From Nov. 11-15, 2020, this year’s World’s Strongest Man (WSM) event will take place in Bradenton, FL. The official roster for the event — consisting of 25 strongman — has gone through some turmoil. Plus, the events scheduled for the competition were conspicuously being kept under wraps. It was so noticeable that four-time WSM champion Brian Shaw even called for Giants Live to release the events.
Well, they have finally been announced. On Nov. 10, 2020, WSM streamed the first episode of their Facebook Live stream, which gives fans behind-the-scenes access, along with athlete interviews, and daily events results. In this episode, former BarBend Editor Nick English and WSM Event Director Collin Bryce walked fans through each of this year’s events.
The first day of competition was canceled due to inclement weather conditions and then later announced the the competition would take place as scheduled a day later. The 2020 WSM events for the qualifying stage and Finals are as follows:
Qualifying Day One (Nov.12, 2020)
Farmer’s Carry For Max Distance
It’s typical for strongman competitions to feature loaded carries. The farmer’s carry is a classic rendition that challenges grip strength and general grit and endurance.
Deadlift OR Squat For Max Reps In 60 Seconds
With tropical storm Eta moving towards Florida, inclement weather is a possibility. Squat for reps is the plan, but if conditions are windy, the athletes will switch to deadlifts.
The deadlifts will be 345 kilograms (761 pounds) on a one-and-one-eighth-inch barbell from approximately eight-and-a-half inches off the ground.
Qualifying Day Two (Nov.13, 2020)
Circus Dumbbell Clean and Press Medley OR Log Lift
Athletes will race to clean and press four pairs of dumbbells of increasing weight overhead. Then they will clean and press a single “monster dumbbell” for as many reps as possible — all within 75 seconds. (A “monster dumbbell” has a thicker handle with a diameter similar to a can of soda.)
The groups that perform the log lift will perform as many reps of 125 kilograms (275.6 pounds) as possible in 75 seconds.
Loading Medley
Strongmen will race on the beach to load various parts of a monster truck.
Last-Man-Standing Stone Off
The second and third-place finishers in each group will face off in a last-man-standing Atlas Stone over bar competition. Each pair of strongmen will lift the same Atlas Stone back and forth over a nearly six-foot bar until one strongman fails to do so. The winner will advance to the Finals alongside the winner of their group.
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[Related: Five Athletes To Watch At The 2020 World’s Strongest Man]
Finals Day One (Nov. 14, 2020)
Giant Medley
A loading medley where strongmen will race to load a series of heavy items. The fastest time overall wins the event.
Keg Toss
Each strongmen will race to toss kegs of increasing weight over a wall — the fastest time wins.
Overhead Log Ladder
Competitors will race to clean and press a series of logs that scale higher in weight. The fastest to complete the entire log ladder wins.
Finals Day Two (Nov. 15, 2020)
Atlas Stones
This year, the Atlas Stone event will feature six stones instead of the five — which is the standard.
Hercules Hold
Each pillar will weigh approximately 158.8 kilograms (350 pounds). Mark Felix, the oldest competitor in the field, is notoriously good at this event.
Silver-Dollar Deadlift (18-inch or Partial Deadlift)
This event is for max weight. It will consist of a one-and-one-quarter inch barbell outfitted with 45-kilogram (99-pound) steel discs. The barbell will have a bit of give to lend itself to heavier deadlifts. The current world record for the silver-dollar deadlift is 550 kilograms (1,212.5 pounds) by Anthony Pernice.
Feature image via World’s Strongest Man’s Instagram page: @theworldsstrongestman
