World's Strongest Man winner Magnus Samuelsson told IronMind that he will open his 2006 competitive season with the WSMSS Mohegan Sun Grand Prix in June.


Torbjorn (left) and Magnus Samuelsson in the loading race at the 1998 World Team Event in Hardenburg, Holland. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

In July, Magnus will be competing in Norway and in Moscow, before returning home for Sweden's Strongest Man. Magnus said that he also would like to squeeze in a couple of World Strongman Cup contests, as well, before hopefully heading off to a great performance at the 2006 World's Strongest Man contest.

Magnus said that he will be competing at a somewhat higher bodyweight this year and that while he has cut his training volume, he is heavier and stronger, despite a very hectic schedule that includes seminars and TV commercials. Grip guys will be happy to know that Magnus said that he can still close a No. 3 Captains of Crush gripper virtually any time.

Torbjorn Samuelsson - who is getting married later this year - is also is training hard, and while injuries have held him back in the past, Magnus said that Torbjorn is doing very well and that he is hoping for a big year in strongman this season.

Starting with the idea that even "amateur" strongmen should have the chance to earn money, the United States Strongman Federation (USSF) is being formed by Ty Phillips.

Phillips has shared the USSF mission statement with IronMind and it states:

"The purpose of the USSF is to bring the sport of strongman out of the back yard and into the light. . .The USSF is for and by the athletes, not the promoters. . .The USSF mission is to see even amateurs get paid for winning . . . Instead of seeing athletes pay hundreds of dollars and hours of travel for little gain and the hopes of one day becoming a pro, we would like to see the best amateur athletes get paid on their way. The registration dues you pay and the contest fees you pay, GO BACK TO YOU in winnings, prizes and food at every show. A board of athlete elected officials will govern so that the best interest of the athletes stays in mind."

Phillips had been the Ohio NASS Chairman and he waited to go public with his announcement until he first advised NASS President Dione Wessels, who immediately relieved him of his NASS position. Quick to point out that his motivation is to advance the sport of strongman, Phillips told IronMind, "I approached Dione and Willie [Wessels] prior to the release of any information regarding USSF out of respect. I like them both and they are good people."

Talking about the days when he was into ferociously-intense grip training - the very thing that enabled him to be the first person certified on the No. 4 Captains of Crush gripper - Joe Kinney told IronMind, "I think my body knew it had to get stronger; it knew that it had to adapt."


Joe Kinney, the first man to officially close a No. 4 Captains of Crush gripper is an example of how a good attitude coupled with some really hard work can take you to places you might never have dreamed possible - along with Randall Strossen and Nathan Holle, Joe Kinney wrote the book Captains of Crush Grippers: What They Are and How To Close Them. Photo courtesy of Joe Kinney.

Explaining the body's purpose in adapting, Kinney said, "This is to protect itself. It has to adapt or it will be destroyed."

In his quest to find a better way of doing things, Joe Kinney has always been very thoughtful, analytical and innovative about his training, so it carried some special weight when he sang the praises of his IMTUGS. "They're a pleasure to use - it's hard to put them down," he said.

Guys who remember Joe Kinney for his rear-end-to-the-ground outdoor squats will be happy to know that while some joint problems have kept him from lifting lately, his open mind and no-quit attitude gave him a way to work out.

Noticing a friend's tremendous upper body gains from training on a Bowflex machine, Kinney was thinking about alternatives to weights, although ones with a smaller price tag. Enter a set of Fabled Cables, which Kinney simply calls "those rubber bands" and he's extremely happy to be back in training again, doing what he's always done, "trying to outsmart my body . . . to get stronger."

Fabled Bulgarian weightlifting coach Ivan Abadjiev told IronMind that he attended the team's control last Friday, giving us a preview of what we might expect at the upcoming European Weightlifting Championships.


