My man, They are speaking Spanish, not Basque, The Basque Language is completely different than Spanish. In public places and probably for this documentary they spoke Spanish to make it more viewer-friendly. But between families and in private Basque is widely spoken. They are pure hard work, no BS, just old fashion farm strong, humble, guys, lifting as they've lifted for 100's of years. Cheers mate!
their work ethic and capacity is also clearly visible among other athletes from different disciplines of the region. High speed football and excellent climbers on the bike, always without fear and inhuman willpower
@@hernanscacciaferro9640 No tiene nada que ver con eso, qué cojones dices. La "fama" de terroristas (obviamente injusta) viene por los atentados de ETA. Decir que se les juzga por sus privilegios fiscales (injustos, solo basados en una tradición arcaica) es un simplismo y una forma retorcida de presentar esta problemática.
Hey, Basque guy here. As others have already commented, this video is recorded in Spanish, not Basque. Most Basque people speak spanish or french (depending on which side of the basque country they live in). In the video they refer to them as "levantadores" but the Basque name is "Harrijasotzaile". Basque is an aglutinative language, which means that it uses morphemes to create words. In this case: "Harri" means stone "jaso" means lift and "-tzaile" could be translated as "he, who does X", in this case, he, who lifts stones. Even if Mieltxo Saralegi has the current record (329kg square stone), the most beloved Harrijasoitzaile is Iñaki Perurena, he was famous as a weightlifter and as an actor in the longest running basque soap opera (both lifters are on the video you reviewed). You might have some Basque lifting shows in the USA, actually. There was quite a lot of migration of Basque people to Boise, Idaho, and now there's a biannual basque festival there. You might be able to try some of these lifts! Kiriakos beware, Mieltxo Saralegi is coming!
Mieltxo es una bestia! De los mas jovenes, mi favorito es Mikel Lopetegui, el Urra!. Saludos desde Argentina, voy a intentar empezar el deporte por acá
As a lover of languages I have to commend you for the agglutination bit. Also Basque is an isolate language, making it that much more intriguing. I was in Eastern Oregon a bit ago, in a place not far from Boise, and learned that there were many Basque cattle farmers who moved to that part of my state as well. Had no idea.
@@jeonane6457 son en su mayoría inventados, en el sentido de que juntaban varios apellidos en uno para no tener problemas con las propiedades cada vez mas pequeñas y poder distinguir que era de quien. Animo a que haya mas Inaki Williams, y menos con 32 apellidos que luego ya sabes lo que pasa con la sangre..., estamos? estamos.
I'm a basque decendant. My family moved to Nevada from the native country in the early 1900s and there is a large amount of descended families in the northern Nevada and southern Idaho area. Basque festivals every summer, strength contests, basque dancing, all of it. Glad to be a part of celebrating the culture.
This is the purity of strength. Outside the “circus” of the industry. Just pure conviction, strength of character and strength of culture. Hard to find something so authentic so thx for showing this. (Also thx to the editor). Time to go lift some heavy weight
Yo no soy vasco pero me ha hecho tanta ilusion ver este video y este precioso deporte y tradicion reconocido en el canal de Zack. Y sobre todo me gusta ver a los vascos orgullosos comentando. Un saludo! I am not from the basque country (I am from south of spain actually) but I got really excited to see this video pop up on my feed and see this beautiful sport and its tradition being honored in Zack's channel. On top of everything I am just happy to see people from the pais vasco (basque country) commenting.
Aqui tienes a uno de bilbao. Orgullosos de los deportes vascos. Aunque si te digo la verdad quedan pocos deportistas vascos, se está perdiendo y no es muy común ver a gente practicandolo o ver campeonatos. Igual que el idioma; aqui apenas se habla el Euskera solo se enseña como asignatura obligatoria
Me sumo a tus palabras, y las comparto. Tampoco soy vasco, pero me he emocionado al ver el vídeo y, en especial, me ha hecho ilusión ver a Zack apreciar este deporte y esta parte de la cultura del País Vasco. Qué grandes carajo.
I did weightlifting, sprinting and rugby from ages 13-33. Then I bought a farm. Then I experienced what full body strength and endurance heavy work in nature is. Even the mechanized part of things, I do heavy deadlifts every day just hooking up my tractor equipment. Love this video and your deep dive into strength sport across the world Zack. Keep it up! Thank you!
