Lists like these are generally dumb. As mitch says, pretty much every sport just gets better and better. So greatest of all time is usually the current crop, or within recent memory. Of course there's the odd exception.
Not saying that the list is fair. However, numbers are not everything considering PEDs. The answer to the following question buttresses my claim- Who is better, James or Jordan? There are similar examples in other sports without exception.
@@intellivisionmaster7999 Yeah Mariusz beat Z around 77% of the time they competed with each other, across all events and in all competition. He's clearly above Z for that reason. After that it becomes difficult to factor. Shaw and Z have a very even record vs each other, almost 50%. But if you look at overall stats, Thor beats both of them because he has a higher podium/contest percentage and a higher even win percentage than both of them, yet he didn't take as many titles as either Z or Brian during the time when all 3 were active and in good shape. And then again, Thor is clearly stronger than Mariusz ever was, or anyone else for that matter, if you look at their feats of strength. I'd have 1) Mariusz 2) Thor 3) Z 4) Shaw but it's very difficult to organize those 2-4 slots.
Simple: If the list says "strongest humans of all time" it has to be a list of record holders. If the list says "greatest strength athletes of all time" you can give a lot of merit to historic figures, whether because they were groundbreaking, revolutionary, dominated competitions, did the impossible (at the time) or whatever else. Then of course for "greatest strength athletes of all time" you can even add the smaller guys, other weight categories etc. Is a man who weights 200 pounds and lifts 200kg overhead stronger than you? NO. Is he a great strength athlete? Absolutely.
Why would strongest humans of all time has to be a list of record holders???? Why couldn't it hypothetically be ten current strongmen with one record holder and nine who doesn't lift quite as much and therefore are not record holders?? They could still be stronger than those who came before.
None of the guys on this list could move Levan Saginashvili’s arm a fraction of an inch past parallel before he shatters their forearms into pieces from the elbow down across a table. That would mean he has inhuman levels of strength that Brian Shaw couldn’t even comprehend.
@@axe2grind244errr thjnk big Brian shaw who’s currently training arm wrestling has easily has the strength to match levan. To use your argument, levan would get smoked in a strongman competition against brian. Wouldn’t even be close.
@@axe2grind244How do you even know the man's name, but don't know there are different types of strength? His lifts aren't even close to these people. But his armwrestling specific strength is almost certainly the best of all time.
Mitch has a great point if the list was “the 10 fastest runners of all time” and Usain Bolt was #6 with a bunch of people with 100 meter times over 10 seconds above him it would never reach print
For sure, and with the running it makes much more sense to judge eras differently. Sprinters running with better shoes and on better surfaces would have been significantly quicker now than they were back in the early parts of the 20th century. Weight is weight.
@@hefudgedafrog Weight is weight, but suit stiffness (important for all equipped lifts) and bar flexibility (important for all non-IPF deadlifts) has changed greatly over time, so we're not comparing apples to apples either.
It's an unfair comparison. I took this list to mean strongest across multiple metrics and the equivalent comparison would be best runner of all time in which case Bolt could indeed be 6th etc. it's far more subjective than impirical in this regard. Recency bias cannot be allowed to dominate the argument. If historic athletes have access to the training regimes and drug regimen of modern athletes in the argument about era is understandable. These lists are trying to assess genetic potential across eras and that's quite simply impossible.
@@СергейКлочков-ф4у that's why weightlifting is the most consistent sport in my opinion. same bar, same plates, same competition , same federation. of course todays wraps and belt are more enhanced but there is nothing to do.
Brian Shaw didn't just have records. He had longevity. Even at 40 years old, he was a top 1-5 strength athlete and even won his final competition stacked with current and former world strongest men. He's a top 1-3 all time.
I've got some throw backs that got me started watching Strong Man competitions - Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Magnús Ver Magnússon, Mariusz Pudzianowski. Honorable mentions - Magnus Samuel's son & Geoff Capes
So there should clearly be two lists. First, the 10 strongest people of all time -- those who moved the most weight. Totally objective list. Second, the 10 most important, historically significant strongmen of all time. Very different lists, but both useful and interesting.
I don't think moving the most weight means strongest, I know that's how Mitch sees it but if you watch the logs used in the 80s for example they clearly are much harder to press, so comparing to modern day is a false equivalence imo
"Angus MacAskill (1825-1863) was a Scottish-Canadian giant and strongman, standing around 7 feet 9 inches tall. In 1981, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized him as the strongest man in recorded history and the tallest and largest ‘natural’ giant ever. Known for his incredible feats, he could lift heavy objects like anchors and barrels with ease." Height: 7 ft. 9 inches (2.36m) Weight: 510 lbs. (230Kg) Shoulders: 44 in. (112 cm) Palm: 12 inches long (30.5cm) and 8 inches wide (20.3cm) like a bear paw. Wrists: 13.5 inches (34.3 cm) Ankles: 18 inches (45.7cm)
Kaz has to be in that list. Imo Mitch did him a huge disservice on the log particularly, all you have to do is watch the videos and you'll see why it would be virtually impossible to press the weights that are done regularly now
@@bruuhhhhSadly we cant say for certain. But I'm confident if Kaz trained today and had the same advantages in drugs, equipment, recovery and training ect. He'd be right up there with guys like Iron Biby and Eddie Hall in terms of pure static overhead power. You don't bench that sort of weight that easily and not have the potential to do something massive overhead. He was way ahead of his time in that respect, can only think of a couple of others who could do similar things to Kaz in the 80s.
Shaw is top 5 in Strongman from now through forever. He's a rare dude. He carries his weight easily, while other strongman bulk up for big events. Shaw had trouble losing weight between events. He's just a f'ing strong dude few others can compare with. In various videos outside of competition, Shaw could always pick up odd things other strongmen struggled with.
@@Demane69 Shaw also bulked up, he didn't have trouble losing weight I'm not sure where you've heard that. He weighs 375lbs right now so clearly it isn't an issue. He is a massive human though for sure.
@@hg_10sm68 Correct. My point being he didn't have massive weight shifts like others did, and his struggles to lose weight was often displayed more than his gains.
Ed Coan not even getting mentioned is absurd to me. John Haack is chasing him for pound for pound powerlifting GOAT. Also, when you talk about deadlift numbers, you absolutely have to mention how the bars have changeed over time. Comparing what guys were pulling on power bars to what's done today on deadlift bars is just silly.
Ed Coan also squatted in wraps though, albeit early form wraps but still. John's bench and deadlift are leagues ahead of Ed's and I would say with John's consistency and totals that even match up to those in the weights above him, I'd put him on top. Definitely a discussion though, Coan dominated so many different weight classes so its definitely close.
@@ZoopopigusGamez their deadlift is close. Ed's best is 903lbs. Haack is improving, though. His bench is definitely far better, but I would bet even raw Ed's squat would be quite a bit better than John's.
Thanks for mentioning Blaine. I played football with him in College and was his roommate for a year. All 4 years of college he dedicated to football and still came out and became a top 10 strength athlete in history. Also, similar to the impression I get of you, Blaine was the nicest guy I ever met. Super humble and super badass. Makes me like you and all strength athletes more knowing these traits are common among your best.
I met mark Henry last year and asked him a few questions about his lifting career. He 100% believes he’d have been the first to break 500kg deadlift if he had kept going. I don’t know if it still stands but for years he was the only person to deadlift and squat over 900lbs in the same push/pull competition
As much as I like mark Henry I find that he could have broke 500 very doubtful. His max was like 909 lbs 410kg. Adding 90kg to his pb when already at heavy weight. I thjnk even many athletes will agree with me that that’s Miles off 500.
@@MrNumber1ukfan even still, that’s only a few years until your mid thirties where the peak starts to decline. And to add 90 kg to a deadlift pb? Like I say love mark Henry as a guy but I don’t see it.
Mark Henry has no business being on this list. No one cares what he could’ve done, or his claims about being “drug-free”. It’s possible he could’ve become one of the all-time greats if he had a career in the sport, but he didn’t. Putting him at number two is disgusting.
It does boggle my mind that some massively-seasoned strength athletes have never heard of names like Taranenko. It's like being this deep into strength training and having never heard about Ed Coan or Bill Kazmaier.
@@nicholassmith7048I agree. If this had been Mitchs coach speaking the conversation would be very different. Big Loz loves the history of strength sports in general
Thats because he was USSR rep, if he was from US or UK he would have been more popular in todays times and Olympics have tried to erase his and everyone elses records after they tested blood samples years later. Even recently modern lifters like Ilya Ilyin's 2015 records have been erased by Olympics as they found steroids in 2021/22 in blood samples. Theres lot of politics in this. In 2016/20 Olympics they suspended lot of Russians for doping, I find it hard to believe they only found evidence on that side and not a single person from US was outed.
Andy Bolton, I trained with, I wrote and worked on his training routines at times....he was never bothered about world records, just winning the titles ..... "World records will be beaten, but tiles and medals are to keep" he said once to me. Like yourself you are a product of your sport and you train accordingly..... Having the best deadlift doesn't guarantee a win in WSM .... It only helps. For me Bill Kazmaier did what he needed to win, as have you but all sports have moved on with equipment, nutrition etc. to compare Pele and Ronaldo , or anyone in any sport is difficult if they are divided by more than 10 years for sure. One thing is for sure WSM is amazing, growing in popularity due to guys like yourself. Thank you.
Ken Patera needs to be mentioned also. He placed in WSM without training for it. In fact he hadn't touched any weights in years since he was wrestling full time. Incredible feat. An incredible Olympic lifter.
Taranenko was 1988, not 1998... if that matters, which I think it kind of does because the PEDs have improved since then. That's why, IMHO, it's hard to compare between eras.
Yes but testing in 80s wasn’t nearly as strict as these days. Weightlifting is a great example, most unbeatable records are from 80s and 90s and these records are generally untouchable these days due to athletes not being on nearly as much gear
For me, the best in history is Mariusz Pudzianowski💪. He has 5 world champion titles and won the European championship 6 times. The fact that he didn't win Arnold doesn't mean anything, he won against BiG Z, Vasyl, Bergmanis and Hugo Girard. The second best in my opinion is Bill Kazmaier, we know well what was done to him, he could have had the most titles in history.