2000 Olympic silver medalist Georgi Markov (Bulgaria) sticks his 155-kg opening snatch at the 2005 World Weightlifting Championships (Doha, Qatar). Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Abadjiev, who is retired from active coaching responsibilities, said that the team will not be coming into the European Weightlifting Championships at peak levels, although it sounds as if lifting fans can expect some solid performances nonetheless. 77-kg competitor Georgi Markov, for example, snatched 155 kg and cleaned and jerked 200 kg in the control, Abadjiev said, and superheavyweight Velichko Cholakov snatched 195 kg and cleaned and jerked 235 kg.

'This was only training," explained Abadjiev, adding, "they might do five or ten kilos more in competition."

David Goldstrom, Creative Director of London-based Television in Europe, told IronMind that the Thor Cup - an international weightlifting tournament with a unique format - is definitely on.

Goldstrom has been involved with television coverage of international weightlifting since 1995, when he covered the World Championships in Guangzhou, China and next week he will continue his work of providing television coverage of the European Weightlifting Championships.

Goldstrom said that this tournament is a way to give more people a glimpse of weightlifting, a sport that many only see during the summer Olympics, and he feels this particular format is very fan friendly.

Five nations - Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden - will each have a three-man team and the total body weight for the team cannot exceed 280 kg, with any combination of body weights being permissible. Thus, regardless of their exact weights, this gives each team a "lightweight," a "middleweight" and a "heavyweight" competitor.

Using a round system, the five lightest men from each team complete three attempts in the snatch. The five middleweights run through their snatches in the same way, followed by the five heavyweights. After all the snatches, the snatch total for each team is posted, which determines the ranking. The same system is then used for the clean and jerks, and the final total (snatch plus clean and jerk) for each team determines the overall positions.

Set for the Winter Garden Performance Arena of the Smaralind Mall in Reykjavik on May 13 at 3:30, this two-hour tournament will be broadcast live.

"We need to be doing new things to popularize weightlifting," Goldstrom said, "and rooting for their national team is a natural way to get people involved. Plus, these five teams are pretty evenly matched, and sport is at its best when the outcome is unpredictable, so this is perfect."

Svend Karlsen fans in Europe and America are in the money this spring and summer because the very popular Norwegian strongman will be competing in Norway, England and the US.


Working like a human winch, Svend Karlsen hits the truck pull at the 2003 Vantaa (Finland) Grand Prix. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Right now, Svend reports that he's training hard and an insider told IronMind, "He's really strong again," which is saying quite a bit.

Svend's spring schedule calls for competing in the Norway's Strongest Man contest on May 20, followed by a World Strongman Cup competition in England on May 27 and then the Mohegan Sun World's Strongest Man Super Series Grand Prix in the US on June 1.

In July, Svend Karlsen returns to the US for the Jim Davis contest in St. Charles, Missouri on July 3 - 4, and then he heads to Southern California, home of fellow Norwegian strongman Odd Haugen.

IFSA's first Grand Prix of the 2006 season just finished in Dubai and Zydrunas Savickas took home first place.

Here are the top seven finishers and their points:

1. Zydrunas Savickas (Lithuania) 58 points
2. Geoff Dolan (Canada) 55-1/2
3. Andrus Muremets (Estonia) 54-1/2
4. Travis Ortmayer (USA) 49
5. Tommi Lotta (Finland) 44-1/2
6. Misha Koklyaev (Russia) 43-1/2
7. Reza Gharei (Iran) 42

The total prize money was US$20,000 and IFSA's Marcel Mostert told IronMind that "Everything went smooth and easy. This was our first Grand Prix of the season," said Mostert, "and we are looking forward to our next Grand Prix, in Russia on May 13."

Hossein Tavakoli (Iran), the impressively muscular weightlifter who won the 2000 Olympic gold medal in the 105-kg category is back in training.


Looking good, Hossein Tavakoli approaches the bar at the 2004 Asian Weightlifting Championships (Almaty, Kazakhstan). Minutes later, Tavakoli blew a patella tendon in a devastating accident and has only recently resumed training on the lifts. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Anyone who was in Almaty, Kazakhstan for the 2004 Asian Weightlifting Championships knows just how horrific it was when Tavakoli ruptured his patella tendon, but the guy who seems like Hollywood star material has resumed training on the lifts, building up slowly, and he is currently at the level of snatching 120 kg and cleaning and jerking 150 kg - not yet ready to return to competition, but apparently on his way back.

