Rich Williams put on quite a show at the Arnold, toying with things that make grown men weep, and not the least of his accomplishments was something nobody had ever done before. Rich went over to the GNC Grip Gauntlet and he closed a Captains of Crush® No. 3 and a Captains of Crush® No. 3.5 Gripper as Wade Gillingham served as his official witness.


Rich Williams left a trail of destruction in his wake at the Arnold: If it was a feat of grip strength that nobody had been able to do before, Rich smashed through the barrier. Here, he lifted the 202-lb. Circus Dumbbell, three-inch handle and all. Bert Sorin photo.


Just in, the last of materials the rules required for IronMind's certification decision and now it's official: Rich Williams isn't just certified on the Captains of Crush® No. 3 Gripper and the Captains of Crush® No. 3.5, he's also the first man in history to reach both major milestones on the same day.

Rich is a three-time All-American football player who works for Team-Impact Ministries, traveling "all over the country and internationally displaying feats of strength and preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I love to powerlift and do strongman training," said the 6' 3", 395-lb. powerhouse.

Congratulations, Rich, and many thanks to GNC, Wade Gillingham, Richard and Bert Sorin, and Jeff Goegern - this was a team effort, with Rich supplying the grip strength and his crew sticking with it until IronMind could make the good news official. Way to go, guys!


Rich Williams is the first man in history to certify on the Captains of Crush No. 3 and No. 3.5 grippers on the same day - a huge accomplishment and one that reflects the tremendous level of Rich's grip strength. Jeff Goergen photo.

ASC's Dione Wessels and IronMind's Randall Strossen are teaming up to put grip contests front and center by featuring them at American Strongman Corporation's "Live" events across the country.


Strongman contests and the Rolling Thunder® have a long and rich history, and Odd Haugen's Beauty and the Beast contests are where it all started: The 2000 Rolling Thunder World Championships was a kickoff event in a Honolulu sports bar the night before the strongman competition began. That's four-time World's Strongest Man winner Magnus Ver Magnusson getting ready to pull, just to give you an idea of the talent pool at these contests. Randall J. Strossen photo.


"Testing your grip strength provides a natural challenge and it's fun, so Dione and I thought, why not take advantage of the "Live" platform to showcase the IronMind Grip Challenge," said Strossen.

“At IronMind®, we’re big believers in the KISS principle,” Strossen said, “as in ‘Keep It Simple, Stupid,’ so we wanted to feature events that are universally-known, with well-established standards of excellence. The two events we are going with are the Rolling Thunder®, for maximum weight, and Captains of Crush® grippers.”

“We’re running grippers the way stones are done in strongman,” Strossen continued. “A tougher gripper always wins, but reps rule below that, just as time does on the stones in strongman. So, anyone who closes a CoC No. 3 beats anyone who only closes a CoC No. 2, for example, but 14 reps on a CoC No. 2 beats 12 reps on the No. 2.”

“This is a big departure from the way gripper events are usually run in grip contests, which just focus on the hardest gripper you can close,” Strossen explained, “but one of the problems with that is too many people end up with the same score. We think this is better because it will help clear the air about who really is stronger than whom, plus it will be a lot more interesting for spectators.”

“The whole concept of ‘ASC Live’ is to reach out to the American fan base,” Dione Wessels said. “What better way to reach out and touch our fans than with the IronMind Grip Challenge? Testing your grip strength appeals to a lot of people and the IronMind Grip Challenge will feature fan participation, as well as top strongman competitors. And this isn’t just for people who train in gyms - blue collar fans across the country work with their hands and some of these guys have really strong hands, so by pairing up with ‘ASC Live,’ the IronMind Grip Challenge will probably find the next grip-strength star in our ‘Live’ audiences. This is a great way to reach out and touch the fans and this is a great way for fans to get a handle on what the ASC athletes really do.”

“IronMind will be providing prize packages in the first-of-its-kind competitions, with ASC and IronMind pairing at ‘Live’ events through August. The IronMind Grip Challenges will be taking place in at least six events across the country.”

Stay tuned for more details, and for more information on ASC Live, please check the official ASC website.