Hello Basque here first of all for taking the time to make the video and enjoy a bit of our culture. Also you made me appreciate and see the beauty of our tradition a bit more. Regarding the language I am a Basque speaker, is an isolated language so it has no links to any of its surrounding languages (roman, germanic…) and its origin is unknown. Sounds totally different from Spanish. Glad you enjoyed a bit of our culture and thanks again for the video.
Nothing too fantastic, is an old Iberian tribal language (there were hundreds) that was originally more spoken in the South of the current Basque country (San Millan de la Cogolla). We need to cut the bs in the Basque Country and stop the need to "belong" by making up stuff. Like our current flag invented copying the union jack in 1890 by the arana bros., let' start to keep it real folks, we are not a thematic park for guiris.
Another Spaniard here. Others have answered your questions about language and so on so I'll just say that Basque Country is amazing. Great people, amazing food, beautiful scenery and deep rooted traditions. I am from Barcelona and if I had to live in another place in Spain I'd move to the Basque region. I grew up watching these stone lifting competitions on TV but sadly they don't show them so much anymore. They're amazing. Anyway, great video, it was nice to see you react and get emotional about such pure and honest people and traditions.
As an American with a great love for Spain, co-sign. Barcelona is one of the greatest cities in the world IMO, but I like the Basque Country just as much for the reasons you said.
@@seal869 Barcelona is beautiful but it's still a big city, it's expensive, loud and way too busy sometimes. But maybe I don't appreciate it enough because I live here... Glad you enjoy our neck of the woods, though, but Catalunya and Basque Country are worth a visit, that's for sure!
I would suggest you come to an event held in Boise, Idaho. It’s called Jaialdi and is held every five years. All of these activities will be on full display. Weightlifters from Spain come do exhibitions and several locals also compete. Next one is 2025! Hope to see you there
I don't often comment on UA-cam videos, but man, your content is so DAMN refreshing. It is not often that I can actually look at 30 minutes long videos about strength training without getting bored to death. I love that you try to put the light on other forms of lifting, talking about the history of strength sports throughout the world, and adressing all other things that may not be directly related to the minutiae of programming and training: the philosophy, the lifestyle, all things that are truly interesting to strength sports passionate around the world. Thank you and Alex for your outstanding work !
Basque Country is one of my favorite places in the world. Cool culture, cool language, beautiful landscapes, some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life. A place everyone should get to know
I think sumo, would interest zack a lot, the comeback of ternunofuji and his training, some old kisenosato lifting videos, hakuho ofc. , they train in the gym aswell and lift heavy and are super flexible, way more than weightlifters especially internal rotation of the hip, keep up
Thanks for showing our culture around the world Zach! The Basque Country is a very magical place, history, mythology, the lands, the mountains, the forests, the clima, the food, the people, the oldest language in all Europe the EUSKERA and lots of more things to show around the entire world!!!! A hug from this magical place, the Basque Country❤️🤍💚
Hi there Zac, im from Spain, Palma de Mallorca actually, and here in Spain we have a saying about the people of "Comunidad Basca", or Basque Country. We normally say every year as a meme, that for Christmas, their kids get stones and not present to play around, becausa presents are boring if you are that strong!
And by the way, is you want to look in to it, the great majority of "pro" crossfit people here in Spain come from the north, a few of them are from that country
hey zack my father comes from the basque region and he has always heavily immursed us in his basque culture and I have spent time in the Basque country with my family over there. As a basque weightlifter I am amazed to see this on one of my favorite weightlifting channels! Definitely take a visit if you can it is a seriously ancient culture.
That is the content I signed up for Zack. So many emotions in one clip. The purity of those traditions, family,hard work,appreciation for one another and love for the strength work.
I just got emotional as fuck. When he started talking about age. One day we’ll look back at ourselves in our prime and then just go “damn that was quick. I miss those hardcore sessions that I’m not able to do anymore.”
As a basque here I am so glad that it is taking more visibility to these kind of sports and even de country itself, as many people mentioned, the video is in Spanish yet the accent is a very strong accent from the Basque Country, very different from any other language. Another thing is “Jobs converted into sports” even cutting wood for fire is a sport here or reap the herb is a sport. Cheers for the video, a very great one!!
