Reykjavík Grapevine - 21.06.2013, Side 26

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actually have elves, it certainly has giants. “I had the idea to
open a gym like this for a long time—a hardcore training facil-
ity, like a club basically. A couple of years ago I finally made
it happen,” Magnús says. Opening Jakaból is just one of the
many ways Magnús has worked to improve the sport here in
Iceland. Organising and hosting strongman and powerlifting
contests at his gym as well as refereeing various strongman
events also keep Magnús very involved in the sport.
“I’ve already passed the torch to a couple of these guys,”
Magnús says, gesturing to Hafþór and Stefán. In addition,
Magnús occasionally steps in to give advice to them and to
some of the younger guys. “I give them tips when they need
them and help out with their form, tell them when they’re do-
ing something wrong or if there’s a way they can do it better,”
Magnús says. Maybe he’s just being modest, but whatever he’s
doing certainly seems to be helping. Until recently, however,
Iceland was without a chance at another world title for almost
15 years.
Before Stefán tore his left pectoral muscle in 2011, he rep-
resented Iceland’s first real possibility to win a world title since
the ‘90s, finishing fourth at the 2010 World’s Strongest Man
contest. He continues to rehabilitate, train, and improve every
day, but he doesn’t want to push it. Taking off his weight belt
and turning down the metal in the background after finishing
his leg set, he elaborates on his current status. “I feel good,”
Stefán says, “but I’m not competing yet. I’m going to work on
some things and continue to get better and stronger, and come
back with a huge splash.” And as his health and physical con-
dition improve, so do Iceland’s chances at another world title.
After placing sixth in 2011, Hafþór’s spot on the podium
at the World’s Strongest Man in 2012 alongside two Lithu-
anians was the closest any Icelander has come to winning
since Magnús competed. For a competitor from just about any
other country, a third place finish would be a monumental ac-
complishment as well as an exciting finish. Hafþór Björnsson,
however, was only left hungry for more. The title, Hafþór says,
remains his ultimate goal.
It won’t be easy
Despite having won two out of six individual events at the
World’s Strongest Man last year and placing second in a third
event, Hafþór still has a lot of room for improvement. “I think
with me, I just need to improve my overall strength, my dead-
lift, and my overhead presses. I’m not bad in one event in par-
ticular; I just need to improve in everything. I really just need
more time,” Hafþór says. It goes without saying that winning
a world title does not come easily, but with the exhausting
workout schedule he maintains and his dedication to getting
better, Hafþór is on the right track and remains optimistic.
“There are pretty good guys competing, but if I stay injury
free throughout the rest of the year and continue to improve, I
believe I can win,” Thor says.
As something of an expert when it comes to judging con-
tests, however, Magnús Ver offered a slightly different analy-
sis. “I said last year that he’ll win this year, but I’m kind of
thinking maybe I’ll give him another year,” Magnús laughed
as an Hafþór jokingly yelled, “What!?” from the other room
as he was mid leg-press. “If things keep going like they have
been going, for sure next year. He’ll have a hell of a battle this
year,” Magnús says.
Lithuanians Žydrunas Savickas and Vytautas Lalas barely
beat out Hafþór last year, and American Brian Shaw was a
close fourth. With the point totals at these strongman con-
tests being separated by such thin margins, a single rep or
just a few seconds in any one event could mean the title. Be-
ing the size he is, however, Hafþór dwarfs many of his fellow
competitors and even makes four-time champion Magnús Ver
look small. In most of the events, Hafþór’s monstrous stature
serves as a significant advantage, facilitating his improve-
ment in the sport and hence strengthening his chances of
winning.
Magnús was also quick to note how far Hafþór has come
in such a short time. “When he first started out, he sucked at
the overhead press,” he says. “Now he’s good at it. That’s the
trick, work on your weaknesses—make your weaknesses your
strengths.” As the odds begin to stack up in Hafþór’s favour,
the question of Hafþór bringing the world title back to Iceland
shifts from a matter of “if” to a matter of “when.” Whether or
not it’s this year or next, there is no doubt that Iceland finally
has a chance to reclaim its spot at the top of the World’s
Strongest Man podium.
