impressive 24.18m.
Event 2, the car walk, was certainly better for the big favs. Luke Stoltman wins in a time of 16.13 seconds, with Noviko and Pavlo getting 3rd and 4th place respectively. The big surprise here was Nicolas Cambi getting second place!
Event 3 was the deadlift ladder, seeing 5 bars that need to be lifted in the fastest time. Rauno Heinla, probably the best deadlifter on the planet at the moment, unsurprisingly picked up the win with ease. Novikov looked on form again, placing second. Disappointing results for Like and Pavlo, placing 10th and 11th. Nicolas Cambi performed well again, finishing 5th.
Event 4 was the viking press, and Ondra Fotju picked up another event win with an impressive 16 reps, ahead of Novikov who managed 14. Luke took 3rd place with 13 reps, while Cambi picked up more good points finishing joined 3rd. He seems to be one to watch for sure now!
Event 5 is of course the castle stones. An extremely close final event, as the top 5 men are only separated by 3 points. Novikov leads the way with 35 points, then Fotju on 34. Luke with 33.5, then Aivars Smaukstelis on 32.5, and finally Nicolas Cambi with 32. This really could go to any one of them! Sadly for Cambi, he only gets 4 stones, placing him way down the leaderboard. Smaukstelis and Luke go head to head, and they have one of the closest finishes EVER… so much so that its declared a TIE. 18.58 seconds for both of them. That leaves us with Fotju and Novikov, and heartbreak for Novikov who tears his biceps trying to lift the final stone. 4 stones for both men… which means that LUKE STOLTMAN picks up his second Europe’s Strongest Man title!
An incredible close finish, and one that could have easily gone another way had Novikov not gotten injured. Fotju and Cambi both showed greatness here, and are men to watch out for in the future!
Giants Live 3 – Strongman Classic 2024
The yearly event held at the Royal Albert Hall has produced some incredible moments in the few years it has been running. With the lineup this year, we are no doubt expecting more moments too! Mitchell Hooper, the 2023 World’s Strongest Man is here, and he hasn’t been off a podium in a LONG time, and I don’t expect that to change here. 2021 and 2022 World’s Strongest Man Tom Stoltman is also here looking to add another win to his already fantastic career. Evan Singleton, a master at Giants Live 1 day shows and winner of this event last year will be looking to prove how good he is too. Novikov and Kordiyaka are also here, plus Mat Ragg who was able to finish ahead of Mitchell Hooper in a Giants Live show last year!
Event 1 is the Axle Press for max weight. A couple of years ago Iron Biby made history with a world record of 217kg. This was a tough event for so many, with more than half the field making 170kg and no more. Evan Singleton finished 4th with 185kg, then tied for second place was Tom and Pavlo at 195kg. Mitchell Hooper was the winner, being the only man to lift 205kg… however he was not done. 218kg was placed on the bar as he attempted a world record… but failed. However, he was given a second chance and against all odds, made it look easy! 218kg for a new world record!
Event 2 was the Axle Deadlift for reps, and shock, Mitchell Hooper too the win once again. He matched the world record of 8 reps, but could have done at least 1 more if he needed to. Mat Ragg took an impressive 2nd place ahead of Tom Stoltman. Evan Singleton had a disaster, getting 0 lifts.
Event 3 is the conan’s wheel, an event that last year at the World’s Strongest Man completely changed the order during the heats. Evan Singleton had to withdraw due to injury. Tom Stoltman has improved a ton on this, finishing joint 3rd with 826 degrees. Pavlo beat his own world record with 1035 degrees to finish 1st, and Hooper stopped at 836 degrees to beat out Tom and take second.
Event 4 was the wrecking ball hold. Another win for Hooper, and another world record too! He almost lasted a full 2 minutes, nearly 15 seconds better than Novikov in second place. Bad event for Tom who is down in 8th.
Event 5 finishes things off with the castle stones. Hooper has dominated the show, and I don’t think he can lost the competition unless he comes in dead last and Tom finishes in 1st. Mat Ragg continues to impress, beating out Novikov for 4th place. Kordiyaka does well to finish in 3rd overall, and of course Tom takes second place, winning the castle stones. Hooper only placed 1 stone up, already knowing he had won the competition.
This show was ALL Mitchell Hooper. 2 world records, and 1 record tied. Even up against Tom Stoltman he looked damn near unstoppable.
Giants Live 4 – World Strongman Open 2025
Not only is this event the WSO, but we also get the world loglift championship too! Iron Biby is here to try and beat his own world record, and Mitchell Hooper is out for another Giants Live win. Also joining this show are Novikov, Singleton, Boudreault, Smaukstelis, and a returning Luke Richardson! One helluva line up for sure!
