Four-time World’s Strongest Man winner Magnus Ver Magnusson was excited, “We just finished Iceland’s Strongest Viking—you will like this!,” he told IronMind this morning.

Iceland’s Strongest Viking is a 9-event, 3-day strongman competition that has been held for 19 years and you can guess who won it 11 times.  Besides Magnus Ver Magnusson, contest winners include Stefán Sölvi Pétursson, Benedikt Magnusson, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson and Torvi Olafsson. 

“It’s always on the west coast of Iceland,” Magnus ver explained.  “It really countryside,” he said, with towns ranging in population from about 500 to 2,000.

The events were:

• farmer’s walk
• keg toss
• overhead stone medley
• silver dollar deadlift
• loading barrels while in a swimming pool
• stone loading
• dumbbell press for reps

Coming into the last event—loading—Magnus Ver said that Stefán Sölvi Pétursson and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson were tied, and while they started off even in the loading race, Hafþór pulled ahead.

The 2.05 meter tall giant made his strongman debut in this very contest two years ago, Magnus Ver said, and now he’s won it twice in a row.

And to give you an idea of his progress in that time, Magnus Ver said that Hafþór weighed about 140–145 kg when they met two years ago and now he’s up to somewhere over 190 kg.

Overhead pressing was not Hafþór greatest strength, but as an indication of his progress, Magnus Ver said that while last year Hafþór got 4 reps on this dumbbell, this year he got 10.

“When he comes into training, he always asks for more.  Everything is a contest,” said Magnus Ver.

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