1. Zydrunas Savickas
Zydrunas Savickas is a Lithuanian professional strongman and powerlifter, he was born July 15, 1975. Zydrunas got keen on strength sports after watching a Lithuanian strongman contest on TV in 1989, after three years Savickas took part in that same strongman contest and defeated many experienced competitors.
He started taking training in powerlifting at the age of 17 and broke all the Lithuanian records in his second powerlifting contest. Zydrunas is considered the most outstanding strength athlete because of his 84 international wins in all major international strongman competitions as well as his continuity in the sports. Savickas won his first Lithuania’s Strongest Man contest in 1998, at the World powerlifting championship in Japan Zydrunas won the silver medal with a total weight of 1,020 kg.
In 2002, he won Lithuania’s Strongest Man contest, in the World’s Strongest Man contests Savickas finish in 2nd place in 2003, 2004, 2011, 2013, and 2015 and 1st place in 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2014. From the year 2003 to 2008 six consecutive times Zydrunas won the Arnold Strongman Classic, in Quebec, Canada he won the IFSA Strongman World Championships in September 2005 and broke three world records, at Strongman Champions League Savickas won 5 out of the 7 total contests, and also won Fortissimus.
Zydrunas has set a new world record for the Giant Wooden Log Lift by lifting 210 kg and at SCL Finals in Sarajevo, he set a new world record in the Log Lift with 215 kg. Savickas has made many major world records and has won many more competitions to this date. He also has a YouTube channel where he speaks about diet and training habits.
2. Brain Shaw
Brian Shaw was born on February 26, 1982, in Fort Lupton, Colorado, he is an American professional strongman and is widely regarded as one of the greatest strength athletes of all time, by achieving 26 international competitions Shaw is considered the fourth most decorated strongman in history.
In high school time, Brian was excellent in basketball and was one of the team leaders for the Rattlers in his sophomore season, throughout the time of his basketball career, he bowed on weightlifting, later Brain began his career as a strongman with no formal training and entered the Denver Strongest Man contest in October 2005. Shaw entered Fortissimus in 2009, in Canada he finished in third place and was the only man to lift six Atlas Stones weighing from 300–425 lb, at the 2010 World’s Strongest Man in Sun City, South Africa Brain got qualified for the finals. In 2010, Shaw won the inaugural Jon Pall Sigmarsson Classic and Strongman Super Series Swedish Grand Prix. At World’s Strongest man competition 2011, he beat Savickas taking 1st place.
In the 2013 competition, by lifting 442.5 kg Shaw broke Savickas’ record. In 2015 and 2016, Brain won World’s Strongest Man competitions, and won the Arnold Strongman Classic, in 2017. Brain won the 2011,2013, 2015, and 2016 World’s Strongest Man competitions, and he became the first man to win the Arnold Strongman Classic in 2011, the same year. On December 11, 2020, Brain hosted the first Shaw Classic competition, he placed 2nd, and set a new world record in the keg toss for height, crossing a height of 7.75 meters at World’s Strongest Man Competition 2021. Shaw secured the 4th position at World’s Strongest Man Competition 2022.
3. Hafthor Bjornsson
Hafthor Bjornsson is an Icelandic professional strongman, he was born on 26 November 1988. Hafthor is widely regarded as one of the greatest strength athletes of all time. Bjornsson is the first and only person to have won Europe’s Strongest Man, the World’s Strongest Man, and Arnold Strongman Classic in the same year, with 30 international competition win he holds numerous Strongman titles and also multiple world records. In history, Hafthor is the third strongman in the world.
As a basketball player, Bjornsson began his athletic career, for the Icelandic junior national basketball team Hafthor played over 32 games between 2004 and 2006. Bjornsson won the Nordic championship in May 2004 with the U-16 team. In 2011, he won his first Iceland’s Strongest Man title, and for the 10th consecutive time, he won Iceland’s Strongest Man 2020. At the World’s Strongest Viking competition held in Norway in January 2015, Hafthor broke the legendary 1,000-year-old record by carrying a 10-meter-long (33 ft), 650 kg (1,433 lb) log for five steps. In the Strongman Champions League, he achieved 8 international titles, 2 bronze medals, and 3 silver medals.
Bjornsson won Europe’s Strongest Man competition in 2014 in Leeds, in the same year, Hafthor won the 2014 Giants Live FitX Melbourne which made him the greatest Giants Live champion of all time by winning 9 records. In 2018, he won the inaugural World’s Ultimate Strongman held in Dubai and Arnold Strongman Classic in Columbus. Hafthor Bjornsson has appeared as an actor, in the HBO series Game of Thrones for five seasons in the series he portrayed the role of Ser Gregor Clegane. Hafthor is often referred to as Mountain or Thor.
4. Bill Kazmaier
Bill Kazmaier is an American former world professional wrestler, champion powerlifter, and world champion strongman, he was born on December 30, 1953. He won three World’s Strongest Man titles and two International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Championships, Bill set various strongmen and powerlifting world records during the 1970s and 1980s, as he is considered to be one of the all-time most significant competitors in strength competitions.
With a bench press of 622 lbs, he set a world record and won IPF World Powerlifting Championship in 1979 in Dayton, Ohio at age 25. Powerlifting career 1983 Bill acquired a first place at the United States Powerlifting Federation (USPF) National Powerlifting Championships, in spite of having two major injuries Kazmaier won the IPF World Championship. Bill’s winning deadlift was the 661.4 lbs (300 kg) bench press, 925.9 lbs (420 kg) squat, and 837.8 lbs (380 kg).
He holds world records in three of the four powerlifting events at the same time by setting a new of 402 kg (886.7 lbs), due to multiple muscle tears and injuries Bill’s career was affected from 1981 onwards. Kazmaier won 1980, 1981, and 1982, competitions by a large margin, to win the WSM title three times Bill was the first man. In 1980, Kazmaier achieved many titles including the silver dollar deadlift, the final tug of war, the log lift, the girl squat lift, the engine race, and the steel bar bend. He won the first three events at World’s Strongest Man competition in 1982, and Bill returned to the World’s Strongest Man Contest in 1988 and won three of eight events.
5. Mark Henry
Mark Jerrold Henry is an American former powerlifter, strongman, professional wrestler, and Olympic weightlifter, he was born on June 12, 1971. Mark is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling as a coach. Henry is recognized for his 25-year career in WWE.
Mark was a two-time Olympian (1992 and 1996), a two-time WWE world champion, and a bronze, silver, and gold medalist at the Pan American Games in 1995, in the same year as a powerlifter, he was WDFPF World Champion, for squat and deadlift he was raw world record holder, Mark was two-time U.S. National Champion in 1995 and 1997.
He was a Champion in weightlifting as Henry was a three-time U.S. National Weightlifting Champion, twice Mark was U.S. Olympic Festival Champion, and also the NACAC champion in 1996. From 1993–1997 Henry holds all three Senior US American weightlifting records. Mark won the first annual Arnold Strongman Classic in 2002. Henry also became a one-time WWF European Champion and in 2011, he became WWE’s World Heavyweight Championship.