Hugo Girard

 

Hugo Girard (born December 20, 1971 in Sainte-Anne-de-Portneuf, Quebec) is a Canadian strongman. Girard is a Strongman Super Series world Champion, a four-time World Muscle Power champion and a six-time Canada’s Strongest Man.

Contents  [hide]  1 Strength career 2 Profile 3 References 4 External links

Strength career

Prior to his career as a strongman competitor, Girard worked as a bouncer in a popular Quebec City nightclub on weekends while attending community college. In the early 1990s, he went to Los Angeles in order to either pursue a career as a professional bodybuilder or as an actor. After a few months, Girard came back to the province of Quebec where he was later hired as a police officer for the city of Gatineau.

Girard focused on Strongman competition, and became a 6-time consecutive finalist in the World’s Strongest Man competition from 1998-2004. Hugo’s highest placing was 4th place at the 1999 World’s Strongest Man contest.^[1]

In 2002 Girard reached the high point of his career to date, winning the 2002 Strongman Super Series overall title. Hugo has also won the World Muscle Power Championships 4 times, in 1999, 2001, 2003, and 2004.

Girard dominated strongman competition in Canada for several years. He was the Canada’s Strongest Man champion from 1999 to 2004. He was also the North America’s Strongest Man champion in 2001 and 2002.

Beginning in 2004, injuries began to plague his career including back to back injuries to his achilles tendon in 2005, the first of which took place at the 2005 Arnold Strongman Classic forcing him to retire from the contest.^[2] These injuries required a long period of rehabilitation, and nearly a year and a half to fully recover. At one point Hugo was in a cast up to his waist.^[3] Hugo’s comeback took place at the 2006 Mohegan Sun Super Series event. After winning the first event, he tore his patellar tendon in the second event, the Conan’s Wheel and was forced to retire from the contest.^[4] He attempted to compete in the North America’s Strongest Man Competition in 2007, but withdrew due to injury. Hugo was able to bounce back in 2008, winning Quebec’s Strongest Man.^[5] This win qualified Hugo for the 2008 Canada’s Strongest Man contest. Hugo was leading the contest after the first day, but suffered yet another injury on the second day of competition and tearfully announced his retirement from strongman competition.^[6]

Girard broke several records during his career, some of which are still standing today. He has held records in events such as the log press, apollon’s axle press, crucifix hold, farmer’s walk Atlas stones, bench press, truck pull and squat. He has also pulled an 80-ton Boeing 737 for a short distance.

Due to his strength, Girard is often compared to fellow Quebec native Louis Cyr, a dominant nineteenth-century strongman who was considered the strongest man in history at the turn of the century. Girard has trained several other strongmen in the Ottawa and Gatineau regions, including Travis Lyndon and Jessen Paulin, who has participated in the World’s Strongest Man competition and succeeded Girard as Canadia’s Strongest Man in 2005 and 2006.

Girard is currently a member of the organization of the Gatineau Hot Air Balloon Festival that takes place every Labour Day weekend. He is also the current president of the Canadian Federation of Strength Athletes. In addition to his career as a strongman, Girard served as a police officer for 12 years.

Hugo was the subject of a documentary film called “Strongman: Hugo Girard” in 2002. The film shows Hugo’s training for the 2002 North America’s Strongest Man competition, which he eventually won. The film also features his training partners Jessen Paulin and Travis Lyndon. The film was directed by Alan Black and released by Top of the World Films.^[7]

Profile

• Biceps: 55 cm (22 inches)
• Neck : 53 cm (21 inches)
• Calves: 55 cm (22 inches)
• Chest: 158 cm (62 inches)
• Quadriceps: 85 cm (33 inches)
• Height: 189 cm (6 feet 2 inches)
• Weight: 150 kg (330 pounds)