I love how those kids at the end were involved in it. They’re definitely continuing the sport. I personally train for strongman, i still have a long way to go though. As 9 year old kid i started working on a farm to earn some money because my family didn’t have much, until i was 14, then i just did nothing for a while because of difficulties in life. But even in school, with sports i was always the strongest because of what i did at the farm. Then once i was 17 i got a fulltime job working in construction, not knowing much and just being there to carry things, learning carpentry as time went on. But because of my job and past experience with sports in school. I started thinking if i have potential to do this strongman sports i watched a 1000 time, because i loved it. And now after only really training for 2 years for the sport, I’ve already competed a few times in local competitions, getting in the top 5 every time. The strongman competitions in my country aren like worlds strongest man, with guys only training because it’s their job. Here almost everyone of the has a job in construction, or on a farm or anything else physically demanding. I think it’s really underestimated how much that does for your strength. These days, just not a lot of people want to do those jobs.
Hello, basque from Navarre here! I appreciate the video a lot, very emotional. I have to mention that the lenguaje of the video is spanish, not basque, basque (or euskera) is very different to any romance lenguaje (spanish, french, Italian, catalan...). I'm happy for the interest you shown for this culture ♥️
Here in the basque country we all speak spanish and little by little less people speaks euskera. That guy from the beginning is a legend around here, a very special character.
Nit gonna lie, its a shame euskera is loosing speakers. I feel like us spaniards should make our biggest effort to defend it. Lots of Spanish words come from euskera.
This one made my eyes well up, more than once. I’ve seen stuff on these basque guys before. GOLD. Untouchable. There are some cultures that would survive a system collapse (power, money, etc) vastly better than the rest.
Also Perurena (the man talking who lifts cilincrical at the end) is such a charismatic person. Well known across all the Basque country, a person who loves the Basque culture and has made a lot to promote it and preserve it.
This got me today. I've been discouraged because my progress isn't as quick as I would like. But just the real truth that I'm functionally fitter than I've ever been. I can confidently try new sports and activities. I can run and play with my kids. And I feel fantastic! I need to remember it's not about my definition and PRs. It's about the fact that my life is infinitely better because of my fitness journey. Thanks for the reminder Zack.
As a Basque that I am, this video and the reactions of the people make me feel deeply proud of my roots. Sport has always been an important part of Basque culture, traditional rural sports (such as stone lifting), cycling, soccer, rowing races in the sea, the many varieties of Basque pelota (among them the one that is known in the US as "Jai Alai"), etc. Euskaldune naiz eta harro nago (I am Basque and I am proud)
Watching this event makes me wish I can go back to the Bag lift from the crossfit games and show that clip to everyone implying that the shoulder position naturally causes back problems because of the weight and awkwardness. This video proves that human bodies are capable of much more.
the point is, you dont have to risk your shoulders to train amateur. When people die from boxing there is no doubt about the risk of the sport. Same with weightlifting.
@@thebiggestpanda1 hi! That's true! There are national contests of "improvised poetry" as you called it, here in Basque Country is called BERTSOLARITZA. If you have some questios ill be glad to answer! Cheers!
I remember watching this documentary a few years ago and I loved it! Knowing that some of my ancestors came from this region fills me with pride. I hope to visit someday.
Nahiz eta Mieltxo Saralegi pisu handiena jaso duen harrijasotzailea izan, guretzat preziatuena Iñaki Perurena da. Euskaditik kanpo hedatzaile nagusia izandakoa, gizon jatorra eta apala. Oso bideo ona, segi horrelakoak igotzen. Although it is true that Mieltxo Saralegi is the lifter who has raised the heaviest stone, Iñaki Perurena is the most beloved ambassador of the sport, spreading it across foreign countries. A very nice and humble man. Keep uploading good content like this, I love your videos.
Hi Zack. I just got emotional at the same part as you! I believe that if you enjoyed this, you’ll also enjoy watching some Basque Pelota. A sport where the pelotaris (players) hit a stone-hard leather ball with their hands so that it rebounds in a wall. A very exciting and physically requiring sport. Cheers from the Basque Country
hey man, another basque here and the way you spreed our culture, you show respect and try to understand and learn more about it it's something we will be greatful forever. We are not a big community and this means a lot for us. Thanks again, or eskerrik asko as we say in the Basque Country, agur gudari
It's an incredible that multiple societies, Basques, Scott's, Icelanders and Pakistani's developed a system of meritocracy where stone lifting was the method by which you were measured by. Societies separated by thousands of miles had the same ideas in the same time span, completely parallel to eachother.
i mean, moving the heaviest rock is a universally respected feat in the animal kingdom so its not that incredible. Humans are competitive and strength can be measured objectively, its literally the most basic display of dominance in nature. What's more interesting is that cultures that incorporate trials of physical strength seem to outlast the far larger civilizations that try to assimilate them. Having strong individuals improves the structural integrity of your culture it seems.
