"I miss competing in strongman, but maybe I will come back one day," Arild "Hulk" Haugen told IronMind®.
Arild Haugen stretches out at the 2008 MET-Rx World's Strongest Man contest. The Norwegian strongman-turned-boxer has not ruled out coming back to strongman. IronMind® | Randall J. Strossen photo.
"First of all, I will like to try out some pro boxing matches and see if this is fun. I have just built a private boxing gym that is perfect with a lot of equipment, like [heavy] punching bags, speed bags, and a boxing ring."
Addressing the financial side of strongman, Arild Haugen told IronMind®, "I didn't leave strongman only because of the money, but because I wanted to try something else, different, and if I was going to do so, I will have to do it now and not wait until I am 30 years old.
"But still, I think strongman is underpaid, and there are some people behind organizations who earn a lot of money in one way or another, and that's great, but I don't think they are fair to the competitors when they pay us this small money. And I still believe strongman should be more professionally organized on this level. I find it strange that no one is man enough to say it [out] loud.
"I am still quite strong," Arild Haugen told IronMind®, and showing why he earned the nickname "Emperor of the Stones," he reported, "I recently tried five stones - 120, 140, 160, 180 and 210-kg - and used 22 seconds [to load them]. Not bad for no strongman training since the World's [World's Strongest Man contest].
"Maybe I will do some [strongman] competitions this year only for fun. I think my body anyway will [benefit from] one year with some lighter and different training. And you never know: maybe I will be back one day, stronger and better.
"I will also focus some time on some of my private businesses like my fitness center and boxing gym. I am also working with some big sponsors. Life will continue after you leave the sport, you know. So then I have something waiting for me."
In the meantime, though, Arild Haugen, aka the World's Strongest Boxer, says, "Hello to the other strongman out there!"