References

1. ^ http://strongestman.billhenderson.org/bios/hugo.html
2. ^ http://ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2005/Mar/Hugo_Girard_In_a_Cast_Up_To_His_Waist_.html
3. ^ http://ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2005/Mar/Hugo_Girard_In_a_Cast_Up_To_His_Waist_.html
4. ^ http://ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2006/Jun/Hugo_Girard_Update.html
5. ^ http://www.ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2008/Jul/Hugo_Girard_Wins_Quebecxs_Strongest_Man.html
6. ^ http://ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2008/Aug/Louis-Philippe_Jean_Wins_Canadaxs_Strongest_Man____Hugo_Girard_Injured____Retires.html
7. ^ http://www.topoftheworldfilms.com/strongmanmovie/

External links

• Hugo Girard’s website
• United Athletes Magazine Interview with Hugo about the importance of determination in sports.
• Official website for STRONGMAN a documentary about Hugo Girard

Strongman pulls WW2 Bomber airplane (6 Pack on Canada’s Got Talent)

Strength videos: World’s Strongest feats gallary

World Records set by Canadians!

The Canadian team bringing it home

By the time team Canada arrived to the US to do battle, the team had been cut in half. Late cuts to Jared Rowntree and Jason Fabbian severely hurt the team.

The remaining three members were Alex Drolc, new comer Zbigniew Zatek (originally from Poland), and 6 Pack Lapadat.

The bench press was the first event.

Alex got things off to a fast start in the 220 pound weight class with a solid 407 pound bench press. Ron Wisdom of the US was nipping at his heels with an equally impressive 402 pound press. Lester Mumley fell behind with a 352 bench.

6 Pack had the second highest bench for the 181 pound weight class with 325 pounds, trailing Daniel Henson of the USA (330 pound bench) and narrowly putting him ahead of Nick Apseloff (320 pound bench).

The most impressive of the benching that day was Zbigniew Zatek of Canada. Zbigniew, in the 198 pound class, crushed the World Record for masters with a 451 pound bench press. It was easily the biggest eye opener of the bench press event.

Next was the deadlift.

Alex Drolc seperated himself from the pack and solidified his win with an impressive 661 pound deadlift. For his US counterparts, it put the competition out of reach. Lester would surpass Ron Wisdom (who was a 220 pounder in the master’s division) in the deadlift, but still be over a hundred pounds behind Alex in total. In a forth attempt that is allowed to competitors who are attempting a World record, Alex got a World record deadlift up to his knees before dropping the weight.

6 Pack was the only lifter in his weight class to register a deadlift, as the others opted to leave the competition with bench only. The show must go on, and 6 Pack took all three attempts, netting himself a 451 pound deadlift.

Zbigniew Zatek of Hamilton would not deadlift that day, sticking with the bench press event only.

As it turned out, Zatek would come in handy for Canada when he won the body weight bench press for reps competition. Zatek was head and shoulders above the rest of the competition with a huge 47 reps at a body weight of 198 pounds.

In the strict curl event the Canadians once again shined.

Alex Drolc got the heaviest curl of the day with a 160 pound strict curl. In a forth attempt Alex went for a World record but was spent. Having been dissappointed in his deadlift, 6 Pack looked to make a statement in the curl event.

Nailing his first three attempts with ease, 6 Pack opted for a fourth attempt at a World Record in the Curls. 6 Pack would have to lift the same weight that Chris Desanto and Ted Brooks (both over 275 pounds!) had curled if he was to break the record.

With a titanic lift, the World record would fall, and 6 Pack would bring the final victory to Canada. Below is a video clip of 6 Pack bringing the World Record to Canada.

Team Canada leaves for the US to do battle

6 Pack and Alex, Canadian representatives at the Can-Am meet

In the past week this site has had over a thousand hits. I have to thank every one for spreading the word and helping out. I can’t say enough how important it is to have people generous enough to donate to this cause.

The Canadian lifters going to the US has been cut yet again as of yesterday. First Jared Rowntree pulled out, now Jason Fabbian has also decided to not compete. Both have personal reasons that prohibit them from competing against the Americans this weekend. Canada’s representation at this tournament is going to be extremely small as a result of these last minute cuts to our team.

But that is fine, cause when you step onto that stage to do your lifts you are alone anyways. My goal of setting a Canadian curl record is still embedded in my head. No matter how many Canadians are with me in competition, I still have to worry about my own lifts. So in that aspect nothing has changed.