After such a considerable drought, Hafþór’s feelings about
finally bringing the title back to Iceland are simple. “I can
see that I can win the competition, and I want to put Iceland
back up to the top of the sport. We are the best and I want to
remind the world of that,” he said. With Iceland’s résumé, it
would be hard to argue that he’s wrong.
Representing a nation with such a successful background
in this sport, however, is no small task. “I feel a sense of pride
representing the same small country that guys like Magnús
Ver Magnússon and Jón Páll Sigmarsson have represented,”
Hafþór said. “We have won eight times. To represent Iceland
is something special and what I consider a privilege.” With
this attitude, Hafþór brings a renewed hope to this tiny nation
for yet another world title in strongman.
“Ekkert Mál Fyrir Jón Pál!”
Jón Páll is widely regarded one of the strongest men
to ever grace the World’s Strongest Man stage and
remains an iconic figure in the sport.
Not only was he Iceland’s first strongman cham-
pion, but Jón Páll has also been crowned the World’s
Strongest Man (WSM) four times (’84, ’86, ’88, ’90) and
has finished in the top three at WSM a total of seven
times. In addition to that, Jón Páll was recently voted
into the World’s Strongest Man Hall of Fame, where he
joins Norway’s Svend Karlsen and Poland’s Mariusz
Pudzianowski.
Throughout his career, Jón Páll won countless titles
in both strongman and Olympic weightlifting competi-
tions and broke dozens of Icelandic and world weight-
lifting and strongman records. His monumental perfor-
mance in the sport led Icelanders to coin the phrase,
“Ekkert mál fyrir Jón Pál,” which translates roughly to
“It’s no problem for Jón Páll.” When faced with a daunt-
ing task, Icelanders simply remember “ekkert mál fyrir
Jón Pál” for inspiration.
Tragically, Jón Páll suffered a heart attack while
deadlifting in his gym in 1993. He was loved immensely
around the globe for his charisma and charm on and off
the world weightlifting stage.
“To represent
Iceland is some-
thing special and
what I consider a
privilege.”
THE EVENTS
In the finals of the World’s Strongest Man, a total of ten
athletes compete in six different events, accumulating
points depending on their performance. The athlete
with the most points accumulated at the end of the
six events takes home the title. Though these are ever
changing, there are a number of staples that frequently
appear on the international stage.
Truck Pull:
No surprise here, this event involves exactly what its
title indicates. After an uphill start, the athletes use a
rope to pull a 24.5 metric ton big rig over a 25-meter
course. The fastest time wins.
2012 Winner: Terry Hollands (42.97 seconds)
Hafþór: Second place (44.71 seconds)
Giant Log Press:
Another largely self-explanatory title, this is a “last
man standing” event, which features the athletes
pressing logs of different weights (170kg, 185kg,
200kg, 210kg, and finally 220kg) over their heads.
2012 Winner: Žydrunas Savickas, who successfully
overhead pressed the 220kg log.
Hafþór: Tied for fifth in this event, maxing out at
185kg.
Rock Lift:
With the giant rock selection to practice with in Ice-
land, it’s no wonder this event is Hafþór’s specialty.
It involves picking up five natural rocks of varying
weights (136-169kg) and placing them on different
platforms a few meters away. Fastest time wins.
2012 Winner: Our own Hafþór Björnsson, suc-
cessfully placing all five rocks in a time of just 25.52
seconds.
Deadlift:
This is one of the few basic powerlifting exercises
directly represented in strongman contests. In the
most recent World’s Strongest Man competition, the
athletes lifted the giant 360kg barbell as many times
as they could in a short, 75-second time period. The
person who does the most reps wins.
2012 Winner: Žydrunas Savickas (8 reps)
Hafþór: Seventh place (4 reps)
Power Stairs:
Another one of Hafþór’s specialties, this event involves
lifting a giant 225kg weight up a flight of five tall steps.
The fastest time wins.
2012 Winner: Hafþór Björnsson (36.82 seconds)
Super Yoke:
An incredibly painful event to watch, the Super Yoke
involves the athletes carrying a nearly 450kg steel
weight on their shoulders over a 40m course, 20m up
and 20m back. The fastest time wins.
2012 Winner: Brian Shaw (28.40 seconds)
Hafþór: Sixth place (33.55 seconds)
26The Reykjavík Grapevine Issue 8 — 2013