HISTORY OF RECORDS
		A HISTORY OF STRONGMAN RECORDS The first official reference to strength records was published in 1892 in New-York by the magazine “The Spirit of the Times” and listed as “World Record List of Amateurs”.  Although great physical achievements have been engraved in stones back in the 6th century B.C., as does testify the Bybon Stone, today resting in the Archaeological Museum at Olympia, Greece. Listed below are most of the notable feats of strength covering a century and a half history of strength. NAME FEAT DATE PLACE William Curtis Simultaneous dumbell press in strict style (2 X 100 lbs) (2 x 45,5 kg) September 10, 1859 Chicago Richard Pennell One arm dumbell press in strict style (201 lbs) (91,5 kg) January 1, 1874 New-York George Robinson Consecutive One arm dumbell presses (20 X 125,5 lbs) (20 X 57 kg) November 15, 1875 San Francisco Hans Steyrer One finger lift (528 lbs – 240 kg) 1878 Munich, Germany Louis Cyr Shouldering a manhood stone from the ground (517 lbs – 235 kg) May, 1883 Lowell, Mass., USA Franz Stähr One arm dumbell press (210 lbs – 95.5 kg) December 17, 1885 Vienna Louis Cyr One arm dumbell press in strict style (265 lbs – 120,5 kg) November 12, 1889 St-Henri, Québec, Canada Wilhelm Türk Two hands clean and jerk (314,5 lbs – 143 kg) September 15, 1891 Vienna Louis Cyr One arm dumbell press in strict style (273 ¼ lbs – 124,2 kg) January 19, 1892 London, UK Louis Cyr One finger lift (558 lbs – 254 kg) September 7, 1892 Lowell, Mass, USA Louis Cyr Backlift (4337 lbs – 1972 kg) May 27, 1895 Boston, Mass, USA Louis Cyr One arm dumbell snatch (188 ½ lbs – 86 kg) May 8, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, USA Louis Cyr Crucifix hold combined weight (185 ¼ lbs – 84 kg) May 8, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, USA Louis Cyr One arm press and push press for reps (162 ½ lbs – 74 kg for 36 reps) May 8, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, USA Louis Cyr Partial deadlift (1897 lbs – 862 ¼ kg) May 8, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, USA Louis Cyr One hand partial deadlift (987 lbs – 449 kg) May 8, 1896 Chicago, Illinois, USA Louis Cyr One hand shouldering of a 433 pounds (197 kg) barrel May 8, 1896 Chicago, USA Hans Beck Overhead barrel lift pressing a 249 pounds (113 kg) barrel three (3) times September 25, 1896 Munich, Germany Arthur Dandurand Wheelbarrow 4300 pounds (1955 kg) over 23 feet (7 meters) September, 1908 Sohmer Park, Montreal, Quebec, Canada Arthur Saxon One arm bent press (anyhow lift) (335 ¾ lbs – 152.3 kg) January 4, 1904 London, UK Warren L. Travis Backlift (4140 lbs – 1882 kg) November 1, 1907 Brooklyn, NY, USA Warren L. Travis Harness lift (3985 lbs – 1811 kg) November 1, 1907 Brooklyn, NY, USA Herman Görner One hand deadlift (727,5 lbs – 331 kg) October 8, 1920 Leipzig, Germany Herman Görner     Back carry over distance (1444 lbs – 656 kg) over 52,5 feet (16,15 meters) June 3, 1921 Leipzig, Germany Herman Görner Front hold out (110,2 lbs – 50 kg) January 14, 1933 Leipzig, Germany Charles Rigoulot Overhead lifting of the original wheels of Apollon (366 lbs – 166 kg) with 1,93 inches axle March 3, 1930 Paris, France John Davis Overhead lifting of the original wheels of Apollon September 13, 1949 Paris, France Henry Gray One hand lift and carry of the no 1 Dinnie stone (340 lbs – 155 kg) 58,5 feet (18 meters) October 29, 1954 Aberdeen, Scotland Norbert Schemansky Jerking of the original wheels of Apollon for 3 consecutives reps October 17, 1954 Lille, France Doug Hepburn First ever olympic bar press over 400 lbs with 402 lbs (182,5 kg) 1952 Vancouver, Canada Paul Anderson First ever full squat over 750 lbs (347 kg) (no belt, no wrap, no support gear) July 25, 1953 Norfolk, Virginia, USA Paul Anderson First ever 800 lbs (364 kg) deadlift and over 1000 lbs (455 kg) squat 1160 lbs (527 ¼ kg) 1957 USA Paul Anderson Official olympic press (440 lbs – 200 kg) March 30, 1963 Birmingham, Alabama, USA Dave Prowse First modern lifting of both Dinnie stones 340 lbs (155 kg) and 445 lbs (202 kg) together for reps 1964 Kincardine, Scotland Jos Dubé First ever olympic press over 450 lbs (205 kg) at 461 ¾ lbs (210 kg) August 3, 1968 USA Vasili Alexeev First ever olympic press over 500 lbs (227,5 kg) September 26, 1971 Lima, Peru Vasili Alexeev Best ever olympic press at 520 lbs (236,5 kg) April 15, 1972 Tallin, Estonia Bill Kazmaier First ever bench press over 650 lbs at 661 lbs (300 kg) 1983 USA Bill Kazmaier First ever deadlift over 900 lbs at 904 lbs (410 kg) 1983 USA Bill Kazmaier First ever total powerlift over 2400 lbs at 2425 lbs (1102 ½ kg) 1983 USA Bill Kazmaier First ever  overhead log press at 375 lbs (170,5 kg) 1988 World Strongest Man, Hungary Jon Pall Sigmarsson First Ever lift of 5 McGlashen (Atlas) stones in 27:47 seconds 1988 World Strongest Man, Hungary Jon Pall Sigmarsson First ever shouldering of 220 lbs (100 kg) stone 11 times and 275,5 lbs (125 kg) 6 times 1989 Iceland Ignacio Perurena Heaviest Basque stone lifting (rectangular block with handholds) to shoulder at 660 lbs (300 kg), 3 times in 3 minutes 1992 Spain Gregg Ernst Carrying of the Husafell stone at 410 lbs (186 kg) over 223 feet (68,6 meters) 1992 World Strongest Man, Thingvellir, Iceland Magnus Ver Magnusson* First ever overhead Icelandic Rock lift at 286 ½ lbs (130 kg) 1992 World Strongest Man, Gullfoss, Iceland * Could have been credited with the first ever overhead stone lift at 308 ½ lbs (140 kg) at the same competition.   Laszlo Fekete First ever Atlas stone lift over 450 lbs at 488 lbs (222 kg) at a height of 56 inches (1,28 meter) 2001 Siofok, Hungary Svend Karlsen First ever overhead log lift over 400 lbs at 407 lbs (185 kg) November, 2002 Stockholm, Sweden Hugo Girard First ever Apollon axle lift (replica) at 385 lbs (175 kg) January 18, 2003 Oahu, Hawaii, USA Hugo Girard Heaviest farmer’s walk 2 X 385 lbs (175 kg) for 100 feet (30 meters) January 18, 2003 Oahu, Hawaii, USA Zydrunas Savickas Heaviest overhead log lift at 423,5 lbs (192,5 kg) September 24, 2005 IFSA Strongman World Championships, Quebec City, Québec, Canada   Zydrunas Savickas First official overhead stone/ingot lift at 308 lbs (140 kg) September, 2006 IFSA Strongman World Championships, Reykyavick, Iceland ©PAUL OHL et FORTISSIMUS, 2008   Go to top