@@Styrkur13 Shaw's was a seated press where he got them to his shoulder by pushing them up one knee at a time. Watch Mark Henry do it; he just lifts it off the ground to his shoulder in one motion and strict presses it. Not sure that cleaning two at once for a standing press is actually possible. The clean is definitely the hardest part.
Thank you for the video Mitchell. It is a pleasure to watch you compete and I wish you plenty of success. If it comes to my comment, so I am pretty disappointed not to see Pudzianowski on the list. On the days when he competed he adjusted his training to what was needed to dominate strongman. (And he did) He could go for a RAW strength, but it was not his passion and he was smart enough to understand how not healthy it is to train for just RAW. (You becoming big, slow, conditioning down, big belly, fat, risk of heart attack etc.) He probably could but it was not necessary. He definitely promote the sport like nobody else and is 5 times WSM that nobody beat until today. He had the best and the healthiest looking body from all the strongmen's ever. He said himself that he stopped because he achieved everything he wanted in the sport. Let's just say that you Mitchell would win 10 WSM competitions and 10 Arnolds, but it will be 50 guys from power lifting that have better results than you - it means that you not allowed to be in the first 10 strongest men ever ? I think it should be more categories if it comes to strongest humans of all time. Thanks
@@wanderer_oti yep. A lot of it comes down to specificity. He never even trained logs. Same as in 2002 mark was the only one who trained the inch and the axle behind the scenes with terry todd. No one else could do them. Now everyone can
No its not, because mass moves mass, dots and wilks allows you to see per weight class. For Thor (Mitchell said is the best) to hit the same current dots as Haack he would have to have a total of 1350kg to even be able to compete with john.
@@officalemsremdoesn’t the dots formula fail to adjust for ultra heavy weights though? Obviously Haack is an anomaly but a 1350kg total is effectively impossible barring improvement in PEDs
I think that when you're talking GOATS you have to look at their performances against their peers. Otherwise there's always going to be a recency bias which unduly credits the athlete for improvements in equipment, in nutrition, in training methods and in "supplements". It's for this reason that people like Kaz deserve to be on this list. It's not perfect considering athletes throughout history in this way, particularly if people were ahead of their time and had much better training or drugs etc than their peers. However, I think it's more fair than just looking at the raw numbers and saying that everyone today beats everyone that came before. I feel it's the same for athletics, for swimming; for all of these sports that have measurable performances that are the same regardless of what their peers were able to do. When you look at team sports like basketball, all you have to go on are stats that are heavily influenced by the strength of the opposition so you have to consider what other people were able to achieve against those same opposition. I think that we should make all GOAT considerations in the same way.
I think Mikhail Koklyaev (Михаил Кокляев) deserves a spot in the top 10. He has one of the best super-totals (Olympic and power lifts) and was a very high-level strongman competitor. On top of that, there's a whole load of incredible feats of strength from his UA-cam training videos, like his 270kg behind-the-neck jerk, 300kg+ no-hand squats, etc.
Misha Koklyaev! Podium finishes at WSM and ASC, a 1st place finish at IFSA, European champion Weightlifter and a world record holding Powerlifter. No one else has been that good at such a variety of strength sports.
@Mitchell Hooper Paul deserves to be in the top 10 IMO. Back then Olympic lifts had to be cleaned (and snatched) with no contact, making a comparison w/modern technique apples and oranges. But aside from Olympic lifting Paul's biggest claim to fame was his static strength. Per Marty Gallagher, Paul had two training routines, one focused on Olympic lifting and the other on building "power." Paul's power routine had him work up to the following top sets (on different days): * 2 reps at 400 lbs/181.5 kg in the strict press * 3 reps at 450 lbs/204 kg in the push press * 8 reps at 450 lbs/204 kg in the bench press * 2 reps at 900 lbs/408 kg in the full squat * 2 reps at 1200 lbs/544.5 kg in a half squat * 4 sets of 8 reps at 650 lbs/295 kg in the deadlift Per Paul himself, he trained at ~95% intensity for his heaviest sets. He still has an argument to being the strongest ever in the squat: his best lifts there were 800 lbs/363 kg for 10 reps and 900 lbs/408 kg for 5 - with no knee support. Another lifter who deserves to be here is Don Reinhoudt: to this day he is the only man to ever hold both the world record in raw powerlifting and the World's Strongest Man title at the same time. Don performed the following best lifts raw: * Squat w/bare knees: 950 lbs/431 kg (got a tough 2 reds one white for depth) * Squat w/wraps: 934.5 lbs/424 kg in 70's knee wraps * Bench press: 625 lbs/283.5 kg (red lighted for moving his foot, he also benched 610 lbs/276.5 kg w/white lights) * Deadlift w/straps: 900 lbs/408 kg for 3 reps * Deadlift without straps: 895 lbs/406 kg * Incline press: 575 lbs/261 kg for 3 reps
I do have to wonder about Angus McAskill, where he would sit strengthwise if he were alive to be properly measured - largest known 'non giant' giant. Has some neat strength legends that we can't really verify but he's recent enough that we actually have pictures of how big he is (pic of him standing beside a 6'4" guy making him look like he's 5'4" lol), and things like his chest measurement - allegedly the 'largest non obese chest measurement'. Supposedly lifted a 2,000 pound anchor to his shoulder and walked with it, though was injured in the process. Would be amazing as heck if that were true. Similarly, I always wonder if Andre the Giant had actually been able to really train weightlifting if he could have been one of the strongest. Sadly his condition (and probably the wrestling lifestyle) made such dedicated training impossible. His 'natural' untrained abilities were insane. Imagine Andre with Brian Shaw's work ethic!!
IMO, the greatest what if is what if Shaquille O'Neal did everything that Brian Shaw did. What if Brian Shaw was half a foot taller and a better athlete before transitioning to strength sports. But he made 292 Million dollars in salary alone so I think we can all agree he made the right decision.
@@davidfoster2629 Yeah Shaq definitely did alright for himself lol. Just went to Staples the other day and he's selling half the products in there 😂 Devon Larratt did say (multiple times) that Shaq was one of the top three strongest non-arm wrestlers he's pulled, and that was old Shaq. Definitely a huge what-if!
Surely you need brian shaw in your list? And Mariusz Pudzianowski has to be on the list as well? Great Video as always, also don't be so humble to forget yourself, you have done great things in such a short time in the sport👍🏻.
Taranenko had the record for over 30 years before Lasha broke it in weightlifting. I think you really should see stuff in context of their time. If someone used a sailboat to solo sail around the world in 1898 in 1160 days (Joshua Slocum) and someone in 2004 did it in less than 123 days, you cannot just dismiss the old records, if anything, often many of the older records may be more impressive while technically being inferior based solely on the end result. Or "High Score" you could call it, how, when and with what was the high score reached wiith today vs then. The first single ply stuff compared to modern single ply etc. I would say that it is not easy comparing old vs modern records though, sometimes unfair to the modern and sometimes unfair to the old records.
I think including Mark Henry is reasonable, one of the highest super totals of all time, Thomas Inch cleaner, plus Arnold Strongman winner. Mikhail Koklyaev definitely deserves a mention, Jesus, Thor, Lasha, maybe somebody like Julius Maddox would make the list. I think top of your strength sport all time just makes you objectively one of the strongest people ever. Obviously Heracles and Samson of course, but potato tomato
This is the perfect example of someone was tasked to make this list who wasn’t a strength historian/fan and maybe mistook most notable or influential at the time for strongest. I do believe Kaz, with today’s standardizing and training approaches, would be unbelievable. Awesome video!
I would love to know where Eddie's improvement on the world record ranks among any well-established world record improvement. Most of the time an improvement of a world record in either strength, athletics or anything of that sort is less than 1% at a time! At the same time I'm still sad that there's so much talk about the legitimacy of Hafthor's 501kg lift, seeing as there was literally as much transparency as possible, while having the most reputable judge overseeing the event... Love the content! and love the insight you share with us!
Didn't Eddie pull the new record, then come back 5 minutes later and beat that new record by like 70 pounds? Beating his record by 1 is a joke. Literally no reason Eddie wouldn't have pulled that 1k. All it proves is that he is about equal in that lift. Gotta beat it by a fair margin or it is meaningless.
@@logangodofcandy In any other sport beating it by any margin is fair, but because Eddie decided to beat it by a lot (after beating it by 1 kg multiple times himself) it's suddenly not legitimate?... that's just silly...
Couldn't agree more with everything you said! Prime Big Z & Thor at the top, Brian competing at the elite level for such a long time and Eddie getting the mention for being the static monster. Great video 👍
He was big and tough, but he was not quite as massively SHW-ish as someone like Jesus Olivares or Ray Williams. I mean, Jesus is massively broad, and Ray has on top of that frame also about the most torqy legs you will see on a man. Carl didn´t really have quads like that. He was big, taller, but overall smaller, but made of good material. That cannot bridge all of the size gap in powerlifting. Still his bench, and deadlift most of all, were pretty awesome. The over 200 raw training, I think even 250ish or more raw ability benching, which was translated to great equipped, and the y2014 390 kg deads on a stiff bar were awesome. Though I absolutely think humans can go further and further than, As far as Jesus and Ray, Both of these being lifetime natty are a bit suspect, but I would give Ray more of my faith. The difference gear makes is some, and nobody can say something is impossible. It is all "in the details". All big things are a collection of details to see. I am convinced as far as Carl. He was the Norwegian "drugs and steroids" bad, work and career conscious powerlifter, unlike Kovalev, and about half of the rest of the division. I mean he was competing with/beating guys who got caught atleast once. Actually caught. It is unfortunate he fell prey to the BW and weights above all chase in the end looking back. The knee injury alone was the end for his momentum and was what made him quit eventually. The inflammation, and training without health, is not how you get stronger.