Incidentally, don't think you have to be a man to compete in these contests: "I have a stronger grip than a lot of guys," said Dione Wessels, who won the women's class at the 2003 U.S. Rolling Thunder National Championships . . . held in conjunction with Jim Davis's 2003 X-treme Strongman American Championships.

He did it at the Arnold, closing the gold standard Captains of Crush No. 3 gripper under the expert eye of Wade Gillingham at the GNC Grip Gauntlet . . . talk about the perfect setting for a big-time gripper performance.


Brad Ardrey just got certified on the Captains of Crush No. 3 Gripper. Next up: the CoC No. 3.5 and World's Strongest Man. Photo courtesy of Brad Ardrey.


If you think Brad looks powerful, it's because he is: "My main hobby is strongman . . . I train with Team B.O.S.S. (Brothers of Stone & Steel) out of Columbus, Ohio."

With the CoC No. 3 mastered, Brad said, "I plan to train hard over the next year and get certified on the #3.5 next year at the Arnold Classic. My other goal is to become a pro heavyweight strongman competitor and be on World's Strongest Man some day."

Congratulations, Brad - your name has been added to the official list of men certified on the Captains of Crush® No. 3 Gripper. Way to go!

He was the picture of patience and persistence throughout the process of officially attempting this benchmark short bend: to top things off, Sweden's Henrik Nyström calmly repeated the steps because the first Red Nail never reached IronMind.


Henrik Nyström just certified on the IronMind Red Nail. Photo courtesy of Henrik Nyström.


For all of this, we would like say Henrik Nyström more than earned our respect and it also showed us how he built up the strength for this accomplishment. After all, Henrik told IronMind, "I spent my childhood and teens playing lots of piano and violin; nothing wrong with that, but it doesn't make your hands strong at all, so I really had to start from the very beginning."

Henrik has done some powerlifting, but now he's "mostly into bending and also some kettlebell training."

Congratulations, Henrick - at long last and more than richly deserved: You have just been certified on the IronMind Red Nail and your name has been added to the Red Nail Roster®, the official list of men who have succeeded on this benchmark short bend.

"The 1st Finnish Open Grip Strength Championship takes place in Lahti, Finland on October 3," contest organizer Sakari Selkäinaho told IronMind, pairing the "the biggest grip strength event in Europe with "Scandinavia's biggest strength and fitness event, the Fitness Expo."

According to the official announcement, "The competition has four events; the first two are qualifiers. The promoter has picked up the most popular events with a lot of variety. They test static, dynamic and most of all maximal grip strength on single- and two-arm events."

Here are the events:

1. Rolling Thunder® "An IronMind classic that tests everything on grip strength. Fingers, palm and forearm. Now with a new improved handle." 11 a.m.

2. Europinch: "This event is a pinch grip of max weight on an apparatus that is lifted to 42-cm height. The effort is in your fingertips, literally." 11:30 a.m.

" After the first two events, eight best go to finals."

3. "Captains of Crush® grippers: "The #1 gripper in the world needs no further introduction. The Rolls Royce of grippers is done by both hands and strictly under the IronMind rules, using the card." 4:00 p.m.

4. Apollon's Axle Deadlift: "Apollon's Axle is mostly known from strongman competitions but it is an excellent grip tool." 4:30 p.m.

"This grip event has good prizes. The winner gets invited to Arnold Classic to prove his grip strength there, maybe in front of 10 000 people! He also gets a one-year sponsorship from a fast-rising supplement company that will be published later. The top three get prize money and beautiful swords plus a team spot on our national or international team including a bronze level sponsorship," continued the official announcement from Sakari Selkäinaho.

"All competitors must send their entries in by September 1 to:

SS Power OY
Sakari Selkäinaho
Mannilantie 27
43100 SAARIJÄRVI
FINLAND
011-505-354-106
sakke@voimaharjoitelu.fi
info@sportkraft.net."

With some big lifts coming into the USA Weightlifting Junior National Championships and the prospect of a making a Junior World Championships team on the line, there was a lot of pressure on Donovan Ford this weekend.

This is how his coach, Hassle Free Barbell Club's Paul Doherty, called the action:

"The environment was electric as Donovan crushed each lift in workmanlike fashion. A bus full of Sac[cramento] HIgh students showed up for the party and carried him through the whole contest."