"I was a veteran," Tommy Kono said with a laugh. "I knew what to do."


Tommy Kono points out a detail on the flyer for his second contest - held at the Sacramento YMCA in 1948. Two weeks earlier, Kono had launched his weightlifting career at a contest held at the San Jose YMCA. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

We all start somewhere and for weightlifting legend Tommy Kono, back-to-back meets at two area YMCAs is where his Olympic and World Weightlifting Championship career began. And showing that he can look back on his stellar career with a sense of humor, Kono attributed the 25-pound increase in his total from his his first to his second contest as reflecting how quickly he'd mastered the game.

Kono was at his family home in Sacramento yesterday, where he was sorting through piles of newspaper clippings and other memorabilia from a weightlifting career that put his him at the top of his field and caused California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to say of himself, "I wanted to studly like Tommy, so strong and so muscular."

Russia's Andrei Chemerkin has great credentials as a weightlifter: He's an Olympic gold medalist and a MILO cover guy - plus he attempted the all-time heaviest clean and jerk - so when he shares his view of who's walking off with the superheavyweight crown at this year's World Weightlifting Championships, it's time to listen up.


Andrei Chemerkin (Russia) cranks on 262.5 kg, on his way to a commanding clean and jerk at the 1997 World Weightlifting Championships (Chiang Mai, Thailand). Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

He didn't hesitate when asked: "Hossein Rezazadeh" was Andrei Chemerkin's pick, and even though that part seemed simple, Chemerkin told IronMind that anything is possible in the future.

Asked about his country's top super, Evgeny Chigishev, who beat Rezazadeh in the snatch at the 2005 Worlds, Chemerkin said that he will sit out the Europeans this year and focus on the Worlds. Mikhail Koklyaev, according to Chemerkin, while a talented weightlifter, is content to be a strongman, and though he has produced big lifts in Russia, Chemerkin said, Koklyaev has never reproduced them outside of his country.

As sure as Chemerkin was that Rezazadeh would maintain his crown this year, what about the 2008 Olympics?

"Anything is possible," Chemerkin told IronMind. "Maybe a Chinese lifter will emerge out of the blue and surprise everyone."

Jim Davis has just given IronMind the prize money breakdown and the basic events for his 4th of July strongman contest in St. Charles, Missouri.

Financially, there will be no losers in this winning field of competitors because Jim Davis said that first place is US$4,000 and the prize money goes down US$100 per place, so that sixth place still earns US$3,500.

Event details are still being settled, but the basics are:

1. Trolley pull with a harness
2. Log press for reps
3. Farmer's Walk
4. Stones
5. Deadlift for reps

The full details on events will be announced as they are finalized.

And for everyone who has ever considered taking his TV and throwing it for distance, we just want you to know that this is being considered as a more colorful alternative to the conventional throwing events you see in strongman. "Stay tuned," will never be same in strongman again.

In what will be loudly applauded in the US and international strongman community, Jim Davis and his Extreme Strongman team are joining up with the city of St. Charles, Missouri to put on a 4th of July strongman contest that is going to light up the sky.


Calling the shots: Jim Davis and his Extreme Strongman team are back, so bring the whole family to St. Charles, Missouri for a very special Fourth of July celebration and a strongman contest that will remind you of what strongman is all about. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

When Jim Davis took a break from strongman in 2003, it left a big hole and there was only one way to fix it: Jim Davis and Extreme Strongman had to return, and that's what they are doing. Jim said that he and Rick Fowler, who Jim said "has been with me every step of the way," have a lot of work to do between now and show time, because "everything has to be perfect," in their return to strongman productions.

This is a headliner show, with World's Strongest Man winner Svend Karlsen, Phil Pfister, Karl Gillingham and Mark Philippi set to compete - two more topflight professional strongmen will rounding out the field, Jim Davis told IronMind, with one invitation already extended. Davis said that the total prize money is US$22,500 in cash, and with six men competing, nobody is going home empty handed.