Number 11: the old timer at my gym that used to bench 500 lbs back in middle school. He lifted 23 hours a day and would walk 20 miles to the gym that was uphill both ways while fighting off wolves.
What about Angus MacAskill? How was he left off the list? I agree....size and other factors don't matter...total poundage is what counts in this type of list since this isn't a "best strength athlete". It's "strongest human" which doesn't even necessarily reflect a competition lift. In its 1981 Edition, the Guinness Book of World Records stated he was the strongest man, the tallest non-pathological giant and the largest true giant in recorded history at 7 feet 9 inches (2.36 m), he also had the largest chest measurements of any non-obese man at 80 inches (203 cm). MacAskill was said to have accomplished feats of lifting a 2,800 lb (1,270 kg) ship's anchor to his chest and holding over 250 pounds (113 kg) with only three fingers.
Just watched the Mark Henry video - not only did he make it look easy with his 2 motion clean/press. After his first lift, he also gently lowered it back to the ground.
@@jsims300He did all these by the age of 24 so yeah not only great stats but rare great stats. Had he kept competing specially in powerlifting without focusing on Olympic weightlifting at the same time till 35 years of age , he would have been the first guy to break 2500 lbs raw with wraps total. Powerlifters reach their peak between 28-35 and Mark left the sport by 26 by conquering it. Keep in mind he was primarily an Olympic weightlifter and when he set the all time raw with wraps squat world record , all time raw deadlift world record , all time raw drug tested total world record ( 4th highest in untested meet at that time ) he trained on powerlifting lifts only sparingly. With his full attention and focus on powerlifting it is scary to think what he was capable to do. Dr. Terry Todd always used to say Henry had the most strength potential for absolute maximal strength out of any strength athlete he ever saw in his 40 years of tracking powerlifting and weightlifting but he had to secure his future too so he went to pro wrestling route, not his fault. While being a full time pro wrestler he went out of retirement and beat the best strongmen at Arnold's strongman classic by training for just few months. Guy was a once in a lifetime athlete that sadly had to go to pro wrestling route because strength sports don't pay u good specially at that time.
5:45 About Mitch's record Z in 2011 ASC did 5 reps at 188 Kilos compared to Mitch's 5 reps at 182 Kilo. So i wouldn't necessarily call it a world record.
@Vipinnnn17 if the event organizers announced it as a record for that weight yes. Also different implements have separate records as well. That's how strongman is.
Angus MacAskill, known as the “Giant MacAskill” (1825-1863), was a Scottish-born strongman celebrated for his extraordinary height (7 ft 9 in) and strength. He is widely regarded as one of the strongest men who ever lived. Though much of the information about his feats comes from oral tradition, the following lifts and displays of strength are among the most famous attributed to him: 1. Lifting a 2,800-Pound Ship’s Anchor • One of MacAskill’s most famous feats was lifting a 2,800-pound (1,270 kg) anchor to his chest. This was reportedly witnessed by sailors and dockworkers in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he lived. • The anchor was said to have been part of a large ship and required several men to move, yet MacAskill lifted it alone. 2. Carrying a 300-Pound Barrel Under Each Arm • MacAskill was reported to carry 300-pound barrels of fish or salt under each arm, walking considerable distances with them, a feat that astounded those who witnessed it. 3. Lifting 2,700 Pounds of Stone • In one account, MacAskill is said to have lifted a 2,700-pound pile of stones placed on a wooden platform, hoisting it up to waist height. 4. Tipping a Fully Loaded Cart • MacAskill was known to tip over fully loaded carts weighing several thousand pounds, something even teams of horses struggled to do. 5. Single-Handedly Holding a 100-Pound Weight at Arm’s Length • He reportedly held a 100-pound weight at arm’s length for several minutes, an impressive feat of grip and shoulder strength. 6. Tossing Massive Timber Logs • MacAskill worked in lumberyards and was known to toss massive timber logs weighing hundreds of pounds as if they were small sticks, shocking onlookers with his ease. Historical Context • MacAskill’s feats were often performed informally or in demonstrations rather than official competitions. He lived in an era before modern strongman events, so records were not systematically kept. • Despite the lack of formal verification, his reputation for strength was so great that he earned the nickname the “Strongest Man in the World” during his lifetime. Legacy Angus MacAskill’s legendary strength remains a source of fascination. He has been recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the “Tallest Non-Pathological Giant” and is remembered for his combination of immense size and extraordinary physical power.
I don’t understand why you can’t rank people for their time. They were working with way less and actually were setting the standards we aim for now. When you’re making an all time list you have to add into your thinking “did they dominate their time more then this other guy dominated his time.” That’s why Bill Russell is greater than Chris Bosh even though even though if they played one on one Bosh would definitely win. It’s also why Eddie Hall is greater than Thor. Thor didn’t know a 500kg squat was possible until Eddie did it so you don’t get credit for beating it with 1kg
While I do think the list is nuts I think your analysis might be more nuts. Like comparing 1956 weight lifting to 2020 weightlifting is not even possible. That's like comparing when sprinters ran on sand in soft shoes and saying they're way slower than modern sprinters on tracks with their spikes on. Like come the fuck on bro
And all of this isn't taking into fact pharmacology. Theresa reason why so many of the 80s Soviet and Bulgarian weightlifting records haven't been matched still
Just one remark: having the snatch WR and the clean & jerk WR does not necessarily equal the largest total as the largest total refers to snatch and c & j at the same competition. The same is true for power lifting.
He is in a strange category of his own, probably most athletic strongman of all time, and most successful strongman of all time in WSM titles 😅, but nobody argues he is among the 'strongest'
pudz didn't have the static strength, in fact he was very weak statically compared to the top athletes. check his arnold's results. however, pudz was an absolute train with moving events, virtually untouched. he wouldn't be a top 50 athlete now a days with his numbers.
pudz was amazing at "pick it up and run with it" events. Not so great at "pick it up and put it down" for max. Good enough at rep's due to smaller weights but definitely not great at max.
I agree with your amendments, but i cannot look past John Haack. Yes he is a weight class lifter, but if we are going to include equipped athletes then i think his case more then stands up. Personally i would add Graham Hicks too
I’d love to hear Mitch’s take on where he would rank on the all-time strongest person list…10-20 range maybe!? Hope he has a long and healthy career filled with many victories…always nice to see Canadians doing well!
I completely agree with Eddie Hall being the strongest static lifter of all time ! Deadlift , squat , log press , axle press , viking press, whatever the static event was I'd take Eddie Hall
Strongest static SO FAR but only marginally. He doesn't have the DL or squat either. They are Thors. And they are almost equal on many others. Eddie probably the strongest overall overhead cos Biby is so damn lazy! XD
Kaz is top 3 of all time. He won 3 WSM and held 3 powerlifting records. He could have had more WSM titles if they invited him back. Generational strength athlete and among the GOATs. I know Mitch is going by overall number but Kaz was among the greatest at 2 different strength sports.
Janae Kroczaleski was my pharmacist at Walgreens on Waverly and Saginaw in Lansing, MI. I only discovered their powerliting 'prowess', because every blood vessel in their eyes had 'popped'. They told me about their tryout for World's Strongest Man, and showed me scars from lifting a truck and snapping their biceps; asking the doctor to reattach 'lower' on their forearms (in jest). One of the most incredible people whom I've ever met.
Something tells me that you don't see how someone who once did something, that has since been eclipsed, 20 or 30 years ago can be said to be stronger than the younger generation. I mean you never said it, let alone 30 times, but I just have that feeling. For what it's worth, I ABSOLUTELY believe that an older record, that has since been broken, can be more impressive and signal a superior athlete than the athletes who bested it later. I think you MUST look at how they fared in comparison to their peers. For example (and I'll purposely leave strength sports behind to remove bias and strongman/powerlifting bickering in the comments), if you look at someone like Katie Ledecky who not only has the fastest 1500 meters time, but the fastest 17+ times. Nobody has come close. But rest assured, records are meant to be broken. One day, Katie Ledecky's 1500 m world record will be bested as well. And when that happens, you're going to have a very difficult time convincing me that the female who broke her record by, let's say a quarter of second, automatically becomes a better swimmer than Katie Ledecky. Dominance is dominance, and it isn't to be ignored. I understand why you say, "500 pounds is quantifiably more than 499 pounds." I mean, you're right! I can't dispute that. Math is math. But if athlete A shows up and lifts 499 pounds on a day when nobody else manages 450, and athlete B shows up and lifts 500 in a competition where 3 other athletes got 498 or 499, I'm personally more impressed by what athlete A managed 20 years ago than athlete B did today. But that's just me, Moose. 🤷♂
You could really have just read the OP instead of writing that. This video isn't about who was the most dominant for his era, or else Kazmeier would be near the top. You cannot be one of the best of all time if you're not even top 10 in the current era.
Possibly that Prime Z vs Prime Thor, Thor wins. But Big Z has WAYYYYY more accomplishments. And Big Z is definitely #1 in my opinion. I have to say I agree 100% with your reasoning for who should or shouldn't be on the list. Perhaps some of those dudes would make a top 20 list? Maybe... Great video!
Great list, love your additions. Would be interesting for you to do a video on the history of strongmen and their impact on the sport. Would also love another season of the World's Strongest Men with you, Hafthor and a few others similar to what Brian, Eddie, Best, and Oberst did. Include other strongmen when you do an episode in their country.
Mark Henry is by practically every expert who’s researched into him to be one of the only naturals. There’s a video alone the lines of “How Strong Is Mark Henry” that goes into more detail.
@@artair70 Thats what Im saying, for him to even be that relevant in terms of strength to people BLASTING insane amounts of PEDs shows you he is the best. People do not realize, PEDs makes you, bigger, stronger, recover faster, leaner, etc. So for anyone who wonders why Mark Henry carries a lot of fat, you HAVE to if you're a natural to get to anywhere close his strength, the PEDs allows nutrient partioning to occur in which case you get people like Mariusz Pudzianowski, with elite genetics and gear allowing him to be lean and still that strong, that does not occur naturally.
