The qualifying stage for the 2021 World’s Strongest Man is officially over. Below are the 10 finalists who will compete for the ultimate prize in strength sports in Sacramento, CA from June 19-20, 2021. Unfortunately, four competitors have dropped out since the competition began — Graham Hicks, Luke Richardson, Terry Hollands (who also announced his retirement from WSM), and Chris van der Linde. Because Richardson, Hollands, and van der Linde dropped out after the start of the event, only 22 athletes competed.
Related: 2021 World’s Strongest Man Results and Leaderboard
Editor’s Note: These results are from BarBend‘s reporter in Sacramento. Results should not be considered final until after the World’s Strongest Man Facebook Live show: World’s Strongest Man: BACKSTAGE LIVE.
2021 World’s Strongest Man Finalists
- Brian Shaw — USA
- Trey Mitchell — USA
- JF Caron — Canada
- Konstantine Janashia — Georgia
- Bobby Thompson — USA
- Maxime Boudreault — Canada
- Tom Stoltman — United Kingdom
- Eythor Ingolfsson Melsted — Iceland
- Adam Bishop — United Kingdom
- Luke Stoltman — United Kingdom
Overhead Medley
Competitors started the day with a four-implement pressing medley that tested their conditioning and shoulder strength. 2020 WSM Champion Oleksii Novikov logged the fastest time overall by pressing all four implements in 24.83 seconds. Luke Stoltman — who had been neck-and-neck with Novikov for most of the event — was hot on the Ukranian’s tail and trailed by eight-tenths of a second. Brian Shaw, who was dominant throughout all three days of the competition handily won with a time of 34.72.
Also of note was American Trey Mitchell who made up some serious ground in Group Two — home to 2020 WSM runner-up Tom Stoltman — with a win in the pressing medley.
The weights and implements used were as follows:
- Heavy Dumbbell — 95 kilograms (210 pounds)
- Heavy Dumbbell — 100 kilograms (220 pounds)
- Circus Barbell — 155 kilograms (342 pounds)
- Axle Barbell — 163 kilograms (360 pounds)
Group One
- Brian Shaw — Four reps, 34.72 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault — Four reps, 37.19 seconds
- Gavin Bilton — Four reps, 49.84 seconds
- Aivars Smaukstelis — Three reps, 19.87 seconds
- Travis Ortmayer — One rep, 6.90 seconds
Group Two
- Trey Mitchell — Four reps, 29.77 seconds
- Evan Singleton — Four reps, 32.08 seconds
- Tom Stoltman — Four reps, 38.02 seconds
- Johnny Hansson — Three reps, 29.20 seconds
- Mark Felix — One rep, 6.42 seconds
Group Three
- JF Caron — Four reps, 33.72 seconds
- Mikhail Shivlyakov — Four reps, 38.18 seconds
- Eythor Ingolfsson Melsted — Four reps, 39.77 seconds
- Robert Oberst — Four reps, 52.25 seconds
Group Four
- Adam Bishop — Three reps, 27.74 seconds
- Konstantine Janashia — Three reps, 48.42 seconds
- Jerry Pritchett — No reps
Group Five
- Oleksii Novikov — Four reps, 24.83 seconds
- Luke Stoltman — Four reps, 25.63 seconds
- Kevin Faires — Four reps, 29.23 seconds
- Bobby Thompson — Four reps, 43.43 seconds
- Ervin Toots — Two reps, 21.88 seconds
Pickaxe Hold
Athletes were forced to hold a 60-pound pickaxe, with their backs against a wall, for as long as possible. With such a strong lead heading into this event, Brian Shaw bombed out, earning one point, which was still enough for an automatic pass to the Finals. Trey Mitchell won his second event of the day and is in the Finals. Amazingly, 55-year-old Mark Felix — a man known for his grip strength — placed second in the Pickaxe Hold, which was good enough for third. He faced Tom Stoltman in the Stone Off.
Group One
- Aivars Smaukstelis — 32.51 seconds
- Gavin Bilton — 31.02 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault — 30.64 seconds
- Travis Ortmayer — 20.28 seconds
- Brian Shaw — 5.64 seconds
Group Two
- Trey Mitchell — 46.13 seconds
- Mark Felix — 40.82 seconds
- Tom Stoltman — 36.90 seconds
- Evan Singleton — 28.90 seconds
- Johnny Hansson — 28.15 seconds
Group Three
- Robert Oberst — 48.03 seconds
- Eythor Ingolfsson Melsted — 43.67 seconds
- JF Caron — 29.09 seconds
- Mikhail Shivlyakov — 23.25 seconds
Group Four
- Jerry Pritchett — 35:39 seconds
- Konstantine Janashia — 25.07 seconds
- Adam Bishop — 10.97 seconds
Group Five
- Bobby Thompson — 41.62 seconds
- Kevin Faires — 35.38 seconds
- Luke Stoltman — 34.60 seconds
- Oleksii Novikov — 32.81 seconds
- Ervin Toots — 24.42 seconds
Stone Off
The final event of the qualifying stage at the 2021 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) contest was the Stone Off. The third-place finisher in each group had to lift the Atlas Stone first in their respective matchup. Each matchup involved athletes lifting six stones of ascending weight: 310-465 pounds. Once they reach the sixth stone, they continued going back and forth on that stone until a winner was declared.
The winners of each group are marked in bold below:
- Group One — Boudreault vs. Smaukstelis
- Group Two — Tom Stoltman vs. Mark Felix
- Group Three — Oberst vs. Ingolfsson
- Group Four — Bishop vs. Pritchett
- Group Five — Faires vs. Luke Stoltman
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Day Four
All 10 athletes will get a rest on Friday, June 18, 2021, before taking on the Finals from June 19-20. Here are the events still to come.
Final — Day One (June 19, 2021)
- Giant’s Medley
- Titan’s Turntable
- REIGN Keg Toss
Final — Day Two (June 20, 2021)
- Log Lift
- KNAACK Deadlift
- Atlas Stones
Featured Image Courtesy of World’s Strongest Man