Giants Live confirmed that 2018 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) Hafthor Björnsson will compete at the 2025 World Deadlift Championships (WDC). The official announcement was made on July 25, 2025, in the form of an Instagram post, but 2023 WSM winner Mitchell Hooper had previously shared the news on his YouTube channel.
The 2025 WDC will be part of the Giants Live Strongman Open event in Birmingham, England, on Sept. 6. Björnsson’s entry into the event bears extra significance because it will be Björnsson’s first Giants Live event since 2017.
Björnsson had previously declared he would never compete for Giants Live again due to the fallout from the 2017 WSM won by Eddie Hall.https://barbend.com/eddie-hall-home-gym/
Remind Me
Björnsson and Hall faced off in the Viking Press event during the 2017 WSM. Björnsson had reps not counted by then-referee Colin Bryce, which led to Hall securing the event win en route to his WSM title.
Björnsson won the WSM title the following year, but expressed disappointment with the controversy surrounding 2017. His most recent Giants Live event was the 2019 Europe’s Strongest Man contest, which he won.
Bryce extended an olive branch to Björnsson, offering opportunities to enter Giants Live events, but Björnsson declined. It’s unknown what led to Björnsson’s change of heart, but the result is his entry into the 2025 WDC, where he is expected to attempt an all-time world record deadlift.
There is no doubt that Hafthor Björnsson is one of the greatest strength athletes in history.
—Colin Bryce
Bryce continued, “On Sept. 6 in Birmingham, I believe we will witness Björnsson cement his legacy as quite possibly the strongest man of all time. You cannot overstate how important those lifts would be for the world of strength. This is a one-off chance for the world to witness the strength of history.”
The Mountain’s Deadlift Mission
Björnsson recommitted to breaking the all-time world record deadlift in competition when he returned to the sport in 2024. Björnsson pulled 501 kilograms on camera, one more kilogram than Eddie Hall’s milestone 500-kilogram pull in 2016, but Hall’s was in competition. Björnsson’s 501-kilogram deadlift was in 2020 during a time when no competitions occurred due to COVID-19.
Since his return to the sport, Björnsson has focused on pulling 501 or more in competition. He attempted the lift during the Elephant Bar Deadlift event at the 2025 Arnold Strongman Classic in Columbus, OH, but was unsuccessful.
Björnsson will attempt to pull 505 kilograms at the Eisenhart Black Competition event in Bavaria, Germany, on July 26, 2025.
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Featured Post: @thorbjornsson on Instagram