In Paul Anderson's day, Olympic lifting the bar wasn't allowed to touch the body ie bar brush up against the legs etc. Only touching the body in the clean when bar was racked across the shoulders. The rules and technique for the snatch and clean n jerk were very different from the 1950s compared to today.
@@simondean5227 I'll be honest mate I've not actually watched it yet but I assumed since they're including strongmen and Olympic lifters that it wouldn't necessarily be about a single aspect of strength? I mean what strongman is going to have the biggest powerlifting total and what olympic lifter will have the biggest squat and deadlift. Which powerlifter will be able to do a 600lb atlas stone or a 1500lb yoke? Just don't get these comparisons because at the end of the day none of them are focused on the same goal.
Excellent analysis. I agree with most of your replacements. Lasha must be on the list and near the top. I would keep Paul Anderson and Kaz. Their accomplishments were too mind-blowing to pass over.
The idea that we shouldn't entertain 'what ifs' with respect to equipment/gear changes is crazy. If in 100 yrs everyone in the sport has robotic muscular implants and deadlifting 500kg is weak should we really consider them stronger than Thor? 'woulda shoulda coulda, they lifted 800kg of the ground and he couldn't'? Preposterous. If someone lifted x# with no supportive gear at all and then someone wears a suit and a belt and wraps and does figure 8s etc and does x+1#, the first guy is just stronger. Much stronger. Similarly, when athletes know these events and train them specifically for years, comparing them to a guy who just showed up one day and did it isn't easy. I think comparing to their peers helps to round it out in a fairer way.
It would be interesting to see a list of the strongest athletes of all time and another list of the most important historical strength athletes. And see if anyone makes both.
I'm so glad you're giving props to Lasha. He's seriously underrated outside of the weightlifting community. He definitely to break records if he competed in strongman or powerlifting. He's that explosive
Paul Anderson was witnessed by his fellow team USA lifters squatting 10 reps with 700lbs completely raw in the training hall of the world championships back in the 50s, his career carried on into the 60s as a professional (so wasn’t able to compete in the Olympics from then on) and lifted in early powerlifting competitions, over 900lb squat, 800lb deadlift and press more than 450lb, all drug free… guy sadly died in the 90s due to a kidney disorder he had since being a child
You're clearly disrespecting strength athletes of the past. The only way to compare eras and the athletes of them is to look at how much more dominant was athlete X than his contemporaries. This is all kind of silly clickbait/bar debate anyway.
Lets be real, strong men throughout history didn't have access to the calibre of PEDs the strength athletes of today are all on. One could argue you'd have to take the drug use into account. But maybe you don't want to acknowledge that one. 🤣😉
Yes Mitch interestingly dodged that subject as many others do. Imagine Kas and others on today peds as well as modern knowledge on recovery, supplements, muscle therapy, nutrition, equipment and training....That list might be completely different.
Hate to burst your bubble. But there is no way to say, for sure, who is or was on PEDS. So dividing that way would be guess work at best and complete fantasy at worst. Many if not most strength athletes have been using some form of PEDs since they have been around. A few are actually natural most that claim that have just never been caught.
The list is simply the strongest, not strongest off drugs, by weight or anything else. Those old timers didn't have the drugs so didn't get as strong, as they weren't as strong they don't get to be called top 10 strongest ever.
I think the fact that Bill was so dominant the stopped inviting him gets him a spot. It would be good to have top ten lists for different generations, better comparisons. Glad you mentioned Eddie after Halfthor, 2017 was a great year for WSM
Lasha Talakhadze is a Georgian weightlifter, holding the all-time world records regardless of weight category in the snatch (225 kg, 496 lb), the clean and jerk (267 kg, 589 lb), and the total (492 kg, 1,085 lb) since 2021.
I agree with your breakdown. Especially your assessment of 2018 Thor. I also agree that these older strongmen shouldn't be on the list because their lifts have been beaten. But that being said...we should have a separate list of the "most dominant strongmen of their time". Kaz would be number 1(IMHO), Eddie would be number 2(for his insane deadlift that destroyed the record and proved the world wrong), 2018 Thor would be #3. But as I say this...I think there are a lot of old timers that dominated the strength world way back when. Let's get this list done properly like this video. As far as Big Z being the WSM GOAT...I used to think so. But I give it to Brian because he was able to retire #1 in the world winning his own show. Who does that? And #2 in that SMOE was a serious stud!!!
@mitchellhooperstrongman I think you have to take into account when the lifts and performances took place because of the advancements in the understanding of nutrition, supplements and recovery techniques. If a lift in 2018 was 300kg compared to a lift of 250kg in 1988 would there still be a 50 kg difference considering the 30 years of improvements and understanding of nutrition, supplements and recovery. Interested to hear your thoughts.
Doing the list Mitch’s way is very objective and I respect that. But I think the best way to gauge an athlete’s place is how dominant were they relative to their peers. Essentially in 100 years every record will be broken and I don’t think history should be a matter of “latest is greatest”
Brian at #10.. I know this list is trash already
@@XDAG993 Yeah he is minimum 5th. Could argue as high as 1st. Just depends on your criteria
@hg_10sm68 he's top 3-5 strongest humans ever in my opinion. Was #1 for a long time.
Lists like these are generally dumb. As mitch says, pretty much every sport just gets better and better. So greatest of all time is usually the current crop, or within recent memory. Of course there's the odd exception.
Not saying that the list is fair. However, numbers are not everything considering PEDs. The answer to the following question buttresses my claim- Who is better, James or Jordan? There are similar examples in other sports without exception.
Brian lower an Vasyl is crazy. Vasyl was not the strongest static strongman hes best was the speed in strongman event.
Shaw at 10 when he went head to head with big Z and won is absolutely ridiculous.
Big z also beat him many times
@@Anonymous-hy8cn Well ya thats why Big Z is number one. But Shaw at 10? That's ridiculous.
@@Droz75 Mariusz Pudzianowski beat Big Z around 77% of ALL the times they EVER competed with each other.
@@intellivisionmaster7999past his prime?2011 and 13?2015 just a year after his best year?wtf you talking about
@@intellivisionmaster7999 Yeah Mariusz beat Z around 77% of the time they competed with each other, across all events and in all competition. He's clearly above Z for that reason. After that it becomes difficult to factor.
Shaw and Z have a very even record vs each other, almost 50%. But if you look at overall stats, Thor beats both of them because he has a higher podium/contest percentage and a higher even win percentage than both of them, yet he didn't take as many titles as either Z or Brian during the time when all 3 were active and in good shape.
And then again, Thor is clearly stronger than Mariusz ever was, or anyone else for that matter, if you look at their feats of strength.
I'd have 1) Mariusz 2) Thor 3) Z 4) Shaw but it's very difficult to organize those 2-4 slots.
You forgot to mention Kyriakos, his body composition is 100% muscle
100 percent oily muscle 😂
I texted him he said hes bulking for the first time in his life hes pissed
The video with juji and him was pretty surprising
I would argue for 110% muscle!
His body composition is FULL.
Simple:
If the list says "strongest humans of all time" it has to be a list of record holders.
If the list says "greatest strength athletes of all time" you can give a lot of merit to historic figures, whether because they were groundbreaking, revolutionary, dominated competitions, did the impossible (at the time) or whatever else. Then of course for "greatest strength athletes of all time" you can even add the smaller guys, other weight categories etc. Is a man who weights 200 pounds and lifts 200kg overhead stronger than you? NO. Is he a great strength athlete? Absolutely.
Why would strongest humans of all time has to be a list of record holders???? Why couldn't it hypothetically be ten current strongmen with one record holder and nine who doesn't lift quite as much and therefore are not record holders?? They could still be stronger than those who came before.
None of the guys on this list could move Levan Saginashvili’s arm a fraction of an inch past parallel before he shatters their forearms into pieces from the elbow down across a table. That would mean he has inhuman levels of strength that Brian Shaw couldn’t even comprehend.
@@axe2grind244
So?
Maybe we should do thumb wrestling to see who’s the strongest person in the world is? Please
@@axe2grind244errr thjnk big Brian shaw who’s currently training arm wrestling has easily has the strength to match levan.
To use your argument, levan would get smoked in a strongman competition against brian. Wouldn’t even be close.
@@axe2grind244How do you even know the man's name, but don't know there are different types of strength? His lifts aren't even close to these people. But his armwrestling specific strength is almost certainly the best of all time.
Mitch has a great point if the list was “the 10 fastest runners of all time” and Usain Bolt was #6 with a bunch of people with 100 meter times over 10 seconds above him it would never reach print
For sure, and with the running it makes much more sense to judge eras differently. Sprinters running with better shoes and on better surfaces would have been significantly quicker now than they were back in the early parts of the 20th century. Weight is weight.
True, but they did put Zydrunas at number 1 who is probably this sport's equivalent to Usain Bolt so not really a fair comparison?
@@hefudgedafrog Weight is weight, but suit stiffness (important for all equipped lifts) and bar flexibility (important for all non-IPF deadlifts) has changed greatly over time, so we're not comparing apples to apples either.
It's an unfair comparison. I took this list to mean strongest across multiple metrics and the equivalent comparison would be best runner of all time in which case Bolt could indeed be 6th etc. it's far more subjective than impirical in this regard. Recency bias cannot be allowed to dominate the argument. If historic athletes have access to the training regimes and drug regimen of modern athletes in the argument about era is understandable. These lists are trying to assess genetic potential across eras and that's quite simply impossible.
@@СергейКлочков-ф4у that's why weightlifting is the most consistent sport in my opinion. same bar, same plates, same competition , same federation. of course todays wraps and belt are more enhanced but there is nothing to do.
Kaz log pressing a raw uneven log with only a belt absolutely stands today
Exactly, those logs were so unbalanced.
Bro they forgot to put my dad up there
My dad is stronger than your dad.
@@aresjerryMy dad could beat up your dad
Oh yeah well my dad is stronger than both of your dads put together
All of your dads sell Avon for baccy money
Im stronger than your dad........Max Hall
Brian Shaw didn't just have records. He had longevity. Even at 40 years old, he was a top 1-5 strength athlete and even won his final competition stacked with current and former world strongest men. He's a top 1-3 all time.
