Vasyl Virastyuk competed in the finals of the World’s Strongest Man contest in 2003 and 2004. He finished third in 2003 behind then-defending champion Mariusz Pudzianowski and runner-up Zydrunas Savickas.[2] The following year Virastyuk won the 2004 World’s Strongest Man title, placing ahead of Savickas and Pudzianowski (Pudzianowski would later be disqualified for testing positive for a banned substance).[2]
After this victory there was a split in the world of Strongman competition. While some of the competitors such as Virastyuk and Zydrunas Savickas started competing for the IFSA Strongman title (with Savickas winning the title in 2005 and 2006), others such as Pudzianowski remained and competed for the Met-Rx World’s Strongest Man title (with Pudzianowski winning in 2005, 2007, and 2008 Phil Pfister in 2006).
After finishing 2nd in 2005 and third in 2006, at the 2007 IFSA World Championship in Geumsan, South Korea, Vasyl defeated the 2 time IFSA World Champion Zydrunas Savickas. With this victory Vasyl become the first athlete in the history of strongman to win both a World’s Strongest Man title and an IFSA World title. Zydrunas would be the second to accomplish this feat after winning the 2009 World’s Strongest Man title in Malta.[3]
Virastyuk has also achieved a podium finish on three occasions in three consecutive years (2005, 2006 and 2007) at the Arnold Strongman Classic coming second on each occasion to Zydrunas Savickas. At the 2008 Arnold Strongman Classic, Vasyl was forced to withdraw due to injuries, and finished in tenth place with only 8.5 points.[4]
Savickas first became interested in strength sports after watching a Lithuanian strongman contest on TV in 1989. Three years later he took part in that same strongman contest, and defeated a number of older and more experienced competitors. At age 17 Savickas began to train in powerlifting, and in his second powerlifting contest he broke all the Lithuanian records. He is the only Lithuanian to squat over 400 kg. In 1998 Savickas won his first Lithuania’s Strongest Man contest, he would later go on to win this contest a total of 7 times. Savickas then competed in the 1998 and 2000 World’s Strongest Man contests, but failed to qualify for the finals both times. He won the silver medal in the World powerlifting championship in Japan with a total of 1020 kg, just 2.5 kg behind Brad Gillingham.
A contest in the Faroe Islands in 2001 dealt Savickas a major setback, as he tore both patellar tendons during the conan’s wheel event. Many believed that the extent of the injury meant that his career was over. However, nine months later Savickas won the Lithuanian powerlifting championships, and a short time later he also won the 2002 Lithuania’s Strongest Man contest. Savickas would go on to finish in 2nd place at the 2002 World’s Strongest Man in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He would finish in 2nd place 3 more times in 2003, 2004 and 2011, and 1st place at the 2009 and 2010 World’s Strongest Man contests.
Savickas won the Arnold Strongman Classic six consecutive times from 2003–2008. Savickas won the IFSA European Championships in 2005 which qualified him for the world championships. In September 2005, he broke three world records and won the IFSA Strongman World Championships in Quebec, Canada. Savickas won the 2005 IFSA World Team Championships with Team Europe and won the IFSA World Championships for a 2nd time in 2006 in Reykjavík, Iceland. In 2007, Savickas finished in 3rd place at the last ever IFSA World Championships behind runner-up Mikhail Koklyaev and Champion Vasyl Virastyuk in Geumsan, South Korea.
Savickas won 5 out of the 7 total contests during the inaugural 2008 Strongman Champions League season, and won the 2008 overall title 58 points ahead of second place finisher Ervin Katona.
On April 15, 2011 Zydrunas set a new Guinness World Record performing a 20 meter Farmer’s Walk in 7.55 seconds with 150 kg (330 lb) implements in each hand. The event was broadcast on the Guinness TV show in Europe.[4]
Savickas won 5 Strongman Champions League events during the 2011/2012 season, in Finland in March 2011, Germany on April 16, 2011,[5] the SCL Semi-finals in Canada in Oct. 2011, Latvia in Nov 2011 and the SCL Finals in Sarajevo, Bosnia on Feb. 7, 2012.[6]
During the SCL Finals in Sarajevo, Savickas set a new world record in the log lift with 215 kg (470 lb).[6] This was his 7th consecutive world record in the log lift, not including his world record in the giant wooden log lift set at the 2010 World’s Strongest Man contest.[7]
Savickas won the 2012 Europe’s Strongest Man contest on June 23, 2012, his second ESM title after winning in 2010.[8] Savickas also set a new world record in the log lift with a lift of 216 kg (480 lb), this was his 8th consecutive log lift world record.[8]
Savickas has won 8 Strongman Champions League events in the 2012 season and is the current overall leader. He won the 2012 SCL Iceman Challenge III in Finland in March, his third consecutive victory in that contest. Savickas also won the 2012 FIBO event in Germany in April, and the SCL Holland event in Zevenaar, Holland on June 30, 2012.
