The final event of the 2025 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) Qualifying Stage was the Stone Medley. The four natural stones strongmen had to press, shoulder, carry, and lift in the fastest possible time were:
- Block Press — 123 kilograms (271 pounds)
- Inver Stone-to-Shoulder — 158 kilograms (350 pounds)
- Húsafell Stone Carry — 176 kilograms (390 pounds)
- Foundation Stone Lift — 181.5 kilograms (400 pounds)
Entering the Stone Medley, only defending three-time WSM champion Tom Stoltman, 2023 WSM champion Mitchell Hooper, and WSM debutant Rayno Nel were locked for the WSM Final.
Several of the five five-athlete groups were tight on point margins, meaning the top two ranks in each group that qualify for the 2025 WSM Final remained up for grabs.
[Stay Tuned: 2025 World’s Strongest Man Live Results & Leaderboard]
2025 World’s Strongest Man Stone Medley Results
Group One
- Austin Andrade (MEX) — Four in 85.69 seconds
- Eddie Williams (AUS) — 8.87 meters
- Tom Stoltman (UK) — Two in 65.88 seconds
- Jaco Schoonwinkel (RSA) — One in 12.44 seconds
- Thomas Evans (USA) — no lift
Group Two
- Mitchell Hooper (CAN) — Four in 56.22 seconds
- Paddy Haynes (UK) — Three in 1:22.03
- Bryce Johnson (USA) — Two in 45.53 seconds
- Wesley Derwinsky (CAN) — no lift
- Mathew Ragg (NZL) — no lift
Group Three
- Rayno Nel (RSA) — Four in 62 seconds
- Shane Flowers (UK) — One in 11.38 seconds
- Evans Nana (GHA) — One in 13.47 seconds
- Lucas Hatton (USA) — One in 16.72 seconds
- Mateusz Kieliszkowski (POL) — no lift
Group Four
- Trey Mitchell (USA) — Four in 73.56 seconds
- Ondrej Fojtů (CZE) — Three in 61.34 seconds
- Tristain Hoath (CAN) — Three in 64.10 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault (CAN) — One in 9.81 seconds
- Luke Richardson (UK) — withdrew
Group Five
- Nick Guardione (USA) — Three in 71.84 seconds
- Luke Stoltman (UK) — Three in 79.34 seconds
- Pavlo Kordiyaka (UKR) — Two in 79.88 seconds
- Andrew Flynn (UK) — One in 70.94 seconds
- Evan Singleton (USA) — withdrew
[Related: Luke Richardson and Evan Singleton Withdraw from 2025 World’s Strongest Man]
2025 World’s Strongest Man Stone Medley Recap
This event featured single-athlete heats.
Group Two
Johnson was first to the arena. He was tentative through the first block but locked it out overhead. He stripped off his wrist wraps to shoulder the second stone. He dropped the third stone to regroup but struggled to get proper leverage before the whistle sounded.
Ragg entered the arena, again introduced as a McDonald’s manager. He lost his grip after cleaning the first stone and had to lift it again. He pushed it overhead in his second attempt but couldn’t control the lockout. He lifted it a third time but failed to lock out his right elbow. He waved off to the crowd knowing his 2025 WSM campaign was over.
The scorching 84-degree heat brought Derwinsky to the stage. He was efficient with the clean but struggled to reposition for the press and had to dump it. He cleaned it again before nodding negative post miss. He gave it one last go before waving off. That left the door open for Haynes to secure a WSM Finals birth if he lifts the stone Derwinsky could not.
Haynes approached the first stone laser-focused. He transitioned a sharp clean into a successful lift that appeared not fully stabilized, but enough for the down command from Magnus ver Magnusson. Haynes made easy work of the stone-to-shoulder before taking off all his gear and carrying the Húsafell to completion with a single regroup in between. He locked his first WSM Finals in his WSM debut and relished the moment with the crowd.
Hooper ran the final heat locked for the WSM Final. However, he was two points behind Tom Stoltman for the overall lead, so there was plenty to lift for.
Hooper breezed through the first block so fast that one might have questioned why the other athletes struggled so much. The second stone and Húsafell were similar stories. He closed the event as the first athlete to secure all four stones.
When asked about his view regarding the lack of a rest day between Qualifying and Finals this year, Hooper responded:
95% of World’s Strongest Man is rest. We could start the Final in 10 minutes, I’d be ready to go.
—Mitchell Hooper
Group Four
Hoath entered first. He overcame a slight hiccup to lockout the first block before making easy work of the stone-to-shoulder. He gripped the Húsafell high which slowed him down toward the end and gassed him out before he could lift the fourth stone.