You left out Kahn Baba 🤣
He'd just take all 10 spots, wouldn't be fair.
Because he's a fake trash😂
Kahn Baba has clearly transcended this trivial list, Habibi. He and the Grizzly are both beyond such things.
Kahn Baba Top 10 Kebabs
I've got some throw backs that got me started watching Strong Man competitions - Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Magnús Ver Magnússon, Mariusz Pudzianowski. Honorable mentions - Magnus Samuel's son & Geoff Capes
@@Mattv25 Magnus Samuelsson's Son What?
So there should clearly be two lists. First, the 10 strongest people of all time -- those who moved the most weight. Totally objective list. Second, the 10 most important, historically significant strongmen of all time. Very different lists, but both useful and interesting.
I don't think moving the most weight means strongest, I know that's how Mitch sees it but if you watch the logs used in the 80s for example they clearly are much harder to press, so comparing to modern day is a false equivalence imo
@@bruuhhhhmost weight in the same lifts tho.
The last list could be strongest to weight ratio. Who's moved the most weight across many lifts compared to their weight.
@bruuhhhh This is a list of the strongest. The way we measure strength is we have people lift heavy things. Most weight lifted = strongest.
@@camlop8635 my point is it's not the same lift as the equipment was so vastly different
"Angus MacAskill (1825-1863) was a Scottish-Canadian giant and strongman, standing around 7 feet 9 inches tall. In 1981, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized him as the strongest man in recorded history and the tallest and largest ‘natural’ giant ever. Known for his incredible feats, he could lift heavy objects like anchors and barrels with ease."
Height: 7 ft. 9 inches (2.36m)
Weight: 510 lbs. (230Kg)
Shoulders: 44 in. (112 cm)
Palm: 12 inches long (30.5cm) and 8 inches wide (20.3cm) like a bear paw.
Wrists: 13.5 inches (34.3 cm)
Ankles: 18 inches (45.7cm)
IMO it's between Brian, Zydrunas, Hafthor, Eddie Hall, Dan Bell, Jesus Olivares & Lasha Talakhadze. Arguments can be made for all 7 of them.
Agree
Kaz has to be in that list. Imo Mitch did him a huge disservice on the log particularly, all you have to do is watch the videos and you'll see why it would be virtually impossible to press the weights that are done regularly now
@@bruuhhhhSadly we cant say for certain. But I'm confident if Kaz trained today and had the same advantages in drugs, equipment, recovery and training ect. He'd be right up there with guys like Iron Biby and Eddie Hall in terms of pure static overhead power. You don't bench that sort of weight that easily and not have the potential to do something massive overhead. He was way ahead of his time in that respect, can only think of a couple of others who could do similar things to Kaz in the 80s.
Eddie Hall is nowhere near the conversation.
@@thorthewolf8801 He is. There are different criteria you can use. In terms of peak raw static strength Eddie can easily be argued as number 1
Brian Shaw at #10 is criminal. Lasha not even being on the list doesn't make any sense. This list is 💩
Shaw is top 5 in Strongman from now through forever. He's a rare dude. He carries his weight easily, while other strongman bulk up for big events. Shaw had trouble losing weight between events. He's just a f'ing strong dude few others can compare with. In various videos outside of competition, Shaw could always pick up odd things other strongmen struggled with.
@@Demane69 Shaw also bulked up, he didn't have trouble losing weight I'm not sure where you've heard that. He weighs 375lbs right now so clearly it isn't an issue. He is a massive human though for sure.
Yeah Shaw is not the only one who carries that weight easily.
@@hg_10sm68 Correct. My point being he didn't have massive weight shifts like others did, and his struggles to lose weight was often displayed more than his gains.
@@Adam-bw6dj Correct, but few have his accolades.
@@Demane69 Maybe not his accolades, but there is one that can match his strength.
where is mariusz pudzianowski?
Ed Coan not even getting mentioned is absurd to me. John Haack is chasing him for pound for pound powerlifting GOAT.
Also, when you talk about deadlift numbers, you absolutely have to mention how the bars have changeed over time. Comparing what guys were pulling on power bars to what's done today on deadlift bars is just silly.
Ikr 😂😂😂😂
Ed Coan also squatted in wraps though, albeit early form wraps but still. John's bench and deadlift are leagues ahead of Ed's and I would say with John's consistency and totals that even match up to those in the weights above him, I'd put him on top. Definitely a discussion though, Coan dominated so many different weight classes so its definitely close.
real
@@ZoopopigusGamez their deadlift is close. Ed's best is 903lbs. Haack is improving, though. His bench is definitely far better, but I would bet even raw Ed's squat would be quite a bit better than John's.
@@Micheldied If anything Haack's deadlift is better, he deadlifted 900 raw while coan did it albeit in a early deadlift suit, but still assisted
Thanks for mentioning Blaine. I played football with him in College and was his roommate for a year. All 4 years of college he dedicated to football and still came out and became a top 10 strength athlete in history. Also, similar to the impression I get of you, Blaine was the nicest guy I ever met. Super humble and super badass. Makes me like you and all strength athletes more knowing these traits are common among your best.
I met mark Henry last year and asked him a few questions about his lifting career. He 100% believes he’d have been the first to break 500kg deadlift if he had kept going. I don’t know if it still stands but for years he was the only person to deadlift and squat over 900lbs in the same push/pull competition
As much as I like mark Henry I find that he could have broke 500 very doubtful. His max was like 909 lbs 410kg. Adding 90kg to his pb when already at heavy weight. I thjnk even many athletes will agree with me that that’s Miles off 500.
@@jamesprynne1422 I also look at he was only 27/28 when he retired from powerlifting. Man was just getting into his prime
@@MrNumber1ukfan even still, that’s only a few years until your mid thirties where the peak starts to decline. And to add 90 kg to a deadlift pb? Like I say love mark Henry as a guy but I don’t see it.
I met a mexcain guy at a restaurant that beat marks record
Mark Henry has no business being on this list. No one cares what he could’ve done, or his claims about being “drug-free”. It’s possible he could’ve become one of the all-time greats if he had a career in the sport, but he didn’t. Putting him at number two is disgusting.
A degree in Journalism doesn't make you an expert in Judging who's strongest of all time!
It doesn't make him an expert or even qualified in journalism either.
@@TheSaxon. Qualified in journalism is an oxymoron.
It does boggle my mind that some massively-seasoned strength athletes have never heard of names like Taranenko. It's like being this deep into strength training and having never heard about Ed Coan or Bill Kazmaier.
Mitch will admin himself he is not a massively-seasoned strength athlete and is in the procees of learning the history.
@@nicholassmith7048I agree. If this had been Mitchs coach speaking the conversation would be very different. Big Loz loves the history of strength sports in general
Thats because he was USSR rep, if he was from US or UK he would have been more popular in todays times and Olympics have tried to erase his and everyone elses records after they tested blood samples years later. Even recently modern lifters like Ilya Ilyin's 2015 records have been erased by Olympics as they found steroids in 2021/22 in blood samples. Theres lot of politics in this. In 2016/20 Olympics they suspended lot of Russians for doping, I find it hard to believe they only found evidence on that side and not a single person from US was outed.
Andy Bolton, I trained with, I wrote and worked on his training routines at times....he was never bothered about world records, just winning the titles ..... "World records will be beaten, but tiles and medals are to keep" he said once to me. Like yourself you are a product of your sport and you train accordingly..... Having the best deadlift doesn't guarantee a win in WSM .... It only helps. For me Bill Kazmaier did what he needed to win, as have you but all sports have moved on with equipment, nutrition etc. to compare Pele and Ronaldo , or anyone in any sport is difficult if they are divided by more than 10 years for sure.
One thing is for sure WSM is amazing, growing in popularity due to guys like yourself. Thank you.
The 266 kg lift Taranenko did, he was in the PLUS 110 kg class. For sure he was over 300 lbs. when he did that.
Yeah no way dude was anywhere near 242lbs body mass lol
The only issue was the terrible leotard
@@GordonHeaney Oh no, they were amazing back then.
Kurlovich got robbed for political reasons of his 266kg or was it 265kg v&J...it's been awhile! 1987 WWC!
@@1vootman 266
Ken Patera needs to be mentioned also. He placed in WSM without training for it. In fact he hadn't touched any weights in years since he was wrestling full time. Incredible feat. An incredible Olympic lifter.
Taranenko was 1988, not 1998... if that matters, which I think it kind of does because the PEDs have improved since then. That's why, IMHO, it's hard to compare between eras.
Yes but testing in 80s wasn’t nearly as strict as these days. Weightlifting is a great example, most unbeatable records are from 80s and 90s and these records are generally untouchable these days due to athletes not being on nearly as much gear
For me, the best in history is Mariusz Pudzianowski💪.
He has 5 world champion titles and won the European championship 6 times.
The fact that he didn't win Arnold doesn't mean anything, he won against BiG Z, Vasyl, Bergmanis and Hugo Girard.
The second best in my opinion is Bill Kazmaier, we know well what was done to him, he could have had the most titles in history.
In terms of Mark Henry, there's a video of him cleaning and pressing an inch dumbbell from the ground with one hand too.
To be fair, Bryan has clean and pressed the Thomas inch in both hands at the same time. That’s wild
@@Styrkur13 Shaw's was a seated press where he got them to his shoulder by pushing them up one knee at a time. Watch Mark Henry do it; he just lifts it off the ground to his shoulder in one motion and strict presses it. Not sure that cleaning two at once for a standing press is actually possible. The clean is definitely the hardest part.