During the SCL Holland event, Savickas set yet another world record in the Log Lift with a lift of 217.5 kg (480 lb). This was Savickas’ 3rd log lift world record in 2012, and 9th consecutive log lift world record.
Savickas has held the log lift world record since 2005, and has set more total world records than any other strongman competitor in history.
Savickas won the inaugural 2012 SCL World Shanghai Cup in China on July 8, 2012, his 4th SCL victory of the 2012 season, and the SCL Portugal event on July 21 in Oporto, Portugal.[9]
Savickas won the SCL Finland event on Aug. 11, 2012 and was the co-winner of the SCL Poland event on Aug. 18 in a tie with Mikhail Koklyaev. Savickas also won the SCL Gibralter event on Sept. 2, 2012. This was his eight SCL victory for the 2012 season, and 28th career SCL win.
Zydrunas regained the WSM crown by winning the 2012 World’s Strongest Man contest in Los Angeles, California on Oct. 1, 2012.[10] This was Savickas’ third WSM title, he is only the fifth competitor in WSM history to win 3 or more WSM titles. Savickas also set a new log lift world record in the finals with a lift of 220 kg (490 lb).[11] Savickas and Jon Pall Sigmarrson have each placed in the WSM top three a record seven times.
Savickas won the inaugural 2012 SCL Savickas Classic on Oct. 6, 2012 in Vilnius, Lithuania.[12] This was Savickas’ ninth SCL victory for the 2012 SCL season. With this victory Savickas has already clinched the 2012 SCL overall title, this marks his second SCL overall title along with the 2008 season.
Savickas also won the 2012 World Log Lift Championships on Oct. 7, 2012 which was held at the same venue as the Savickas Classic, this was his fourth consecutive Log Lift title.[13] Savickas has won a record 13 of his last 14 events.
At the end of September 2010, a biography entitled Žydrūnas Savickas – žmogus iš geležies (Žydrūnas Savickas – A Man From Iron) was published in Lithuania.(ISBN 978-609-408-104-0)
During the Strongman Champions League Ireland contest in Limerick, Ireland, 2010.
Verse 1
Listen, we made each other suffer, my big brother
we talk a lot of ish, like may be we don’t need each other
N we don’t spend a lot of time in our busy day
That’s toilet paper talk, cuz you know that don’t carry weight
I still remember what you’d say like it was just today
I keep it tatted on my brain so it don’t slip away
And I’m just saying, hey, I think about it much
Plot plans like Eddie Futch, so we don’t loose touch
Don’t walk with a crutch, but I could use support
I got heart, but things are bigger than I thought so…
Even Superman could use a helping hand
I remember like, damn, when fam was my only fan
N man,
We been up and down like rough waters
N that’s for starters
But I know not even Moses could part us
N that’s regardless
Chorus
Learn this lesson well my friends
There’s a time to rejoice and lament
And every season will find an end
All will fade and be made new again
Verse 2
They say I walk like a one man army
Cuz I strut like I got my whole crew behind me
But, you know I’m on the road, so you know I’m all alone
I keep my mind on my peeps because my heart’s at home
My girl on the phone
Man, it’s been too long
Sitting in this hotel, ‘n I just write a song
N it’d be pretty easy to leave me
Cuz she never sees me
Unless I’m on TV
But she needs me
N I don’t take it for granted
May be it’s not like we planned it
But baby I can still stand it
N I know what it means to take you on as a wife
Got two kids for life
N it’s no sacrifice
Won’t even think twice
Nah, no conflicts
It’s nonsense
Cuz I keep you close to my conscious
N I’m breezing…
Chorus
Learn this lesson well my friends
There’s a time to rejoice and lament
And every season will find an end
All will fade and be made new again
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.
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]
6 Pack Lapadat 