@@sirisrex7542 Yeah, its pretty basic. Me lift big rock = me strong. Me lift bigger rock = me stronger than you. Since rocks can be quite easily found in nature, its simple that they would be used for that purpose.
The Basque language (Euskara) is a language isolate, meaning it's unrelated to any other existing languages. Goes to show how old it is. By the way, the people in the clips were speaking Spanish but with a very distinct accent.
Hey zack, Maybe whenever you go to Ireland to hang out with Clarence you could look up whenever theirs a public competition like this in Basque and fly from Ireland to Spain and experience it in person. Maybe theirs a spanish lad who would be interested to be a translator. Just throwing the thought out there since it gripped you so deeply. Great video, never knew about this either, very emotional story.
My great grandfathers come from this country, it's sooo cool to see and know some of their culture, love this video and it will be awesome to travel there and have some fun playing with some stones 😅
Best thing I have ever seen on UA-cam, this is what we all know lifting to be but have taken the modern path... just an Epic story that should not be lost...
This is the first video of yours I've watched and I'm so glad I did. Subbed! The amazing thing about these people (from the perspective of an American) is that they're still very connected to some of the most important things in life, like heritage, honor, etc. I found myself getting emotional, too. Partly due to a craving for the drive and love they have, and partly due to the realization that I don't have anything like that in my life. I can do something about it, though! They are, so why can't I? 🚀❤️🙏💪
Zack, you should come to Spain sometime. Even though this tradition is most prevalent in the Basque provinces, all throughout the rural areas of the country people maintain a love for lifting. Maybe it is not as obvious, but in the festivities during the summer this strength contests are made to congregate the comunities
My mom's family is from Spain and came to my country to try get a better life, they worked non stop on the land, i remember watching my cousins, great uncles and great great uncles doing some feats of strength. This video made roll some tears, it has been years since i seen some shit like that, they always would compete to see who was stronger, cutting wood, carrying logs etc, real strength. They would always make you work, i remember been 3 years old and my great great grandma making a competition about feeding ducks and chicken, in my family the strongest people were called toro (bull), now i am almost 30 years old and my great aunt calls me and my younger cousin toro, and it's an honor to be called that, because i have seen and heard of tales from generations of my kin doing crazy shit, killing wolfs with their bare hands, building bridges, opening roads etc. Thank you Zack, for a moment i was brought back at the farm with many members of my family, laughing and working on the land.
I fucking choked up at the end. That was one hell of a ride. Basques are so special, it's incredible. Euskaltel-Euskadi, Athletic Club and pelota I knew about - I had no idea about this.
Damn man wether it's the Pakistani stone lifting, Levantadors, Highland Games, Icelands lifting stones, Indian Club Lifting and Wrestling, Sumo wrestling, sengalese wrestling, etc, etc There's such culture and history of strength and training all over the world I'm so jealous definitely wish I could have been born into a lineage of one of these strength cultures that is so deeply attached to their personhood and ancestral history Legendary stuff Maybe one day I'll make enough money to become a strength tourist or make a show touring the world to see all these
Thank you for this video. It`s a wonderfull feeling to be proud of my country trough your eyes. This is what means my country to me; our culture. Sorry for not beeing able to express my feelings in english, thank you again
A few thoughts. 1. Has anybody converted my Excel skills into sport yet? That's my fieldwork. 2. The Basque language is completely unrelated to any other languages, so it would sound nothing like Spanish. But you already know that, as others have pointed it out. It's fun to look at a language tree and see how all the languages relate. 3. I'm so goddamn happy I follow your channel. I'd've never heard of this otherwise. My roots are Spanish (Iberian, generally). My family moved to Mexico in the early 1900s, and I was born and raised in Texas. This video shows me everything I ever wanted from a culture. A community. A tradition. A passion and love of life. The tree! I might just move our lineage back there.
This is a very pleasant surprise, not many people know about basque people to begin with and even less their strongmen sports. Im gonna send this to my dad right now.