"Donovan smoked 135 kg on his opener as you would expect from him doubling the weight 5 weeks ago. Following himself, he absolutely crushed 140 on his second attempt, setting the table for the first of many PRs for the day. Donovan's only miscue for the day? His coach's fault. Sending him out to the platform a tad bit late trying to take advantage of every second on the two-minute clock, the buzzer sounded right as he ripped it from the floor and it was a no lift as he flung it behind his head."

"Not to worry, clean and jerks were set to bring down the house, and boy they did. He lit up the platform with his 172-kg opener and improved his ranking to 95% on his second as he cranked out 177. With all of the gold medals locked up and the 95% of the Junior World total done, Donovan did not disappoint as he came out for his third at 180 and exploded onto the scene finishing with an impressive 320-kg total."

"Five for six, 320, and a number-one ranking in the US as a 105-kg lifter made for quite the chatter as people start to realize the talent we're dealing with. Senior World's after Junior World's? It should be fun to watch."

As a postscript, Paul Doherty added: "Sacramento's half of Hassle Free also put two 17-year olds on the this year's Youth world team traveling to Thailand: Sae Vang in the 56s and Brandell Sampson in the 105s, will team up with Ian Wilson from Berkeley in the 85s and make up nearly 40% of the roster."

Come to the Bay and watch some weightlifting this weekend, as the USA Weightlifting Junior National Championships and Secondary Pan Am Trials kick off tomorrow and run through Sunday.


Donovan Ford rewrote the Pacific Weightlifting Association (PWA) record book when he broke all the junior records at the PWA Championships in February. This 172-kg clean and jerk was good for new PWA junior records in the jerk and in the total. Donovan's coach, Paul Doherty (right), is expecting some big numbers this weekend. Randall J. Strossen photo.


One of the coaches with some of this weekend's top lifters is Paul Doherty of Hassle Free Barbell Club, so IronMind invited Paul to give us an insider's view of what to watch for from his athletes.

"Donovan Ford is currently third on the Junior World Ranking list with his 300-kg total at the American Open, but we expect to see him pushing his way up the list this Sunday with some big PRs. Not far behind him is Sac[ramento] High junior Sae Vang (56 kg). Sae is currently 10th on the Junior World Ranking list and will put it on the bar' to get into the top eight. A sleeper in the running is 85-kg Keylin Mackey. Only lifting for two years in between football seasons, he is one of the most explosive athletes on the Hassle Free roster and will post some much-improved numbers. He is just coming off a conservative 6 for 6 day at the PWA Championships where he posted a 260 total, but he'll need at least 10 more kilos than that. Will it be enough to get him on the team? We think so."

And just to reinforce how dynamic things can be, three days ago, IronMind got this report from Paul Doherty:

"[On Monday], I drove Donovan down to California Strength in San Ramon. This is where David Spitz runs a gym and lifters such as Donny Shankle and Martin Pashov train. You mentioned it briefly in one of your former MILO articles as Ivan Abadjjev was there for some time helping to set up the program."

"Well, Donovan wanted to visit his good friend Caleb Ward, currently the #1 Junior in America, to have his last heavy workout. In a dynamite atmosphere Donavan hit an 8-kilo pr in the snatch, 143, narrowly missing 146 behind twice. Sunday should be good, keep your fingers crossed."

For full details on the USAW Junior National Championships & Pan Am Trials, please click here.

"Brian Shaw, the towering strength athlete from Colorado, USA, and recent winner of the 2009 Fit Expo All American Strongman Challenge, has been confirmed on the starting list of 2009 FORTISSIMUS STRONGEST MAN ON EARTH," Fortissimus president Paul Ohl told IronMind. "At 6' 8" and 380 lb., Brian Shaw will be the tallest and heaviest competitor in the field."

"Jimmy Marku, from the United Kingdom, has also been confirmed on the starting list," Ohl reported. "A late starter in the sport of Strongman, Jimmy Marku caused one of the sport's greatest surprise in 2008 by winning the 2008 Britain's Strongest Man title over such notables as Terry Hollands and Mark Felix," said Ohl.

