Anytime the 2021 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion, Tom Stoltman, steps up to an Atlas Stone, it is best to pay attention. “The King of the Stones” flirts with the record books a lot in his signature event, and he did so again recently. On July 31, 2021, Stoltman shared a video on his Instagram page wherein he lapped a freshly crafted 300-kilogram (661.4-pound) stone.
The stone was so fresh, in fact, that the wires used to weigh the stone were still attached to it when Stoltman made the lift. It appeared to be a nice confidence booster for the Scotsman, who has long aimed to be the first person in history to load (or lift over bar) a 300-kilogram (661.4-pound) stone ever since hitting the current 286-kilogram (630.5-pound) world record. Check out Stoltman’s latest feat below, which he says took place sometime before the 2020 WSM:
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This video might not jump out as remarkable at first glance because of how relaxed Stoltman is describing the lift and the fact that he made the lift look quite simple. However, picking up a 300-kilogram (661.4-pound) Atlas Stone off the ground is not only rare — this is supposedly the first time it has ever been done.
Atlas Stone World Record
Stoltman scored the current Atlas Stone world record of 286 kilograms (630.5 pounds) as part of the World’s Ultimate Strongman (WUS) “Feats of Strength” series (in May 2020), which gave strongmen and strongwomen from around the globe the opportunity to move the goalposts on their best events.
A few highlights were 2020 WSM Oleksii Novikov hitting the heavy dumbbell for reps world record there, 2018 WSM Hafthor Björnsson scoring his legendary 501-kilogram (1,104-pound) deadlift, and Andrea Thompson setting multiple log lift world records.
If and when Stoltman makes the legendary attempt at a 300-kilogram (661.4-pound) stone, it likely won’t be until after he attempts to go back-to-back at the 2022 WSM contest. In his Instagram video, he noted that he believes he could lift as heavy as a 310-kilogram (683.4-pound) stone with, give or take, three months of preparation.
He voiced his desire for promoters interested in featuring that event to reach out to him and any other elite strongman who might be interested in challenging the stone record themselves.
The King of the Stones
Seeing Stoltman lap a stone that heavy on his first attempt in a pair of gym shorts and a slight bit of tacky bodes well for a future world record attempt. It appears that the question isn’t whether or not Stoltman can break his world record, but rather by how much.