@@timbeech2056 ua-cam.com/video/ZNwIOvyf3yI/v-deo.htmlsi=KQzbSOmdL1BRnJcn
@@Styrkur13 like Mitchell said, Mark claims drug free which helps his stance
@@timbeech2056 oh my mistake then. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that video. I must’ve got it mixed up, thanks
Thank you for the video Mitchell. It is a pleasure to watch you compete and I wish you plenty of success. If it comes to my comment, so I am pretty disappointed not to see Pudzianowski on the list. On the days when he competed he adjusted his training to what was needed to dominate strongman. (And he did) He could go for a RAW strength, but it was not his passion and he was smart enough to understand how not healthy it is to train for just RAW. (You becoming big, slow, conditioning down, big belly, fat, risk of heart attack etc.) He probably could but it was not necessary. He definitely promote the sport like nobody else and is 5 times WSM that nobody beat until today. He had the best and the healthiest looking body from all the strongmen's ever. He said himself that he stopped because he achieved everything he wanted in the sport.
Let's just say that you Mitchell would win 10 WSM competitions and 10 Arnolds, but it will be 50 guys from power lifting that have better results than you - it means that you not allowed to be in the first 10 strongest men ever ? I think it should be more categories if it comes to strongest humans of all time. Thanks
I believe Mark Henry still has the highest total between the 5 lifts between powerlifting and weight lifting which I think puts him up on the list.
yes and mikhail koklyaev is not far off
Right. Now his lifts are blown out of the water. Same as bill kaz, strongest in the world for decades
Koklyaev has him beat actually, at least in competition lifts the wiki is missing some of his best lifts
@@Freshprankstv1yeah Kazs 170kg log world record doesn't even get you a top 15 nowadays
@@wanderer_oti yep. A lot of it comes down to specificity. He never even trained logs. Same as in 2002 mark was the only one who trained the inch and the axle behind the scenes with terry todd. No one else could do them. Now everyone can
I love seeing Mark Henry get the respect! Olympic Weightlifter, Powerlifter and Strongman all at an elite level🙌🏽
Not a top 10 guy though
2:05 - I couldn't agree with this more. Strength is strength. The bodyweight caveat is irrelevant when talking about absolute strength.
Totally agree. You can either lift the weight or you can't.
No its not, because mass moves mass, dots and wilks allows you to see per weight class. For Thor (Mitchell said is the best) to hit the same current dots as Haack he would have to have a total of 1350kg to even be able to compete with john.
@@officalemsremdoesn’t the dots formula fail to adjust for ultra heavy weights though? Obviously Haack is an anomaly but a 1350kg total is effectively impossible barring improvement in PEDs
But including equipped lifters is ok...?
@@officalemsrem500 pounds doesn't become 300 pounds just because someone weighs more
I think that when you're talking GOATS you have to look at their performances against their peers. Otherwise there's always going to be a recency bias which unduly credits the athlete for improvements in equipment, in nutrition, in training methods and in "supplements". It's for this reason that people like Kaz deserve to be on this list. It's not perfect considering athletes throughout history in this way, particularly if people were ahead of their time and had much better training or drugs etc than their peers. However, I think it's more fair than just looking at the raw numbers and saying that everyone today beats everyone that came before. I feel it's the same for athletics, for swimming; for all of these sports that have measurable performances that are the same regardless of what their peers were able to do. When you look at team sports like basketball, all you have to go on are stats that are heavily influenced by the strength of the opposition so you have to consider what other people were able to achieve against those same opposition. I think that we should make all GOAT considerations in the same way.
this list is so ridiculous i feel it's intentionally bad to draw attention to the website
I think Mikhail Koklyaev (Михаил Кокляев) deserves a spot in the top 10. He has one of the best super-totals (Olympic and power lifts) and was a very high-level strongman competitor. On top of that, there's a whole load of incredible feats of strength from his UA-cam training videos, like his 270kg behind-the-neck jerk, 300kg+ no-hand squats, etc.
Exactly
I agree 👌Micha was the best allround strenght athelete ever👌👌👌
Misha Koklyaev! Podium finishes at WSM and ASC, a 1st place finish at IFSA, European champion Weightlifter and a world record holding Powerlifter. No one else has been that good at such a variety of strength sports.
he adjusts his list purely based on numbers, not on events won.
@Mitchell Hooper Paul deserves to be in the top 10 IMO. Back then Olympic lifts had to be cleaned (and snatched) with no contact, making a comparison w/modern technique apples and oranges. But aside from Olympic lifting Paul's biggest claim to fame was his static strength. Per Marty Gallagher, Paul had two training routines, one focused on Olympic lifting and the other on building "power." Paul's power routine had him work up to the following top sets (on different days):
* 2 reps at 400 lbs/181.5 kg in the strict press
* 3 reps at 450 lbs/204 kg in the push press
* 8 reps at 450 lbs/204 kg in the bench press
* 2 reps at 900 lbs/408 kg in the full squat
* 2 reps at 1200 lbs/544.5 kg in a half squat
* 4 sets of 8 reps at 650 lbs/295 kg in the deadlift
Per Paul himself, he trained at ~95% intensity for his heaviest sets. He still has an argument to being the strongest ever in the squat: his best lifts there were 800 lbs/363 kg for 10 reps and 900 lbs/408 kg for 5 - with no knee support.
Another lifter who deserves to be here is Don Reinhoudt: to this day he is the only man to ever hold both the world record in raw powerlifting and the World's Strongest Man title at the same time. Don performed the following best lifts raw:
* Squat w/bare knees: 950 lbs/431 kg (got a tough 2 reds one white for depth)
* Squat w/wraps: 934.5 lbs/424 kg in 70's knee wraps
* Bench press: 625 lbs/283.5 kg (red lighted for moving his foot, he also benched 610 lbs/276.5 kg w/white lights)
* Deadlift w/straps: 900 lbs/408 kg for 3 reps
* Deadlift without straps: 895 lbs/406 kg
* Incline press: 575 lbs/261 kg for 3 reps
I do have to wonder about Angus McAskill, where he would sit strengthwise if he were alive to be properly measured - largest known 'non giant' giant. Has some neat strength legends that we can't really verify but he's recent enough that we actually have pictures of how big he is (pic of him standing beside a 6'4" guy making him look like he's 5'4" lol), and things like his chest measurement - allegedly the 'largest non obese chest measurement'. Supposedly lifted a 2,000 pound anchor to his shoulder and walked with it, though was injured in the process. Would be amazing as heck if that were true.
Similarly, I always wonder if Andre the Giant had actually been able to really train weightlifting if he could have been one of the strongest. Sadly his condition (and probably the wrestling lifestyle) made such dedicated training impossible. His 'natural' untrained abilities were insane. Imagine Andre with Brian Shaw's work ethic!!
IMO, the greatest what if is what if Shaquille O'Neal did everything that Brian Shaw did. What if Brian Shaw was half a foot taller and a better athlete before transitioning to strength sports. But he made 292 Million dollars in salary alone so I think we can all agree he made the right decision.
@@davidfoster2629 Yeah Shaq definitely did alright for himself lol. Just went to Staples the other day and he's selling half the products in there 😂
Devon Larratt did say (multiple times) that Shaq was one of the top three strongest non-arm wrestlers he's pulled, and that was old Shaq. Definitely a huge what-if!
+1 Angus MacAskill, rolled through the comments to find this, hard to argue otherwise on the face of purported achievements and sheer potential.
@@davidfoster2629Shaq never came close to Wilt Chamberlain's strength, that's the true strongman of basketball
@@casualcausalityyChamberlain’s strength is overstated. He don’t bench 500 lbs. He didn’t run a 4.2.
Surely you need brian shaw in your list? And Mariusz Pudzianowski has to be on the list as well? Great Video as always, also don't be so humble to forget yourself, you have done great things in such a short time in the sport👍🏻.
Taranenko had the record for over 30 years before Lasha broke it in weightlifting. I think you really should see stuff in context of their time.
If someone used a sailboat to solo sail around the world in 1898 in 1160 days (Joshua Slocum) and someone in 2004 did it in less than 123 days, you cannot just dismiss the old records, if anything, often many of the older records may be more impressive while technically being inferior based solely on the end result. Or "High Score" you could call it, how, when and with what was the high score reached wiith today vs then.
The first single ply stuff compared to modern single ply etc. I would say that it is not easy comparing old vs modern records though, sometimes unfair to the modern and sometimes unfair to the old records.
I think including Mark Henry is reasonable, one of the highest super totals of all time, Thomas Inch cleaner, plus Arnold Strongman winner. Mikhail Koklyaev definitely deserves a mention, Jesus, Thor, Lasha, maybe somebody like Julius Maddox would make the list. I think top of your strength sport all time just makes you objectively one of the strongest people ever. Obviously Heracles and Samson of course, but potato tomato
This is the perfect example of someone was tasked to make this list who wasn’t a strength historian/fan and maybe mistook most notable or influential at the time for strongest. I do believe Kaz, with today’s standardizing and training approaches, would be unbelievable.
Awesome video!
I would love to know where Eddie's improvement on the world record ranks among any well-established world record improvement. Most of the time an improvement of a world record in either strength, athletics or anything of that sort is less than 1% at a time!
At the same time I'm still sad that there's so much talk about the legitimacy of Hafthor's 501kg lift, seeing as there was literally as much transparency as possible, while having the most reputable judge overseeing the event...
Love the content! and love the insight you share with us!
Didn't Eddie pull the new record, then come back 5 minutes later and beat that new record by like 70 pounds?
Beating his record by 1 is a joke. Literally no reason Eddie wouldn't have pulled that 1k. All it proves is that he is about equal in that lift. Gotta beat it by a fair margin or it is meaningless.
@@logangodofcandy In any other sport beating it by any margin is fair, but because Eddie decided to beat it by a lot (after beating it by 1 kg multiple times himself) it's suddenly not legitimate?... that's just silly...
Couldn't agree more with everything you said! Prime Big Z & Thor at the top, Brian competing at the elite level for such a long time and Eddie getting the mention for being the static monster. Great video 👍
Bryan, if he’s not at the top of the list, should only ever come in behind Zydrunas.
Truly a gentleman you deserve to be on this List too my man
Carl Yngvar Christensen. Squat 490kg, bench press 350kg, deadlift 390kg
total 1230 kg, 2 711 pounds, IPF lifts
Yes, and he did it in the IPF organisation.