"I think that the world strength community is up for a great class act and a couple of possible upsets at 2009 Fortissimus, this coming June. Given the field and the reactions to the events, it will be a memorable encounter. I would call it a clash of Titans," Ohl concluded.

American Strongman Corporation (ASC) has officially announced that the 2009 America's Strongest Man® (ASM) contest will be held July 25 - 26 in conjunction with the Mountain Fest in Morgantown, West Virginia, and it promises to add a new dimension to strongman competitions by building on the "Live" concept that ASC has developed.

ASC has announced its 2009 America's Strongest Man® contest, where it will blend muscle, music and motorcycles. Logo courtesy of Dione Wessels.


To put this contest in context, let's start by talking about North American Strongman (NAS).

As the well-established amateur strongman federation, "NAS is the foundation of strongman in America," explained NAS vice president Dione Wessels, and "in order for an athlete to become an ASC athlete, they must first compete as an amateur." Open to all, "NAS welcomes anyone to give strongman a try," said Wessels. And if you do well in NAS, you can move up the ladder, graduating to professional contest.

"There are two ways for an athlete to get his pro card - either by winning a Platinum Plus amateur contest, or by winning nationals," said Wessels. "There are three Platinum Plus contests per year that an amateur athlete can compete in and the first one this year is in April in Orlando, Florida. [The next one is in] June in San Diego, California, and the final one is in August in Dallas, Texas. The contest in California is also the wildcard show whereas the winner not only gets his pro card, but also an automatic invite to ASM. The other way for an athlete to become pro is by winning the NAS National Championships which is held every year in the fall."

"Since the qualifying system has been in place, we have seen great athletes like Derek Poundstone, Van Hatfield, Travis Ortmayer and many many more emerge," said Wessels.

"The "Live" events provide fans with live entertainment and gives the athletes a chance to create a fan base not only in their home town, but also across the country," said Wessels, and that's the context for the upcoming America's Strongest Man® contest. "All ASC contests that have been held this year were qualifiers. All the athletes have to do is compete in order to qualify. Where they placed in the contests does not matter," said Wessels.

And while the purse has not yet been announced, Wessels is optimistic: "Our marketing agent is currently negotiating with Harley Davidson and other non-fitness related companies, and it looks as though a minimum of the top ten athletes will be paid. American Strongman will also be working with Steve Slater, Williams Strength, and IronMind® on event details."

For full details, please check the official MountainFest and ASC websites.

"I like them," Derek Poundstone said about the just-announced Fortissimus 2009 events. "They turned it up a notch from last year."

Poundstone, who won Fortissimus 2008, was barely edged out of the 2008 World's Strongest Man title on the last event, and then roared back to win the 2009 Arnold Strongman competition, is ready to rumble and he likes the fact that Fortissimus is centered around heavy events.

"When it's lighter, there is always a little luck involved," Poundstone explained, especially when you are talking about handheld timing being pushed, perhaps, beyond the limits of human reaction times. Poundstone, who is high on the brute strength meter, is also very fit, but beyond that, he compares himself to Magnus Ver Magnusson, who was masterful at understanding events and how to get the most from his body in each of them.

As a case in point, Poundstone says that when he approached the 517-lb. stone last year, he had a precise plan for lifting it, and that is how he will attack this year's contest, too.

Also enthusiastic about the events is Travis Ortmayer, who told IronMind, "I think that Fortissimus 2009 may just be the most brutal competition I have ever seen! For instance, the dumbbell press medley was completed by three of us last year (Derek, Zydrunas, and myself), so what do they do this year? They certainly didn't dothe obvious thing and take the last implement off and replace it with a heavier one, no . . . they just ADD another, even heavier one! The first day is going to pulverize the back and the second will take away what little will be left of the legs."

And if you just want to cut to the chase, consider how Zydrunas Savickas assessed the mix: "Very good, heavy and interesting events."

Make your plans now - Fortissimus 2009 . . . "very good, heavy and interesting."

If you're going to San Francisco, or want a good excuse to do so, the California Weightlifting Fund and FIT Barbell Club are hosting the 2009 USA Weightlifting Junior National Championships and the Pan Am Secondary Qualifier this weekend.