Boudreault kicked out the first block and overran the second stone, clearly dazed. “What’s happened there?” WSM promoter Colin Bryce questioned from the sidelines. Boudreault couldn’t recover to make headway on the second stone and with it went his 2025 WSM Final hopes.
The 23-year-old Fojtů stepped onstage knowing two stones would lock up his first WSM Final. He cleaned the block smoother than anyone thus far. The crowd roared as he secured the second stone to his shoulder to reach the WSM Final. He carried the Húsafell to completion, tripping over the mat at the end. He jovially waved off there without making an attempt on the fourth stone.
Mitchell ran last for the group. The first block was a balancing act for him but otherwise a nonissue. The stone-to-shoulder looked like the easiest lift of his life. He took a high grip on the Húsafell and sauntered the entire distance. He locked his career fifth WSM Final appearance upon loading the fourth stone.
Group One
Andrade was first out; he could not reach the WSM Final. He was nonetheless in his element with two brisk lifts before re-chalking for the Húsafell, which he took a while to start. He had time for one attempt on the fourth stone and achieved it for a momentous sendoff to his competition.
Schoonwinkel was up next, seeking to secure his second career WSM Final. The block was a non-issue, but he found the second stone challenging to grip. He never solved how to get sufficient leverage and left the door open for Evans or Williams to take the slot to the Final alongside Tom Stoltman.
Evans took the stage intending to post a time Williams couldn’t match. A shaky, uncomfortable clean of the block that he dumped signaled he wasn’t comfortable with the event. He pushed the block overhead but had to dump it behind him while falling forward. Fortunately, he was uninjured. He attempted a third time, but it was not to be.
Williams needed only the block lift to secure his first WSM Final. It was momentarily uncertain, but Magnus ver Magnusson threw the down command and Williams was through to the Final after dropping the Húsafell halfway through.
Tom Stoltman was locked to win the group before entering the arena, but he knew Hooper’s run was the pace to beat. He appeared off balance after locking out the block. He fell to his knees lifting the second stone, still dazed, and fell backward after dumping the stone in a moment that scared fans and crew alike. He wasn’t injured, took a breath, and recovered well to lock it out. The whistle blew before he could lift the Húsafell.
Group Five
Guardione was first to the stage for the group but was mathematically locked out of the Final due to Singleton’s withdrawal, assuming Kordiyaka and Luke Stoltman don’t bomb out. Guardione cleared the block, second stone, and Húsafell in what was his best performance of the competition. He didn’t have enough time to attempt the fourth stone.
Flynn dropped his first block attempt, which blocked him from making the WSM Final. He missed it a second time, then a third time. Upon his fourth attempt, he got the down command from Magnus ver Magnusson and a cheer from the crowd.
Luke Stoltman needed only the block press to reach the WSM Final. He locked it out, and the tension in his body melted away as he walked to the second stone. He lifted it to his shoulder vertically — the first to use that technique — and it paid off with an efficient lift. The Húsafell was a walk in the park, but the fourth stone didn’t budge. This marks his fifth career WSM Final.
Kordiyaka could secure his career third WSM Final with the block press. His first attempt was a fast clean with a faster dump. His second attempt was clinical, and he fist-pumped his entry to the Final. He scored the stone-to-shoulder for show before waving off at the Húsafell.
Group Three
Nana hit the stage needing the combination of an event win and a bomb out from Flowers to reach the Final. He was smooth with the block press before failing to figure out how to clean the second, pull-shaped stone. He yelled his gratitude to the crowd before signing off.
Hatton was live for the Final but needed to beat Flowers by three ranks. Given that Kieliszkowski was already eliminated, Hatton’s spot was identical to Nana’s. Hatton cleaned the block and essentially tossed and caught it to the rack position to press — one of the most unique feats of strength of the whole contest.
Hatton’s contest came to a close when, like Nana, he failed to solve how to move the second stone off the floor.
Flowers could pass into the Final, as no points would knock him out. Therefore, his spot was exactly like Kordiyaka’s: block press for a spot in the Final. He was one and done on his first attempt and signaled to his coach to confirm he should attempt the stone-to-shoulder.
It was arguably the wrong call. He dropped the stone while it was at his shoulder and dropped to the mat, shaking. The stone nearly landed on his foot. Fortunately, he was in the timeline where the stone neither hit his foot nor were his shakes anything beyond a daze.
Nel was locked for his first WSM Final but ran his heat to move up the overall leaderboard. He power cleaned the block and the stone-to-shoulder. Swift feet through the Húsafell, and he was on pace to best Hooper’s time, but narrowly missed.
Related: Mark Philippi Brings a Legacy of Strength to the Chicago Bears]
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Featured image courtesy of World’s Strongest Man