St. Charles is a destination spot for the whole family and it's rooted in American history as Lewis and Clark's jumping off spot - make plans now to bring the whole family and enjoy a first rate Fourth of July celebration and a strongman contest that the US - and the sport - has needed for a long time.

Welcome back, Jim!

Brian Siders needs no introduction to powerlifting fans, and strongman fans know that besides competing in the Arnold Strongman contest the last two years, Brian is ace American strongman Phillip Pfister's training partner.


Brian Siders got off to an impressive start in strongman, making his debut at the 2005 Arnold. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

What not everyone knows, though, is that Phil Pfister, historically not the strongest strongman in the gym, has been working on the powerlifts, and to show you what they've been up to, Phil and Brian will be lifting the Qwest American Invitational on April 29 and 30, a USAPL contest.

Meet director Sherman Ledford said that this contest is the first of its kind, with "over 10 world champions and cash prizes." Ledford, coach of the USA men's team at the IPF World Championships, said that he wants all top powerlifters to have a chance to see what they can lift in single ply gear in a drug-tested meet. "We want to offer everyone in America this opportunity: break some records, put up a good total, go to our nationals." And if you're good enough, from there, you could go to the IPF Worlds, and compete against lifters representing 40 or 50 countries, Ledford said.

The Qwest American Invitational will be held in the Duluth High School (Duluth, Georgia), outside Atlanta.

Whether you look at science, society or religion, things are pretty simple: Obey the law and prosper; break the law and you will pay the price.

Steve "Inver Stone" Jeck puts a laser beam on the Law of Strength for us this month, so take minute to read the latest "From the Quarry" and make sure you end up on the right side of the law(s). Follow the "From the Quarry" link on the IronMind home page, or click here:

http://www.ironmind.com/ironcms/export/IronMind/Main/fromthequarry.html

IFSA is kicking off its 2006 Grand Prix season in Dubai April 21 - 23 and IronMind has just received the events.

1. Truck Pull
2. Power Stairs: 200 kg - 220 kg - 240 kg; six stairs, three meters height from first step
3. Loading Race: 5 boxes, 100 kg each; 120 cm high platform
4. Log lift: 120 kg for reps, 75-second time limit
5. Wheelbarrow: 320-kg car, 20 meter-course
6. Farmer's walk: 150 kg per hand, 60-meter course
7. Tire Flip: 380-kg, 180-cm tire; 20-meter course
8. Medley: three tire flips; 15-meter farmer's walk, load two 100-kg boxes

IFSA Director Marcel Mostert told IronMind that he is very happy to have "the most top guys in the world in Dubai to show the Middle East our strength in the world! Saudi Arabia is a new country," with a competitor in the Dubai contest, and his results will be followed especially closely, Mostert explained, since IFSA has a grand prix scheduled for Jeddah on July 28th, "the first ever in Saudi Arabia."

Strongman season has already started - with the big Arnold contest - and the now the weightlifting world is warming up, as attention is turning to the upcoming European Championships and also smaller, early season meets in Asia.


Hossein Rezazadeh (Iran) snatches 210 kg at the 2005 World Weightlifting Championships (Doha, Qatar), a rather routine weight for the two-time Olympic gold medalist. Evgeny Chigishev (Russia) snatched the gold, however, with a very impressive 211. Who will be the top super this year? Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

It's still early, but the European Weightlifting Championships later this month will provide the first serious look at who in Europe is really lifting what, and in Asia, smaller meets will give an early read in what is becoming a hotbed of huge lifts; plus, the Junior Worlds (in China at the end of May) are likely to reveal the future stars of the sport, including leading medal prospects for the Beijing Olympics.

Stay tuned!

Tickets for the second annual Mohegan Sun Grand Prix are on sale now, so if you want to see all but one World's Strongest Man winner from 1997 to 2005, get your ticket now.


