Maintaining their traditional of hosting a world-class strongman contest early in the season, IFSA Scandinavia is doing it again this year. The IFSA Vantaa (Finland) Challenge will be presenting a leading field, including three "World's Strongest Man" winners: Svend Karlsen, Janne Virtanen and Magnus Samuelsson. Also in the field are Jarno Hams, Martin Muhr, Gerrit Badenhorst, Zydrundas Savickas, Gregor Edmunds, and Jaroslow Dymek. "World's Strongest Man" winner Jamie Reeves is the head referee, with Ilkka Kinnunen assisting him, and Marcel Mostert is the head timer and in charge of scoring. The events for this world-class event are: a medley, crucifix, arm-over-arm pull, stones, Conan's circle, log for reps, and wheelbarrow. Be there, on April 20th, and get a first look at some of the favorites for this year's WSM show.

The events for the IFSA Finnish Open were just announced. Serving as a qualifier for a grand prix event later this year, the IFSA Finnish Open will include the following events: truck pull, Hercules hold, Viking press, tire flip or log carry, car walk, and power stairs. This event, which is designed to uncover new talent, is scheduled for June 29th, in Ylitornio, Finland.

This year, the Sacramento Valley Games are going to be bigger and better than ever, featuring a handful championships and some of the top names in the sport. Scheduled for April 27th at the Yolo County (California) Fairgrounds, this year's Games, "will host The Masters World Championships, the West Coast Women's Open Championships, the North American Class B Championships and the North American Weight Over Bar Championships," explained Athletic Director Bill Butler. "Harrison Bailey III and Shannon Hartnett, men's and women's world record holders in the weight over bar, will be here, as will Dave Webster and 17-time World Champion in Highland Games Bill Anderson," said Butler, making this a huge day for Highland Games competitors and fans, alike.

Lifting this weekend in Germany's bundesliga, Galabin Boevski (Bulgaria) showed his excellent early season form. Weighing about 73 kg, Boevski snatched 155 kg and cleaned and jerked 190 kg. Boevski, an Olympic and world champion, is looking to have a great year, and spends his off-season lifting in the German league, where he competes for the team AC Soest.

Back-to-back IPF superheavyweight champion Brad Gillingham undergoes surgery tomorrow to reattach his left biceps tendon. Gillingham "tore his left biceps tendon lifting the farmer's walk apparatus at the Arnold meet," and it's hoped he will have a speedy and complete recovery, so he can three-peat at the IPF Worlds this year.

Not quite at the level of being a WSM competitor, but interested in strutting your stuff, with an eye toward becoming a future strongman star? If you're a notch below the "World's Strongest Man" level, and want to have a chance to compete internationally and maybe get noticed, here's your chance: The Finnish Open, on June 29th, in Vlitornio, Finland, is open to international competitors, although the field will be limited. Before you write this off as a joke, consider that Svend Karlsen, the defending WSM winner, was "discovered" in one of these contests.