I’ll do my best for my team mates who couldn’t make the trip, and for those who have poured in to support me. The support is overwhelming. I appreciate it. When I get back I’ll have a full write up of how it all went.

Now lets go crush some Yankees…

Looking to set a Canadian record in August

I am looking to set a Canadian record this August at the 100% RAW Canada vs. America meet in Vermont.

This competition will be contested for the highest total weight lifted in the bench press and the deadlift. Each lifter gets three attempts to lift their heaviest in the bench press and the deadlift.

There is also a strict curl competition that day. This event will test who has the strongest arms, Canada or America. We have to lift with our backs and butts to a wall, and they cannot come off the wall at any point during the lift. The lifter’s knees have to be locked at all times too. The rules are so strict is leaves no “cheating” room to be performed during the lift. You can only use your arms to curl the bar. Hence the event being dubbed “the strict curl”.

Its doubtful many are as strict when doing curls in the gym. I have prepared for this event. I would perform “cheater” curls that most people do in the gym. This lets me use more of my body in the lift. Then I did the strict curl against the wall. The strict curl rules take off a good 50 pounds from your cheater curls. Its brutal.

It is in the strict curl event that I will be gunning for a Canadian record. The World record in my weight class (181 pounds) is currently a 142.5 pound strict curl. I have yet to hit that mark in training. Still, I’ll try to top that during the meet in my third and last attempt. If I only set a new Canadian record in the meet, I am convinced I’ll re-write the World record books in the near future.

Unfortunately team mate Jared Rowntree is not coming to the meet in August. He was a heavy favorite in the strict curl competition. Team Canada may still have the best deadlifter in the event with Alex Drolc. Alex is also competing in the strict curl competition in the 225 pound weight class.

Another lifter that team Canada has high hopes for is Jason Fabbian. Nick named “the Italian Stallion”, he is a trunk heavy lifter who specializes in the deadlift event. Jason has spent hours with Alex perfecting his deadlift. We’ll get a chance to see how is numbers are in the 198 pound weight class on August 16th.

6 Pack wins the Canadian Championships!

It was a long weekend.

It started off rough because I over shot my weigh-in. I had traveled thousands of miles by plane, rented a car, got a hotel, and had dropped a decent amount to get to the National qualifer. I didn’t want to miss my weight class limit of 181 pounds. No way I was going to travel that far and go through all of this to miss my weight limit. In the past weight lifting competitions I was only lifting for myself, but this time I had to qualify for the World Championships and help raise money for SickKids. No way I was going to let them down because I didn’t make weight.

I walk around at a body weight of roughly 187 pounds, so I needed to cut 6 pounds. With the pressure to make the limit, I ended up sweating out 5 pounds more than I had to in the sauna! I weighed in at a very low 178 pounds. I have not weighed that low in years.

I had made my weight limit with plenty of room to spare, but I was a lil drained.

Still, I did my best to get my body weight back up, and I was back around 184 pounds come time to lift.

I knew I had to hit my numbers to qualify for the World Championships in the fall. I knew I had to dig deep and make sure I lifted the World Classification standard to be invited to the Worlds. It did not matter if you won your weight division or not, if you did not lift enough weight you would not be allow to go to the World Championships. After all, sometimes the strongest guys in certain countries are still just not strong enough.

So I had to win my division, and I had to lift enough weight to qualify me for the World Championships. It was there, against the strongest men in the World, that I would lift and raise money for the SickKids foundation for every pound I lift. Me and the SickKids foundation already had the whole thing planned, and I couldn’t let them down. I had to make it to the Worlds to get sponsors (both corporate and individual) for the fundraiser.

The meet was run by Randy Sparks, and he has been running these meets for years. A very well run meet. You could tell there was going to be some heavy weights lifted that day because outside of the venue you could see cars with licenses plates from all over Canada. They had come to try to qualify for the World Drug Free Powerlifting Championships.

That day World records were set by some of the seasoned lifters. They would not be denied there place at the Worlds.

