With some major facelifts, this year's World's Strongest Man contest is expected to be more exciting than ever.

Already hugely popular, the World's Strongest Man contest has undergone major changes in its format, as a result of the extensive brainstorming sessions involving TWI, BBC and IFSA Holdings. The result is that this year twelve competitors will square off one pair at a time in a qualifying round. The top eight competitors will go on to the finals, using the same contest format. By concentrating the field this way, each competitor will become a more highly-recognized personality and it will be easier for viewers to follow how each is doing in the contest.

Another big change involves the new scoring system, which will keep the field bunched much closer together than the old system, in which a competitor could run away with a guaranteed victory, or be relegated to a losing position, very early in the contest. The new scoring system should keep the competitive field intact throughout the competition, making for a more exciting contest.