Andrei Chemerkin, the 1996 superheavy Olympic champion in weightlifting said today, "No way!" when asked if he had plans to enter strongman contests.

Chemerkin, who dazzled lifting fans at the Sydney Olympics by nearly cleaning 272.5 kg in a bid to win his second Olympic gold medal, also said he knew nothing about any purported invitations to strongman competitions, directly contradicting rumors that he was going to be competing the Arnold strongman contest.

In training for the World Weightlifting Championships later this year, Chemerkin said that while he has seen strongman competitions on TV, he has never thought about entering one and could not imagine doing so.