For my part, I failed on my third bench press attempt, and third deadlift, but still had 7 of my 9 lifts pass. In those 7 lifts (in the squat, bench press and deadlift events) I lifted a total of two thousand four hundred and ninety seven pounds.

It was enough to capture the Canadian title and gaurantee my spot at the World Championships on the Canadian team.

I was wiped, and had reached my goal, so the pressure was off of my shoulders. They were starting the single lift bench press Championships when I was packing and ready to leave. Emotionally I was spent and glad to be over the ordeal. It takes its toll on you to have that kind of pressure. It was like a weight had been lifted (pun heavily intended…and that pun within the pun as well).

That’s when I heard them call my name over the speakers to come to do my first single lift bench press. I had forgotten that two months ago when I sent my forms for the meet I also signed up for the National Bench Press Competition as well as the National 3 lift Competition!

I had to get myself worked back up and go back in there. The people watching were wondering if I was going to drop out of the single lift event, but with some chops busting from my brother B-rad (who flew in with me) I was goaded into lifting again.

I guess when you need it you can dig some more water from the well, cause I still pushed a further 886.5 pounds off of my chest in three successful attempts. I had a strong guy who chased me the whole way (I’ll give his name in my next blog, it escapes me right now). He had not lifted in the 3 lift event that day, and was fresh. I was worried I would run out of gas, but in the end I won. It was a great experience.

On the flight home (which was suppose to only take a few hours) me and my brother’s plane went through a tornado warning, got tossed around like a beach ball, and ended up not being able to land at its destination. We got re-routed. The gods were angry that day my friends. I got home 9 hours later. But that folks is another story for another time. This guy is heading to bed.

Thanks for all the support and well wishes. It may not seem like much when you send them at the time, but its those well wishes and support that pushes me to not give up, and to stay strong. When you are tired and you want to pack it in, you remember why you are doing it, and you keep on marching. I won’t let you down 😉

6 out

The Beginning of my Quest

My whole life I have been labeled a “dreamer”. When I was a kid I use to read my comic books and say one day I would develop super powers and help people in need too. Whenever I dreamt about having a super power it was always super strength. Back when I was a kid it felt like the sky was the limit. I use to perform raps in front of my class in grade 3 and 4, and tell the other kids that one day I would make it as a rap star. The teachers all thought it was cute, and the other kids all believed in me. When you are young you tend to believe in things a lot easier.

As we get older things seem to change. By the time you are an adult and done school you are suppose to have matured and learned to let go of such unrealistic dreams. It’s no longer cute when your parents hear you talk of making it as a rap star. Your peers no longer actually believe you will make a mark with music. And the notion of some one actually helping others and making a difference with a special power they have been given is laughable, and only the thing that is seen in movies.

At 28, I have been conditioned to let all my dreams and goals go. But a funny thing happened earlier this year. As I was mauling over my life choices, and readying myself to apply to university, I decided I was not yet ready to give up. With some soul searching I found that I still did believe.

This year I am going to the Canadian Nationals in weightlifting and I am going to qualify for the World Championships in Evansville Indiana. It is at the World Championships in the USA that I am going to have corporate sponsors donate for every pound I lift in the event to go to the Sick Kids Foundation. These are kids that face adversity and personal challenges every day. Every day they are underdogs that have the odds stacked against them. I am going to show them that dreams do come true, and to never let go of their goals no matter what others might tell them. My whole life I have been strong. This November I will use my strength on the World stage to make a difference and help those who need it.

As of now, with my current financial situation, I can not afford to travel to Indiana for the World Championships. I will sell my CD’s to help cover my costs of going to Indiana with all proceeds going to SickKids Foundation. I do not need to make any money from this campaign; my goal is to make a statement and to make a difference.

Courage is the strength to face adversity, knowing the odds are stacked against you, and moving forward. No matter how few supporters I have as of now, I believe in myself in achieving my goals.

As of now they are still only dreams. No corporations will sponsor me without having qualified yet. No one will buy a CD without knowing I am actually heading to the World Championships. Come June, I will have qualified for the World Championships. The Sick Kids Foundation campaign will have commenced. The under dog’s story will have begun.

Do you believe?