Mitchell Hooper, Shayna Wirihana Win 2023 Australia’s Strongest International Contests

Mitchell Hooper started his 2023 strongman season off with a bang. The Canadian flew to Yapeen, Australia, to compete in the 2023 Australia’s Strongest International (ASI) contest on Jan. 21, 2023. Against six other elite strongmen, Hooper won four of five events to take the overall crown by a three-point margin over silver medalist Rauno Heinla of Estonia.

Shayna Wirihana beat six other elite strongwomen, including former World’s Strongest Woman (WSW) Andrea Thompson. According to Strongman Archives, this was Wirihana’s first career international contest victory.

The five events featured at both contests were a Vertical Lift, a Max Log Lift, a Ukrainian Deadlift for reps, Qest Stone for distance, and a Max Atlas Stone. Check out the full results below:

2023 Australia’s Strongest International Results

Check out the full results below:

Strongmen’s Division

1. Mitchell Hooper (Canada) — 31 points
2. Rauno Heinla (Estonia) — 28 points
3. Fadi El Masri (Australia) — 20 points
4. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf (Australia) — 18.5 points
5. Tiano Faapoi (New Zealand) — 13 points
6. Tyler Helm (Australia) — 13 points
7. Sean Gillen (Australia) — 11.5 points

Strongwoman’s Division

1. Shayna Wirihana (New Zealand) — 28.5 points
2. Andrea Thompson (Great Britain) — 26 points
3. Megan Clark (Australia) — 24.5 points
4. Donna Moore (Great Britain) — 24.5 points
5. Nicole Genrich (Australia) — 13.5 points
6. Joe Kimitaunga (Australia) — 11.5 points
7. Camilla Fogagnolo (Australia) — 10.5 points

The individual event results are recapped below.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CnrhLETSZq4/

[Related: Terry Hollands, Luke Richardson Out of 2023 Britain’s Strongest Man]

Vertical Lift

This event was an arm-over-arm event that challenged athletes to use a rope to pull a chained weight up a silo apparatus in the fastest time possible. Hooper posted the fasted time by over eight seconds to set the pace for the rest of the field going forward.

Strongmen’s Results

1. Mitchell Hooper — 17.12 seconds
2. Fadi El Masri — 26.24 seconds
3. Tiano Faapoi — 28.71 seconds
4. Rauno Heinla — 36.50 seconds
5. Sean Gillen — 38.78 seconds
6. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — did not finish
7. Tyler Helm — did not finish

Strongwomen’s Results

1. Megan Clark — 1.9 meters
2. Shayna Wirihana — 1.9 meters
3. Andrea Thompson — 1.6 meters
4. Nicole Genrich — 1.4 meters
5. Camilla Fogagnolo — 1.3 meters
6. Joe Kimitaunga — 1.2 meters
7. Donna Moore — 0.8 meters

Max Log Lift

Using a metal log, athletes established their max lifts. The crowd was vocal as the athletes moved the weight overhead. Helm and Gillen could not clear the first weight, but the other five did. Hooper and Coraboeuf scored the heaviest lift of 185 kilograms each to share first-place points. 

Strongmen’s Results

1. Mitchell Hooper — 185 kilograms (T-first)
2. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — 185 kilograms (T-first)
3. Rauno Heinla — 172.5 kilograms
4. Fadi El Masri — 170 kilograms (T-fourth)
5. Tiano Faapoi — 170 kilograms (T-fourth)
6. Tyler Helm —  no lift
7. Sean Gillen — no lift

Wirihana posted a tremendous effort of 115 kilograms, but it was only strong enough for silver as Thompon, the current strongwoman log lift record holder, was not to be denied the win.

Strongwomen’s Results

1. Andrea Thompson — 120 kilograms
2. Shayna Wirihana — 115 kilograms
3. Donna Moore — 102.5 kilograms
4. Joe Kimitaunga — 100 kilograms
5. Megan Clark — 95 kilograms
6. Nicole Genrich — 90 kilograms
7. Camilla Fogagnolo — no lift

Check out some of the action from the Men’s division in Yapeen in the video below, courtesy of Laurence Shahlaei’s YouTube channel:

[Related: Brian Shaw to Compete in His Final World’s Strongest Man Contest in 2023]

Ukrainian Deadlift For Reps

The Ukrainian Deadlift featured athletes standing on an elevated platform while holding a narrow-gripped handle. Underneath was a barbell loaded with large weight wheels that started at 300 kilograms and increased by 10 kilograms with each rep.

Strongmen’s Results

1. Mitchell Hooper — Six reps
2. Rauno Heinla — Five reps
3. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — Four reps (T-third)
4. Tiano Faapoi — Four reps (T-third)
5. Fadi El Masri — Three reps (T-fifth)
6. Tyler Helm — Three reps (T-fifth)
7. Sean Gillen — Three reps (T-fifth)

Strongwomen’s Results

1. Andrea Thompson — Six reps (T-first)
2. Donna Moore — Six reps (T-first)
3. Shayna Wirihana — Five reps (T-third)
4. Megan Clark — Five reps (T-third)
5. Camilla Fogagnolo — Four reps
6. Joe Kimitaunga — Two reps
7. Nicole Genrich — One rep

Qest Stone for Distance

The Qest Stone was a walk for distance carrying the 170 kilogram stone. The course was not straight but rather an eight-meter circular track.

Strongmen’s Results

1. Mitchell Hooper — ~41 meters
2. Rauno Heinla — ~38 meters
3. Fadi El Masri — 29.3 meters
4. Tyler Helm — 22.5 meters
5. Sean Gillen — 13.5 meters
6. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — 11 meters
7. Tiano Faapoi — no lift

Strongwomen’s Results

1. Megan Clark — 64.9 meters
2. Shayna Wirihana — 64.8 meters
3. Donna Moore — 48.3 meters
4. Andrea Thompson — 40.8 meters
5. Camilla Fogagnolo — 34.1 meters
6. Joe Kimitaunga — 22 meters
7. Nicole Genrich — 2.1 meters  

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Max Atlas Stone

Each athlete was given a minute to perform any weight they opted to attempt.

1. Rauno Heinla — 220 kilograms
2. Tyler Helm — 210 kilograms
3. Mitchell Hooper — 200 kilograms (T-third)
4. Fadi El Masri — 200 kilograms (T-third)
5. Sean Gillen — 200 kilograms (T-third)
6. Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf — 200 kilograms (T-third)
7. Tiano Faapoi — no lift

Strongwomen’s Results

1. Donna Moore — 160 kilograms
2. Shayna Wirihana — 150 kilograms (T-second)
3. Nicole Genrich — 150 kilograms (T-second)
4. Megan Clark — 140 kilograms (T-fourth)
5. Andrea Thompson — 140 kilograms (T-fourth)
6. Camilla Fogagnolo — 130 kilograms (T-sixth)
7. Joe Kimitaunga — 130 kilograms (T-sixth)