Kate Corbin was third in 2007, second in 2008 and she comes into this weekend's USAW Junior National Championships ranked number one. Photo courtesy of Rob Earwicker.


Meet director Rob Earwicker told IronMind, "This is the first national Olympic weightlifting meet in the Bay Area since [Steve Gough's Fairfax Weightlifting Club hosted the] American Open in 1994. We have a lot of very talented young lifters here, like Donovan Ford, Kate Corbin, David Garcia, Keylin Mackey, Ian Wilson, Sae Vang, Chris Tiongson, Sydney Munsey and Jenny Lam . . . just to name a few.

We are very confident that these lifters will be ones to watch for the future," so if you needed an excuse to combine a weekend in San Francisco with some very competitive weightlifting, here you go.

"As it did with the IronMind® Overhead World Challenge, Fortissimus 2009 will bridge with the history of great stone lifting performances and feature the Slater King of Stones World Challenge," Fortissimus president Paul Ohl reported to IronMind today.


Travis "Texas Stoneman" Ortmayer had some bad luck on the stones at Fortissimus last year, but he took it in stride and he is expected to be back with a vengeance this year. Randall J. Strosen photo.


"It could very well turn out to be the greatest event in stone lifting ever," Ohl said. "Similar to the IronMind Overhead Challenge, the winner of the stones will be the competitor with the most stones lifted in the fastest combined time. The Challenge will consist of a total of 10 stones (6 Slater Atlas Stones on day 1) and (4 Natural Stones of Strength on day 2), the very last stone of the entire contest being the 517-lb. Louis Cyr 1883 Stone."

"This year, given the title at issue, Fortissimus 2009 wanted to honor the prominent place that Stones of Strength have had in Scotland's history, as a part of the Highland clansmen longstanding culture of stone lifting," continued Ohl's prepared statement.

"And honoring as well the first strongman to put up all five stones in 1986, at the 10th World's Strongest Man contest (held in Nice, France), the legendary Jon Pall Sigmarsson of Iceland. Remembering that David Webster, OBE, a pioneer of the sport of strongman and the historian of the iron game had once said that the [original] McGlashen Stones were the best test of strength ever staged in strongman competition events."

"The total poundage of the King of Stones Challenge amounts to 3892 lb. (1769 kg), representing 24 % of the overall poundage of the 2009 Fortissimus Strongest Man on Earth competition."

Describing the IronMind® Overhead World Challenge, Fortissimus president Paul Ohl said, "It is a new act and it is meant to commemorate the great strongman performances in overhead lifts."


Honoring Bill Kazmaier's world-record performances on the log is one of the reasons behind the format of the IronMind Overhead World Challenge at Fortissimus 2009. Photo courtesy of Paul Ohl.


"It will feature the world records at the true log lift by Bill Kazmaier in 1980 and 1988; by Zydrunas Savickas in 2004, remarkable Apollon Axle lifts; and the one-arm great lifts by the legendary Louis Cyr," Ohl continued. "IronMind can confirm that the combined overall poundage of the two events will be of 3208 lb. (1458 kg).

"The winner of this huge challenge will be decided by adding the results of twelve lifts: five two-arm lifts during day one (3 x log lifts and 2 x Apollon Axle lifts) and seven one-arm lifts during day two," explained Ohl.

"We remain convinced that raw overhead power is what defines the essence of strongman along with the stones and we are proud to give it the exposure it deserves. Put in perspective with the overall profile of the 2009 competition, the IronMind Challenge accounts for 20 % of the contest," Ohl concluded.

The full, official list of events for Fortissimus 2009 will be released on March 17.

Columbus, Ohio - Theory will meet practice today at the Arnold Sports Festival as the German men's Olympic weightlifting team will speak at the Strength Summit at noon (C Pod 210-215), and then at 4:00 p.m they will lift in the Grand Ballroom, immediately following the USAPL raw meet.


Proving that he can still lift - and jump - Marc Huster joined his teammates at the Downtown Columbus YMCA yesterday. Randall J. Strossen photo.