Event 1 is the world loglift challenge. An impressive 3 men, Hooper, Biby and Fojtu, lift 210kg. For Biby though, that wasn’t enough. Last time he lifted 230kg for a new world record, and it was somewhat controversial whether he made the lift. This year, he attempted 231kg… and there was NO DOUBT he got the lift! Extremely impressive!
Event 2 was the truck pull! Rather than pulling it behind them like usual, they had to sit down and pull the rope to get the truck closer to them arm over arm style. Luke Richardson was impressive here, showing us why he was nicknamed THE FUTURE when he won Europe’s Strongest Man back in 2020, before he had numerous injuries that have kept him out of competition. He beat out Mitchell Hooper by nearly 3 seconds! Maxime Boudreault took third place, reminding everyone why he was a podium finisher a few years ago too.
Event 3 brings back the axle deadlift again, and Hooper wins yet again with 8 reps. Paddy Haynes came out of nowhere to finish second after 7 reps, while 5 men tie for 3rd place including Richardson and Novikov.
Event 4 is the sandbag throw that we saw at Britain’s Strongest Man. Nobody was able to match those record breaking times from Britain’s, but Boudreault and Hooper made it under 20 seconds to take 1st and 2nd place, with Singleton finally living up to his potential with 3rd place. Richardson down in 6th.
Event 5 is the power stairs for a change! Hooper has 10.5 points over Luke Richardson in 2nd place, so it seems very likely Hooper wins again. Hooper puts the first weight up the first step and that’s it for him, he knows the win is his. Richardson needs to get all 5 weights to the top to try and keep his podium spot, and despite not being the fastest time, he is able to take 3rd place just behind Boudreault. A great return for him!
Once again its the Mitchell Hooper show, with great performences from Boudreault and Richardson. Hopefully both of those men can stay injury free and make a real charge at the World’s Strongest Man in 2025.
Giants Live 5 – World Tour Finals 2025
While the lineup isn’t as jam packed as last year, we still have big names such as Mitchell Hooper, Trey Mitchell, Luke Stoltman, Luke Richardson and Pavlo Kordiyaka. If Mitchell wins this, he will add another record to his name, becoming the first man to win 4 Giants Live shows in a row!
Event 1 is the dumbbell medley. 5 massive dumbbells that increase in weight have to be lifted overhead with 1 arm! 4 men are able to get all 5 up; Luke Stoltman, Trey Mitchell, new Ukrainian Roman Grekov, and of course Mitchell Hooper who takes the win.
Event 2 is the famer’s and yoke. Run up the course one way carrying 2 massive logs, then get under a massive yoke and run back to the start! Luke Stoltman gets a fantastic time of 28.23 seconds despite dropping the yoke near the end of the course. He is eventually beaten by Evans Nana by around 1 second, but surprise surprise, Mitchell Hooper comes away with a win once again, destroying everyone’s time and finishing in 22.69 seconds!
Event 3 is once again the axle deadlift. Hooper has managed 8 reps the last 2 times we’ve seen him do this event, but here is only gets 6 as his closest rivals all only managed 5 reps. Evans Nana, Luke Richardson, Trey Mitchell and Canadian newcommer Wesley Derwinksy all tie for 2nd place with 5.
Event 4 is the hercules hold, and the times we got are very impressive. Only 1 man was below 40 seconds, and everyone else did abover 46 seconds. Usually an event like this sees a handful of people anywhere between 20 and 40 seconds with only a couple going longer. 3 men went abover 1 minute; Luke Richardson with 1m 5s, then Trey Mitchell who is known for having a BAD grip was just under 1m 10s. The winner though? Yup, Mitchell Hooper with 1m 12s. 4 event wins in a row, and he’s already won the competition!
Event 5, the castle stones, is all about 2nd and 3rd place. Richardson and Trey are the main 2 in contention for 2nd and 3rd, but a bad result for them could open the way for Nana and Derwinsky. They don’t have a bad result, with both men lifting 5 stones, solidifying their podium place. Luke Stoltman, who hasn’t had the best competition, finished strong winning the stones at least!
Again, it was ALL about Hooper. 4 straight event wins gave him the overall win without having to even bother with the 5th event. And that also means he enters the record books with 4 straight Giants Live wins as well. Richardson still looking great, with another podium finish, and Trey taking 2nd reminds everyone that he is always a threat. Stoltman did well to finish in 4th overall too!
And so we end with the Giants Live shows. Not all of them happened BEFORE World’s Strongest Man 2024, so you can’t look at every event and have an idea of how well certain people might perform at the World’s. However, given how good Hooper was the entire time, I think its safe to say he is the absolute favourite to take the title home again this year.
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