It was only about a week after 9/11 but Jim Davis wasn't going to let a few terrorists stop something as big as his United in Strength strongman contest and one of the guys who hopped on a plane to compete was Svend Karlsen, who won the contest and then grabbed the mike and declared "It is important that the whole world stand together and show that terrorism has no right!" Svend Karlsen (shown squatting at WSM '04) went on to win the 2001 World's Strongest Man contest and he will be competing at the Mohegan Sun Grand Prix. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Everyone from Jouko Ahola to Mariusz Pudzianowski will be there, and tickets are available through Ticketmaster and the Mohegan Sun Box Office. Located in southeastern Connecticut, the Mohegan Sun is "one of the largest, most distinctive and spectacular entertainment, gaming, shopping and meeting destinations in the United States . . . and is within easy access of New York, Boston, Hartford and Providence."

To some it might be a grip contest, and it will include what promises to be a big one, but more than that, on June 24, Richard Sorin is hosting a reunion of grip guys - from the ones who blazed the trail, to the young guys who are out there pushing the bar higher and higher.


He was re-doing a weight room, saw some old York 100-pound dumbbells, and one thing led to another: Richard Sorin could pinch grip the end cut off one of these puppies, calling it "The Blob." A lot of people who came along since, trying to replicate this benchmark feat of grip strength, have called it a lot worse. Photo courtesy of Richard Sorin and Randall Strossen.

"Everyone is welcome," said Richard Sorin, and besides issuing a select number of personal invitations, IronMind is cordially extending an open invitation to everyone certified on a No. 3 or No. 4 Captains of Crush gripper to be there - Richard Sorin will always be the first guy IronMind certified on its No. 3 Captains of Crush gripper, setting the standard that would inspire countless guys in the coming years, so what better time and place to stop by, say hi, and shake some hands.

Richard Sorin once told IronMind's Randall Strossen that he wanted to have a fun get-together for lifting guys and in homage to the great and noble gorillas, he suggested the name Silverback Society. Be in Irmo in June and you'll have a chance to hang out with the great gorillas of the grip world: past, present and future.

See you there.

Douglas Edmunds, Ph.D., the force behind IFSA, has said that Jon Pall Sigmarsson was like a son, and he calls the bigger than life Icelander "IFSA's iconic strongman."


Mikhail Koklyaev (Russia) bears the burden of the MET-Rx Heavy Yoke at the 2006 Arnold Strongman contest. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

So, when Dr. Edmunds says that Mikhail Koklyaev is the guy who comes closest to Jon Pall, that's saying a mouthful.

"He's box office," said Dr. Edmunds, explaining that besides being strong, Koklyaev is "very athletic, good looking and has a fantastic personality." Dr. Edmunds sees Koklyaev as a triple threat, a guy who can make his mark in strongman, weightlifting and in the Highland Games - the sort of package that will allow Koklyaev to reach out and be recognized by many different groups, said Dr. Edmunds.

Mikhail Koklyaev finished third at the recent Arnold Strongman contest and he told IronMind that while he will not be competing in the upcoming European Weightlifting Championships, he is planning to lift at the Worlds.

Asked what she would most like to see happen in strongman this year, the Ukrainian Strongman Federation's Olena Kiba said, "I want Vasyl [Virastyuk] to be number one in the world."


Vasyl Virastyuk (Ukraine) fighting his way up the ramp on the MET-Rx Timber Carry at the 2006 Arnold Strongman contest. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Virastyuk is considered one of the top competitors on the international strongman circuit, having won the prestigious World's Strongest Man contest in 2004 and he just proved himself again in the very different format of the Arnold Strongman contest, where he was second to Zydrunas Savickas.

Kiba, who manages Virastyuk, told IronMind that the Ukrainian strongman star is currently training three to four hours a day, five days a week, and that his training is "very scientific" and involves "not just the iron," because, said Kiba, being a successful strongman requires such additional elements as working on flexibility, training the nervous system, etc.

Kiba also said that plans are moving forward for her "World's Strongest Nation" competition, which is scheduled for the end of July.