Yesterday, the German men's Olympic team trained and spoke at the Downtown Columbus YMCA, and they also met with Ohio State University professor emeritus Dr. Steven Reiss, whose research on motivation is highly regarded and widely used in the preparation of this gold medal weightlifting team.

The presentation at noon at the Strength Summit will include a question and answer period, so here's your chance to ask Olympic gold medalist Matthias Steiner what it felt like to win in Beijing. At 4:00 p.m., following the USAPL raw meet - in the Grand Ballroom - the German team goes through its final heavy lifts in preparation for the upcoming European Weightlifting Championships, so be sure to come over and watch Olympians Juergen Speiss and Almir Velagic move some heavy metal.

See you at the Arnold today!

"The third edition of the FIBO Strongman Classics will take place at the 25th of April, 2009 at the biggest expo from Europe, the FIBO in Essen (Germany)," Marcel Mostert reported in a statement released to IronMind.

"For the first time this contest will be a qualifyier for the Strongman Champions League. This shows the significance of the FIBO Strongman Classics 2009. The prize money for this contest will be over EUR 5.000,00 and the best competitor from this competition will have a secured place in the SCL SERBIA at 9 May." Marcel Mostert and Heinz Ollesch will be the referees.

Here is the official list of athletes:

Jarno Harms (NED) - Strongest Man of the Netherlands and winner FSC 2007
Tobias Ide (GER) - Strongest Man of Germany 2008
Jimmy Laureys (BEL) - Strongest Man of Belgium
Glenn Ross (IRE) - 5 time Strongest Man of Great Britain
Szdenek Sedmik (TCH) - Strongest Man of Czech Republic
Gregor Stegnar (SLO) - Strongest Man of Slovenia
Igor Werner (GER) - Winner FIBO Strongman Classics 2008
Martin Wildauer (AUT) - Winter Giant 2008
Mr. X - Finalist of the World Strongest Man 2008

Events:

Log Lift (maximum weight)
Stone of Strength (325 kg)
Circus Dumbbell
Tire Flip (425 kg)
Medley: Yoke Race (410 kg) and Farmer's Walk (150 kg)

For more details on the FIBO Strongman Classic, please check the official website.

Sure, there's some undeniable glamorr to hosting the German men's Olympic weightlifting team - including gold medalist Matthias Steiner - at the Arnold, but the truth is that this requires a significant amount of legwork, so IronMind is inviting a couple of willing and able-bodied people to join our team Friday and Saturday in Columbus, Ohio.


We can't say "call to arms" without thinking of Manfred Hoeberl, who by the way is doing well - weighing about 110 kg these days, he told IronMind, yesterday. And even though Manfred said he has limited mobility as a result of his motorcycle accident in 2002, we would guess that his arms are probably still bigger than most guys who train full time. Randall J. Strossen photo.


Think of this as being the strength-world equivalent of being a roadie for a world-class band for a weekend: in exchange for moving equipment around and helping to set up and tear down, you will have some unique opportunities to mingle with some of the biggest names in the strength world - and we guarantee extraordinary photo ops along with a good time.

If you are interested, please send an email to Team IronMind, introducing yourself and noting your availability in Columbus, Ohio. Please include your cell phone number.

Thank you!

Once again, the GNC Grip Gauntlet will be working closely with IronMind for Captains of Crush® gripper certifications at the Arnold, with Wade Gillingham doing the honors as the referee.


Wade Gillingham works a little Blob magic at the GNC Grip Gauntlet. Be sure to stop by the GNC booth when you are at the Arnold this weekend. Randall J. Strossen photo.


If you feel you are ready to go for your Captains of Crush® gripper certification on the No. 3, No. 3.5 or No. 4, please ensure that you are familiar with the rules and come to the GNC booth with a certification form (complete your information, please). It will be up to Wade Gillingham if walkups will be allowed, but if so, they will have to show their readiness by first closing either a Captains of Crush No. 2.5 or No. 3 from the GNC Grip Gauntlet before a decision will be made about whether an official attempt is warranted.

And talking about the GNC Grip Gauntlet, be sure to give this a run - whether you're a top drawer grip guy or just want to have some fun, stop by and give it your best shot.