Only 2 spots in the final left!!!
Andrew Flynn – England – 3rd at Britain’s Strongest Man 2025
Nick Guardione – USA – 2024 Official Strongman Games winner
Pavlo Kordiyaka – Ukraine – Europe’s Strongest Man 2023
Evan Singleton – USA – 3rd at World’s Strongest Man 2024
Luke Stoltman – Scotland – Britain’s Strongest Man 2025
An interesting group to end on. We have who should on paper be favourites going into the final, Stoltman and Singleton, with Kordiyaka just as capable of reaching another final too… BUT… we’ve seen many times in the past, Evan doesn’t have the best luck, and sometimes one mistake from him can mess him up mentally and throw him off his game entirely. Meanwhile, while Stoltman is still winning competitions and doing well overall, he is getting up in age, and after 10 years of WSM, is he physically capable of keeping up with younger athletes? Kordiyaka can still give good performances but it seems his best days were back in 2023, and he’s been somewhat hit and miss since then. Flynn is a great British up and comer, finishing on the podium at Britain’s earlier in the year, and Guardione is another newcomer that could upset some more established athletes if given the chance!
Event 1 – Loading Medley
4 130kg sandbags are placed along a 20m course, with each needing to be carried and loaded into the back of a truck in the quickest time possible! This should be a good event for Flynn, Kordiyaka and Singelton, with Stolman being perfectly capable of a top 3 finish. Unsure on what Guardione can do though. First up, Flynn takes on Singleton! They are neck and neck, but on the third bag, just like Richardson did in yesterday’s heat… Evan appears to have injured himself. Flynn finishes in around 45 seconds, but the big story here is Evan Singleton’s bad luck continuing. Next up, Guardione takes on Stoltman. Luke has lost some weight to improve his quickness and conditioning, but will his age play a factor? Well, not that much it seems! Guardione is faster, but Stoltman catches on the final bag and WINS! 41.34 seconds for the American, but 41.21 seconds for Stoltman! Kordiyaka is out last, with 2 quick times to try and beat. He’s looking very good, and very strong despite having nobody to compete against directly, and he absolutely destroys everyone! 38.61 seconds! Crazy to think that Flynn is the one with the slowest time not including an injured Evan Singleton!
Event 2 – Deadlift for Reps
350kg deadlift for reps! Nobody here stands out to me as a great deadlifter, so I’m not expecting 7 or 8 reps from anyone. I reckon the winning number will be 6. Guardione against Flynn first, and Guardione manages 4, while Flynn gets to an impressive 6. Kordiyaka against Stoltman now, and they don’t do well at all. 4 for Kordiyaka, who tried for a 5th but just couldn’t do it, and Stoltman only manages 2.
Event 3 – Overhead Medley
Time to lift heavy things overhead! Start with a 90kg dumbbell that has to be lifted with one arm over your head TWICE, then onto a 145kg log for 2 reps, and then a 154kg circus barbell for 2 reps, and lastly a 168kg axle! Stoltman used to be one of the best pressers on the planet but age has caught up with him, however he should still do well here. Kordiyaka is also a good presser and might be the winner here. Its Stoltman against Guardione first, and Stoltman is looking POWERFUL. He makes the log look like nothing. Guardione gets to the circus barbell but cannot manage a rep. Stoltman meanwhile is looking as good as he has for years now, but is still unable to get that 7th rep. Guardione took a break and was able to get a barbell rep! 5 reps in total for him, 6 for Luke. Flynn takes on Kordiyaka now. Kordiyaka is fantastic at dumbbell presses and he shows it here. The log is just as easy, and then the circus barbell looks simple too! Flynn struggles with the barbell but does get 1 rep, while Kordiyaka cannot manage the Axle. He was faster than Luke though.
3 events down and 2 more to go, so lets check on the overall scores!
Kordiyaka looking very good so far, but its extremely tight underneath him with both Brits and Guardione all within a point and a half of each other!
Event 4 – Titan’s Toss
A whole new event for WSM, and one that looks to be extremely difficult. 10 14kg sacks to be thrown over a 12f bar in the quickest time… only the sacks are all at different distances away from the bar! The first one will be 7m away, and the last will be 12m away. So they will have to figure out how to get both the distance and the height when throwing, and it’ll change with every sack! Should be another good event for Kordiyaka, and it might end up being a good event for Flynn too. Up first, Guardione against Flynn. Only 6 for Flynn, which he’ll be disappointed with. Guardione manages 8 which is a very good result considering what others have done in previous heats. Stoltman and Kordiyaka go next. Kordiyaka does worse than I expected, with only 4, but Luke does better than I expected with 9!
One event left, so lets see the scores!!!
After that event, things are much tighter all the way! Kordiyaka still on top, but Stoltman now only half a point behind him, and things are so tight that everyone has a chance of making the final now, depending on the results of the last event! My prediction though is that Stoltman and Kordiyaka will be the two men going through.
Event 5 – Natural Stone Medley
No perfectly shaped stones here! Firstly they’ll have to press a 123kg stone overhead, then lift a stone to their shoulder weighing 158kg. A 176kg stone needs to be carried, and lastly they need to load a 181.5kg stone. First up, Nick Guardione! The first stone goes up nice and easy, something so many have failed to do across all heats. The stone to shoulder wasn’t too bad either, and he’s really putting the pressure on everyone else now! Third stone carried, but I don’t think he’ll have enough time to do the 4th stone. And he doesn’t. But an excellent result for him! Andrew Flynn takes his go next, and he really struggles with the first stone. A second attempt and he does press it but isn’t able to lock out. He’s just too tired after that, and sadly he will 0 on the event. BUT WAIT! He does manage it eventually, and very nearly gets the second stone up to his shoulder but runs out of time. I don’t think that will be enough for him to make the final though. Luke Stoltman out next, and he qualifies for the final with just the first stone up. A little more time to get the stone to shoulder but he completes that, and moves on to the carry part of the event. He’s faster to 3 I think compared to Guardione, but even with more time left, he cannot manage the final stone. Lastly then, Pavlo Kordiyaka, and 1 stone should be enough for him, but he won’t settle for just that. However, his first attempt goes wrong, but a quick break and it goes up. Stone up to his shoulder complete, but he has little time left and doesn’t attempt stone 3. He’s qualified though!
And that’s that! Kordiyaka and Stoltman the final 2 men to qualify for the 2025 World’s Strongest Man Final! Stay tuned for my predictions tomorrow afternoon, and then coverage of the Final at night!!!
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