The Pittsburgh Barbell Club is presenting the 2006 Steel City Open on June 4 at the Martial Arts and Sports Complex in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.

All USA Weightlifting members are eligible to compete, so bring your card or get one at the meet. For details, please contact Rege Becker (rbecker@ppg.com) or Kathie Brenneman (k.brenneman@worldnet.att.net).

Sure there are worldwide benchmarks in the grip world - such as the No. 3 Captains of Crush gripper, the Blob, and the Rolling Thunder - but what you can squeeze hard is limited only by your imagination.


Jim Wylie pinch grips a car tire at the Peter Horne Memorial grip contest (Stafford, England). Photo courtesy of David Horne.

Consider the "Two Hands Pinch Lift of Weighted Car Tyre" used at today's Peter Horne Memorial grip contest - it looks like a terrific test of pinch gripping and the event was won by contest organizer David Horne, followed by Jim Wylie. David won the British Pinch Grip Championships, which consisted of a two hands pinch lift, along with this tire lift; David Horne also won the British Hub Lifting Championships, which added weight to a 45-pound plate and had an event called the "one hand triple hub lift." Gary Hunt won the bending portion of this contest, David Horne won the wrist strength event and then capped off the day with another win on the Rolling Thunder - pulling 96.6 kg.

Not wanting to detract from Bay to Breakers, PWA president Butch Curry and host Kevin Doherty magnanimously changed the date of the 2006 Northern California Open.


Ken Clark - 100% born and raised as a Northern California weightlifter - was part of the powerhouse Sports Palace team in the 1980s. Ken's career included winning National Championships and representing the USA at both the Olympics and the World Championships. Here, Ken is just starting his warmups at the 1990 Worlds (Budapest, Hungary). Lift at the Lincoln meet and you might be able to follow in Ken's footprints. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Still set for Lincoln High School, the new date is May 20th, so this way, if you want to, you can lift heavy on Saturday and then run hard on Sunday.

How many times have you heard about the supposedly strongest guy at whatever? Well, when Bill Kazmaier says, "One guy is stronger than all," it's time to listen up.


Zydrunas Savickas hauls up almost half a ton on the MHP deadlift at the 2006 Arnold . Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

"I'm glad 25 years have passed since I was competing," the Kaz told IronMind. "He's got it all: shoulders, chest, legs, back."

Bill Kazmaier, for all his modesty, remains a magnet and a head turner in any crowd of strongmen or strong men, for that matter, and while he might not be be on the field of play as a competitor any more, watch for him as commentator at the biggest contests around.

Alastair "Big Al" Christie is hosting Scotland's first ever Men's Under 105-kg Strongman Championships and Scotland's Strongest Woman contest.

Set for July 9 in the Perth Concert Hall, Big Al says, "Never before has the fair city seen a competition of this kind."

Anyone who's been around IronMind for last 15 years or so knows that we often mention John Brookfield's creativity when it comes to training.


John Brookfield blows through a tennis ball at the 2004 Arnold. Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

Although we first introduced to the strength world because of his prodigious lower arm power - John Brookfield is the second man in the world to close the No. 3 Captains of Crush gripper, the first to bend the IronMind Red Nail, and is a world record holder in card tearing, etc., etc. - he's also always been a man of great stamina.

In his quest for new ways to develop the ability to sustain explosive power, John Brookfield created a strength and conditioning system that has been used by special forces, federal agents, law enforcement officers, football players and fitness enthusiasts, and his web site for this system is now up and running:

http://www.powerropes.com/

Stop by and see what you've been missing.

Pacific Weightlifting Association president Butch Curry announced that, with Kevin Doherty's help, the 2006 Northern California Open will be held at Lincoln High School on May 21.


He's from Salinas, but Mario Martinez moved to Northern California to fully develop as a weightlifter - Mario is the last American man to medal in weightlifting at the Olympics. Who's next? Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D. photo.

The advantage of attending even a local weightlifting meet in Northern California is that you never know who might show up: the area has produced many of the top American weightlifters and there are more on their way, so even if you don't plan to lift, stop by and say hi to a past or future Olympian.