The 2020 Arnold Sports Festival can go down as a landmark event in the sport of strongwoman. Earlier in the weekend, Kristin Rhodes and Andrea Thompson both performed 600 plus pound deadlifts. And now the Arnold Pro Strongwoman contest has its first multiple-time champion.
Winner – Olga Liashchuk
Liashchuk was the favorite going in but the pressure didn’t bother her. Among her most memorable moments was her speed when going through the yoke and farmer’s medley. She was able to complete that course in less than 20 seconds. She also became a big part of the Friday night show in the Battelle Grand by lifting and pressing the 140 pound Monster Dumbbell for 5 reps. Another highlight for her was the Tire Flip where she performed 9 reps in one minute with the 500 pounds (227 kg) tire. The now two-time champion is a part of strongwoman history and can only add onto that from here.
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2nd Place – Danielle Vaji
This was Vaji’s first Arnold Pro Strongwoman event and she performed well throughout the competition but the champion was always a rep or step ahead. Vaji completed 6 reps on the tire flip as well as 10 reps with the 525 pound tire deadlift. On the Friday night stage, she completed four reps with the 140 pound dumbbell. While she didn’t win the contest, she performed above and beyond what she did in training which can be a confidence boost for her going into future contests.
3rd Place – Jessica Fithen
Fithen had a couple of memorable moments this weekend including tying Olgashchuk with 5 reps on the 140 pound Monster Dumbbell. She was able to complete 34 reps on the Last Woman Standing Stone event with the 240 pound stone. What may have cost Fithen ultimately was her struggles in the medley. She started out close to Liashchuk when moving the 525 pound yoke but the champion pulled away after taking the 235 pound farmer’s walk and speeding to the finish line. Fithen was never able to completely start on the farmer’s portion and was unable to finish the event. Nonetheless, she still made it to the podium in arguably the biggest event in her sport.
2020 Arnold Pro Strongwoman Top 3
Champion – Olga Liashchuk
2nd Place – Danielle Vaji
3rd Place – Jessica Fithen
Featured Image: Instagram/filthy_fithen Left to Right: Jessica Fithen, Olga Liashchuk, Danielle Vaji