He was big and tough, but he was not quite as massively SHW-ish as someone like Jesus Olivares or Ray Williams. I mean, Jesus is massively broad, and Ray has on top of that frame also about the most torqy legs you will see on a man. Carl didn´t really have quads like that. He was big, taller, but overall smaller, but made of good material.
That cannot bridge all of the size gap in powerlifting.
Still his bench, and deadlift most of all, were pretty awesome. The over 200 raw training, I think even 250ish or more raw ability benching, which was translated to great equipped, and the y2014 390 kg deads on a stiff bar were awesome.
Though I absolutely think humans can go further and further than, As far as Jesus and Ray, Both of these being lifetime natty are a bit suspect, but I would give Ray more of my faith. The difference gear makes is some, and nobody can say something is impossible. It is all "in the details". All big things are a collection of details to see.
I am convinced as far as Carl. He was the Norwegian "drugs and steroids" bad, work and career conscious powerlifter, unlike Kovalev, and about half of the rest of the division. I mean he was competing with/beating guys who got caught atleast once. Actually caught. It is unfortunate he fell prey to the BW and weights above all chase in the end looking back. The knee injury alone was the end for his momentum and was what made him quit eventually. The inflammation, and training without health, is not how you get stronger.
Love the amount of insight and professional respect in this video.
Number 11: the old timer at my gym that used to bench 500 lbs back in middle school.
He lifted 23 hours a day and would walk 20 miles to the gym that was uphill both ways while fighting off wolves.
Rezazadeh, Pisarenko, Alekseyev, and Kurlovich are also weightlifters that deserve notable mentions.
1. Big Z 2. Brian Shaw 3. Eddie Hall 4. Thor 5. Bill Kazmaier
Eddie Hall over Mariusz Pudzianowski?
What about Angus MacAskill? How was he left off the list? I agree....size and other factors don't matter...total poundage is what counts in this type of list since this isn't a "best strength athlete". It's "strongest human" which doesn't even necessarily reflect a competition lift.
In its 1981 Edition, the Guinness Book of World Records stated he was the strongest man, the tallest non-pathological giant and the largest true giant in recorded history at 7 feet 9 inches (2.36 m), he also had the largest chest measurements of any non-obese man at 80 inches (203 cm). MacAskill was said to have accomplished feats of lifting a 2,800 lb (1,270 kg) ship's anchor to his chest and holding over 250 pounds (113 kg) with only three fingers.
Just watched the Mark Henry video - not only did he make it look easy with his 2 motion clean/press. After his first lift, he also gently lowered it back to the ground.
so? a one hit wonder
1006lb squat, 925lb deadlift, 585 bench, 500lb snatch AND 485 clean and jerk@jsims300
@@micahbradford5714 good,not great,stats
@@jsims300He did all these by the age of 24 so yeah not only great stats but rare great stats. Had he kept competing specially in powerlifting without focusing on Olympic weightlifting at the same time till 35 years of age , he would have been the first guy to break 2500 lbs raw with wraps total. Powerlifters reach their peak between 28-35 and Mark left the sport by 26 by conquering it. Keep in mind he was primarily an Olympic weightlifter and when he set the all time raw with wraps squat world record , all time raw deadlift world record , all time raw drug tested total world record ( 4th highest in untested meet at that time ) he trained on powerlifting lifts only sparingly. With his full attention and focus on powerlifting it is scary to think what he was capable to do. Dr. Terry Todd always used to say Henry had the most strength potential for absolute maximal strength out of any strength athlete he ever saw in his 40 years of tracking powerlifting and weightlifting but he had to secure his future too so he went to pro wrestling route, not his fault.
While being a full time pro wrestler he went out of retirement and beat the best strongmen at Arnold's strongman classic by training for just few months. Guy was a once in a lifetime athlete that sadly had to go to pro wrestling route because strength sports don't pay u good specially at that time.
@micahbradford5714 601 lb bench
5:45 About Mitch's record Z in 2011 ASC did 5 reps at 188 Kilos compared to Mitch's 5 reps at 182 Kilo. So i wouldn't necessarily call it a world record.
It's a world record at that weight for reps. Just like giants live have separate world records for their light set and heavy set of stones.
@@Marcel16DM Well you wouldn't call Trey's 195 for 4 the record when Z has done 205 for 4, would you?
@Vipinnnn17 if the event organizers announced it as a record for that weight yes. Also different implements have separate records as well. That's how strongman is.
Angus MacAskill, known as the “Giant MacAskill” (1825-1863), was a Scottish-born strongman celebrated for his extraordinary height (7 ft 9 in) and strength.
He is widely regarded as one of the strongest men who ever lived.
Though much of the information about his feats comes from oral tradition, the following lifts and displays of strength are among the most famous attributed to him:
1. Lifting a 2,800-Pound Ship’s Anchor
• One of MacAskill’s most famous feats was lifting a 2,800-pound (1,270 kg) anchor to his chest. This was reportedly witnessed by sailors and dockworkers in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he lived.
• The anchor was said to have been part of a large ship and required several men to move, yet MacAskill lifted it alone.
2. Carrying a 300-Pound Barrel Under Each Arm
• MacAskill was reported to carry 300-pound barrels of fish or salt under each arm, walking considerable distances with them, a feat that astounded those who witnessed it.
3. Lifting 2,700 Pounds of Stone
• In one account, MacAskill is said to have lifted a 2,700-pound pile of stones placed on a wooden platform, hoisting it up to waist height.
4. Tipping a Fully Loaded Cart
• MacAskill was known to tip over fully loaded carts weighing several thousand pounds, something even teams of horses struggled to do.
5. Single-Handedly Holding a 100-Pound Weight at Arm’s Length
• He reportedly held a 100-pound weight at arm’s length for several minutes, an impressive feat of grip and shoulder strength.
6. Tossing Massive Timber Logs
• MacAskill worked in lumberyards and was known to toss massive timber logs weighing hundreds of pounds as if they were small sticks, shocking onlookers with his ease.
Historical Context
• MacAskill’s feats were often performed informally or in demonstrations rather than official competitions. He lived in an era before modern strongman events, so records were not systematically kept.
• Despite the lack of formal verification, his reputation for strength was so great that he earned the nickname the “Strongest Man in the World” during his lifetime.
Legacy
Angus MacAskill’s legendary strength remains a source of fascination. He has been recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the “Tallest Non-Pathological Giant” and is remembered for his combination of immense size and extraordinary physical power.
It’s like old guys talking about the ‘72 Dolphins. Great for their time, but would get smoked in today’s league.
Yup, worst is basketball
Worst is basketball, because the rules changed, so they are all a bunch of lady boys.
@@len6482Has there been a better athlete or stronger person than Wilt Chamberlain in the 50 years since he played?
I don’t understand why you can’t rank people for their time. They were working with way less and actually were setting the standards we aim for now. When you’re making an all time list you have to add into your thinking “did they dominate their time more then this other guy dominated his time.” That’s why Bill Russell is greater than Chris Bosh even though even though if they played one on one Bosh would definitely win. It’s also why Eddie Hall is greater than Thor. Thor didn’t know a 500kg squat was possible until Eddie did it so you don’t get credit for beating it with 1kg
Ranking in strength is based on how much weight you lift, not your influence
While I do think the list is nuts I think your analysis might be more nuts. Like comparing 1956 weight lifting to 2020 weightlifting is not even possible. That's like comparing when sprinters ran on sand in soft shoes and saying they're way slower than modern sprinters on tracks with their spikes on. Like come the fuck on bro
And all of this isn't taking into fact pharmacology. Theresa reason why so many of the 80s Soviet and Bulgarian weightlifting records haven't been matched still
brian outside of top 5 is absurd, absolute beast and legend.
Just one remark: having the snatch WR and the clean & jerk WR does not necessarily equal the largest total as the largest total refers to snatch and c & j at the same competition. The same is true for power lifting.
Mitch your so humble in my opinion you should be on that list your going Togo down in history as one of the greatest
No Pudzianowski in your top 10?
He is in a strange category of his own, probably most athletic strongman of all time, and most successful strongman of all time in WSM titles 😅, but nobody argues he is among the 'strongest'
this was not mitchels list
@@nate9696 he literally gave a list of people who should be on it...and left him off
pudz didn't have the static strength, in fact he was very weak statically compared to the top athletes. check his arnold's results. however, pudz was an absolute train with moving events, virtually untouched. he wouldn't be a top 50 athlete now a days with his numbers.
pudz was amazing at "pick it up and run with it" events. Not so great at "pick it up and put it down" for max. Good enough at rep's due to smaller weights but definitely not great at max.
I agree with your amendments, but i cannot look past John Haack. Yes he is a weight class lifter, but if we are going to include equipped athletes then i think his case more then stands up. Personally i would add Graham Hicks too
Julius Maddox bench press
Not when you weigh as much as the blimp 😂
I’d love to hear Mitch’s take on where he would rank on the all-time strongest person list…10-20 range maybe!? Hope he has a long and healthy career filled with many victories…always nice to see Canadians doing well!
I completely agree with Eddie Hall being the strongest static lifter of all time ! Deadlift , squat , log press , axle press , viking press, whatever the static event was I'd take Eddie Hall
Strongest static SO FAR but only marginally. He doesn't have the DL or squat either. They are Thors. And they are almost equal on many others.
Eddie probably the strongest overall overhead cos Biby is so damn lazy! XD
I agree with everything you said, and hope to see you on that list very soon!
Kaz is top 3 of all time. He won 3 WSM and held 3 powerlifting records. He could have had more WSM titles if they invited him back. Generational strength athlete and among the GOATs. I know Mitch is going by overall number but Kaz was among the greatest at 2 different strength sports.
Janae Kroczaleski was my pharmacist at Walgreens on Waverly and Saginaw in Lansing, MI. I only discovered their powerliting 'prowess', because every blood vessel in their eyes had 'popped'. They told me about their tryout for World's Strongest Man, and showed me scars from lifting a truck and snapping their biceps; asking the doctor to reattach 'lower' on their forearms (in jest). One of the most incredible people whom I've ever met.
