He's been trying for six years and today he succeeded: Jessen Paulin won the 2005 Canada's Strongest Man competition, and for an encore, he's on his way to the World's Strongest Man contest.

"I am very proud of Jessen," said Hugo Girard, the very man who has had an unshakeable grip on the title, but who was forced to the sidelines this year as the result of a torn Achilles tendon.

Run in conjunction with the Gatineau, Quebec Hot Air Balloon Festival, this three-day competition drew a crowd of approximately 8,000 each day, and things got off to a roaring start when Californian Ken Brown was invited up to take a shot at the Silver Dollar Deadlift record. Ken made his mark on this lift four years ago, so it was especially well received when he blasted through the 500-kg barrier on the lift that was run on equipment made to the specifications of the famous event used in the World's Strongest Man contest, and, adding to the luster of Brown's success, Girard said everything was weighed and run under the expert eye of international strongman referee Marc Lauzon.

The top places in the Canadian national title were in constant flux and, "nothing was certain until the final event," Girard pointed out, but when the dust had settled, the top five were:

1. Jessen Paulin
2. Travis Lyndon
3. Dominic Filiou
4. Steve Bourgeois
5. Christian Savoie

Jessen Paulin and Dominic Filou had already qualified for the 2005 World's Strongest Man contest, and just in case you ever doubted Quebec's special role in the strength world, it should be noted that four of the top five finishers in this year's Canada's Strongest Man Contest were Quebecers, as Hugo Girard pointed out with pride.