The Arnold Strongman Classic

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Congratulations to our winner, Vytautas Lalas!

Competitors

We are excited about the great athletes who will be competing in the 2013 Arnold Strongman Classic.

Athlete Biographies

  • burke

    Michael Burke

    Second-year competitor at the Arnold Classic

    I began training for strongman and weightlifting in general in at the beginning of 2010. I got into the sport when I ran into a group of guys after joining a gym in my neighborhood. I am still really new to this sport. I met Brian Shaw at the end of 2010 and have been training with him ever since.



    Age: 38
    Height: 6'6"
    Weight: 330 pounds
    Hometown: Aurora, Colorado
    Family: Wife Maree Burke, son Michael and daughter Isabella
    Occupation: Framing contractor

  • thor

    Hafthor Bjornsson

    Second-year competitor at the Arnold Classic

    Hafthor began competing in strongman after an injury to his ankle ended his basketball career. In his first contest, with no real training, Hafthor won one event and made an Icelandic record in stone carrying. After this auspicious beginning, Hafthor was hooked and began training solely for strongman competitions. Since 2009, he has won seven competitions.

    Age: 24
    Height: 6'7"
    Weight: 430 pounds
    Hometown: Kopavogur, Iceland
    Family: Girlfriend Kolbrun Linda Siguroardottir, daughter Theresa Lif
    Occupation: Bank security guard

  • thor

    Mark Felix

    Second Arnold Classic appearance

    Mark was a dedicated body builder and turned his attention to strongman competitions in 2003 at the age of 37, comparatively late in relation to other strength athletes.

    Age: 46
    Height: 6'4"
    Weight: 295 pounds
    Hometown: Grenada, England
    Family: Wife Denny and three children
    Occupation:Plasterer

  • thor

    Vytautas Lalas

    First Arnold Classic appearance

    I started strongman 7 years ago - my first competition was Lithaunia's Strongest Junior, where I took second place. Next year I came back and won.


    Age: 30
    Height: 5'10"
    Weight: 300 pounds
    Hometown: Mazeikiaia, Lithuania
    Family: Wife Simona
    Occupation:Co-owner of Animal Barbell gym in Ireland

  • misha

    Mikhail Koklyaev

    Eighth Arnold Classic appearance

    Misha began training weight training when he was only 12 and the beginning was interested in boxing. However, his exceptional athleticism brought him to the attention of Russia's weightlifting coaches and in 1992 he switched to Olympic weightlifting where he quickly excelled and became the Russian champion. Misha is the only professional strongman who actively competes in both sports.


    Age: 34
    Height: 6'3"
    Weight: 350 pounds
    Hometown: Chelyabinsk, Russia
    Family: Wife, Oksana son Mikhail and daughter Diana

  • thor

    Derek Poundstone

    Fifth Arnold Classic appearance (two-time champion)

    Derek hosts Poundstone Power Radio, a satellite radio show helping people achieve a "high performance lifestyle", on Sirius/XM satellite radio (Sirius 92/XM 208). Derek also owns Poundstone Performance Training Center located in Waterbury, CT and is a Global Ambassador for the Law Enforcement Torch Run for the Special Olympics.

    Age: 31
    Height: 6'1"
    Weight: 340 pounds
    Hometown: Waterbury, Conneticut
    Family: Wife Kristin Poundstone
    Occupation:Police Sergeant for the Naugatuck, CT Police Department.

  • thor

    Jerry Pritchett

    First Arnold Classic appearance

    Jerry began his strength career in powerlifting at the age of 15. Prior to his involvement in strongman contests, Jerry was a Sprint Car driver and still enjoys racing in his spare time.

    Age: 32
    Height: 6'4"
    Weight: 340 pounds
    Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona
    Family: Wife Kasey, daughter Abigail and son James
    Occupation:Metal fabricator

  • thor

    Brian Shaw

    Fourth Arnold Classic appearance (2011 champion)

    I like competing in strongman because it is the best test of overall body strength that there is. It is great to be able to test my strength against the strongest men in the world.

    Age: 30
    Height: 6'8"
    Weight: 440 pounds
    Hometown: Furt Lupton, Colorado
    Family: Girlfriend Kristen Paruleski
    Occupation:Sports performance coach

  • thor

    Adam Scherr

    First Arnold Classic appearance

    Adam began training for strongman while working security at a night club. He trained for two weeks before winning his first contest in September of 2009.

    Age: 29
    Height: 6'8"
    Weight: 410 pounds
    Hometown: Sherrills Ford, North Carolina
    Occupation:Mechanic

  • thor

    Krzysztof Radzikowski

    First Arnold Classic appearance

    Age: 31
    Height: 6'1"
    Weight: 320 pounds
    Hometown: Glowno, Poland

Presented by:

Maximum Human Performance
Slater's Hardware
Sorinex
The Arnold Sports Festival