Something tells me that you don't see how someone who once did something, that has since been eclipsed, 20 or 30 years ago can be said to be stronger than the younger generation.
I mean you never said it, let alone 30 times, but I just have that feeling.
For what it's worth, I ABSOLUTELY believe that an older record, that has since been broken, can be more impressive and signal a superior athlete than the athletes who bested it later.
I think you MUST look at how they fared in comparison to their peers. For example (and I'll purposely leave strength sports behind to remove bias and strongman/powerlifting bickering in the comments), if you look at someone like Katie Ledecky who not only has the fastest 1500 meters time, but the fastest 17+ times. Nobody has come close. But rest assured, records are meant to be broken. One day, Katie Ledecky's 1500 m world record will be bested as well.
And when that happens, you're going to have a very difficult time convincing me that the female who broke her record by, let's say a quarter of second, automatically becomes a better swimmer than Katie Ledecky. Dominance is dominance, and it isn't to be ignored.
I understand why you say, "500 pounds is quantifiably more than 499 pounds." I mean, you're right! I can't dispute that. Math is math. But if athlete A shows up and lifts 499 pounds on a day when nobody else manages 450, and athlete B shows up and lifts 500 in a competition where 3 other athletes got 498 or 499, I'm personally more impressed by what athlete A managed 20 years ago than athlete B did today. But that's just me, Moose. 🤷♂
You could really have just read the OP instead of writing that. This video isn't about who was the most dominant for his era, or else Kazmeier would be near the top. You cannot be one of the best of all time if you're not even top 10 in the current era.
Possibly that Prime Z vs Prime Thor, Thor wins. But Big Z has WAYYYYY more accomplishments. And Big Z is definitely #1 in my opinion. I have to say I agree 100% with your reasoning for who should or shouldn't be on the list. Perhaps some of those dudes would make a top 20 list? Maybe... Great video!
When lasha talakhadze isn’t on the list you know it isn’t worth watching
He is on the list
@@Anonymous-hy8cn Mitchell actually confirmed he is not in the list.
Great list, love your additions. Would be interesting for you to do a video on the history of strongmen and their impact on the sport. Would also love another season of the World's Strongest Men with you, Hafthor and a few others similar to what Brian, Eddie, Best, and Oberst did. Include other strongmen when you do an episode in their country.
Mark Henry #1
If Mark was natty or even barely ever took gear he blows everyone out the fucking water
Mark Henry is by practically every expert who’s researched into him to be one of the only naturals. There’s a video alone the lines of “How Strong Is Mark Henry” that goes into more detail.
@@artair70 Thats what Im saying, for him to even be that relevant in terms of strength to people BLASTING insane amounts of PEDs shows you he is the best.
People do not realize, PEDs makes you, bigger, stronger, recover faster, leaner, etc.
So for anyone who wonders why Mark Henry carries a lot of fat, you HAVE to if you're a natural to get to anywhere close his strength, the PEDs allows nutrient partioning to occur in which case you get people like Mariusz Pudzianowski, with elite genetics and gear allowing him to be lean and still that strong, that does not occur naturally.
@@artair70yeah that is Cap he was definitely on the gear to some degree 😂
@@Kain_R_Heinlein No he wasn't, there's a study into him, the guy was known by MANY throughout the years to NEVER once touch anything.
Lol mark henry is not natural.
In Paul Anderson's day, Olympic lifting the bar wasn't allowed to touch the body ie bar brush up against the legs etc. Only touching the body in the clean when bar was racked across the shoulders.
The rules and technique for the snatch and clean n jerk were very different from the 1950s compared to today.
Statically I think 2017 WSM Eddie is the strongest when you look at his bench, ohp and deadlift.
Statically yes but all round ability in terms of strongman sport, no.
@@Adam-bw6dj yea but the list is about static strength lol, hafthor takes it for strongman specifically
@@simondean5227 I'll be honest mate I've not actually watched it yet but I assumed since they're including strongmen and Olympic lifters that it wouldn't necessarily be about a single aspect of strength? I mean what strongman is going to have the biggest powerlifting total and what olympic lifter will have the biggest squat and deadlift. Which powerlifter will be able to do a 600lb atlas stone or a 1500lb yoke? Just don't get these comparisons because at the end of the day none of them are focused on the same goal.
@@simondean5227 there are more to static lifts than those three.
Both Thor and Eddie are stronger than Brian so Brian shouldn't have even been on the list.
Excellent analysis. I agree with most of your replacements. Lasha must be on the list and near the top. I would keep Paul Anderson and Kaz. Their accomplishments were too mind-blowing to pass over.
The idea that we shouldn't entertain 'what ifs' with respect to equipment/gear changes is crazy. If in 100 yrs everyone in the sport has robotic muscular implants and deadlifting 500kg is weak should we really consider them stronger than Thor? 'woulda shoulda coulda, they lifted 800kg of the ground and he couldn't'? Preposterous. If someone lifted x# with no supportive gear at all and then someone wears a suit and a belt and wraps and does figure 8s etc and does x+1#, the first guy is just stronger. Much stronger. Similarly, when athletes know these events and train them specifically for years, comparing them to a guy who just showed up one day and did it isn't easy. I think comparing to their peers helps to round it out in a fairer way.
It would be interesting to see a list of the strongest athletes of all time and another list of the most important historical strength athletes. And see if anyone makes both.
If John hack weighed 350 lb I have no doubt he would be bench pressing 1,000 lb.
I'm so glad you're giving props to Lasha. He's seriously underrated outside of the weightlifting community. He definitely to break records if he competed in strongman or powerlifting. He's that explosive
Paul Anderson was witnessed by his fellow team USA lifters squatting 10 reps with 700lbs completely raw in the training hall of the world championships back in the 50s, his career carried on into the 60s as a professional (so wasn’t able to compete in the Olympics from then on) and lifted in early powerlifting competitions, over 900lb squat, 800lb deadlift and press more than 450lb, all drug free… guy sadly died in the 90s due to a kidney disorder he had since being a child
You're clearly disrespecting strength athletes of the past. The only way to compare eras and the athletes of them is to look at how much more dominant was athlete X than his contemporaries. This is all kind of silly clickbait/bar debate anyway.
True
That's why there's a term called 'Greatest' Strongest should be used for those with biggest lifts.
Im glad there's a channel for Strongman while we have several for Bodybuilding
Wow, no mention of Louis Cyr, he once restrained 4 horses at once.
He mentioned Cyr right at the end.
Louis cyr deserve so much more respect, personally he is and will always be my favorite ¨strongman¨
Lets be real, strong men throughout history didn't have access to the calibre of PEDs the strength athletes of today are all on. One could argue you'd have to take the drug use into account. But maybe you don't want to acknowledge that one. 🤣😉
Yes Mitch interestingly dodged that subject as many others do. Imagine Kas and others on today peds as well as modern knowledge on recovery, supplements, muscle therapy, nutrition, equipment and training....That list might be completely different.
Hate to burst your bubble. But there is no way to say, for sure, who is or was on PEDS. So dividing that way would be guess work at best and complete fantasy at worst.
Many if not most strength athletes have been using some form of PEDs since they have been around. A few are actually natural most that claim that have just never been caught.
The list is simply the strongest, not strongest off drugs, by weight or anything else. Those old timers didn't have the drugs so didn't get as strong, as they weren't as strong they don't get to be called top 10 strongest ever.
I think the fact that Bill was so dominant the stopped inviting him gets him a spot.
It would be good to have top ten lists for different generations, better comparisons.
Glad you mentioned Eddie after Halfthor, 2017 was a great year for WSM
Kyriakos Grizzly is one of the strongest humans in the world.
Wrong, he is not human but a god.
Make a video of strongest peaks ever. Like 2018 Thor, 2016 Shaw, 2017 Eddie and etc.. top 10
No mention of Ed Coan, John Haack and not including Lasha in top 10 you know this list is worthless.
Lasha Talakhadze is a Georgian weightlifter, holding the all-time world records regardless of weight category in the snatch (225 kg, 496 lb), the clean and jerk (267 kg, 589 lb), and the total (492 kg, 1,085 lb) since 2021.
Who is your #1 of all time? Want to become the strongest version of YOU? Get a program written by me here:
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Big Z
Mitchell you should pint his comment
In a few years maybe Mitchell Hooper, who knows
Yes Hooper in this list very soon.
Thor
Left out Kyriakos- I mean, has anyone managed to Zercher bounce as much weight as him?
To be fair, back in the days they do not have steroids
In the 40s.
I agree with your breakdown. Especially your assessment of 2018 Thor. I also agree that these older strongmen shouldn't be on the list because their lifts have been beaten. But that being said...we should have a separate list of the "most dominant strongmen of their time". Kaz would be number 1(IMHO), Eddie would be number 2(for his insane deadlift that destroyed the record and proved the world wrong), 2018 Thor would be #3. But as I say this...I think there are a lot of old timers that dominated the strength world way back when. Let's get this list done properly like this video. As far as Big Z being the WSM GOAT...I used to think so. But I give it to Brian because he was able to retire #1 in the world winning his own show. Who does that? And #2 in that SMOE was a serious stud!!!
Eddie’s pressing strength is overlooked
Lb for lb John hack top in the world. Dots of 662. Deads 900plus, squats 800 plus and benches 600, all raw under 220 lbs.
I agree with you.Bell and Olivares should be on the list.Also Ray WIlliams...
@mitchellhooperstrongman
I think you have to take into account when the lifts and performances took place because of the advancements in the understanding of nutrition, supplements and recovery techniques. If a lift in 2018 was 300kg compared to a lift of 250kg in 1988 would there still be a 50 kg difference considering the 30 years of improvements and understanding of nutrition, supplements and recovery. Interested to hear your thoughts.
Ed Coan? Doug Hepburn, Stan Efferding, Mark Bell, Terry Todd, Jon Cole
Doing the list Mitch’s way is very objective and I respect that. But I think the best way to gauge an athlete’s place is how dominant were they relative to their peers. Essentially in 100 years every record will be broken and I don’t think history should be a matter of “latest is greatest”