You're so easily one of the best fitness UA-camrs Zack, thanks for bringing such a passionate and genuine perspective to us. So awesome to see someone so humble and who cares about these topics so much. Keep up the awesome work. Sincerely, the "Lady" in your "Lady & gentlemen" :)
Bavarian next with the Steinheben! 16:27 I completely agree. Don't get me wrong it's super cool to see people like Mateusz shoulder a 470lb stone but I want to see our natural limitations. A former pro highland gamer Ryan Stewart here in Utah has built up a community of stone lifters and is bringing Basque, Bavarian, Finnish, and all sorts of other styles to us. It's super fun to be a part of it all
Like you said Zack, this is farm strength, it requires not only toughness but also endurance and discipline, most these guys have a job and the will to train but most importantly honesty.
This reminds me of what Ivan Djuric always talks about. We go into the gym to make ourselves tired, but there's people out there working their asses off all day long outside and come home wanting a meal.
I remember watching that documentary out of curiosity about my far removed basque roots. They do speak basque briefly a few times and it's unrecognizable. For any of those interested in history or the Basque people in general, the book Basque History of the World is worth a read
It fills me with joy to see out culture being noticed more and more. I hope you take a look into our languaje as well, it is very unique, it has nothing to do with spanish nor french, witch also makes it one of the hardest to learn.
I'm watching this over Martin's web series. I've learned more in the past two videos from you on cultures built around strength than I ever did at university schooling. Thank you!
Strenght training varies from every location, specialy in rural areas,like here in the Philippines we have farmers here that can carry loads that they could not lift alone, loads that would take two persons to lift then the one who would carry it will slip under then carry the load for up to 3 to 5 km more or less distance... thats how we carry copra in our place....
So cool you've covered this Zack! I've grown up in the Basque Country, loving these rural sports that almost no-one outside Spain know about. It's great that you show some of this to the world. True strongmen have worked over thousands of years to preserve these traditions. Stone lifting is one of the most impressive sports we have, but to me wood chopping or Aizkolaritza in basque is the champion of testing athletes strength AND endurance. Plus the discomfort of breaking your lower back and knowing that a bad swing can cut your foot in half xD That's uncomfortable.
Greetings from the Basque Country. Martins Licis has visited us and has made three video documentaries for his channel here on UA-cam. I recommend that you see them, even the Basques themselves have moved us. Thank you also for spreading and opening our traditions and our rural sport to the world.
Thanks from the Basque Country. I recommend that you watch the three videos that Martins Licis made on his channel about the lifters here. It surely fascinates you.
Hi, another Basque here. I alwayd liked tifting weights gym, weightlifting... A friend of mine does basque sports "herri kirolak" in basque which means "coutry sports". I lifted some kind of rocks. It crazy lifting a round heavy rock to the shoulder, the first part is the harder one, yo have to round the rock with your arms and many of the force done against the rock is with the forearms. The next day all my forearms were purpled 🤣🤣. I had great time though. Very nice to see other people around the world enjoys it!!!
Actually the basque country is spread between france and spain, and recognised by neither. Because of this, during the 60s 70s and 80s, the basque independentists did a lot of terrorist attacks, kidnapping etc. On a lighter tone, their language predate every roman language like latin (so it is way older than the spanish or french language)
What do you mean by "recognised"? It is its own autonomous community in Spain. Although it isn't a department in France, but france is a centralised state anyway
@@romaintagliaferro3189 Oh ok I misunderstood your comment then. But I mean if that's what you mean then saying it is not recognised within a different country is pretty paradoxical lmao
Zach you need to come to Spain and watch it first hand, you would love it!! You can come to San Sebastián which is in the Basque Country Autonomy and enjoy the beach, the sightseeings and the awesome food we have.. Spain is much more than what meets the eye... and we are small but strong and stubborn.
Maan, thank you for giving some visibilility to you comunity about basque strength and culture, my culture. We have more thank strength but thank you! Now I discovering you and your chanel and it's amasing, you are amaizing! Jeep up!!💪
I agree with you. Lifting a balanced barbell is fun and can be challenging, but working with stones and all sorts of odd objects is real strength used in real life.
Please subscribe if you enjoyed this video! It helps a ton!
More videos like this!
Subscribed! Been binging on your content for past couple of weeks.
totally agree with your final words here - inspiring!
Vids on people lifting horses? Kazakh people?
recomend to jujimufu to collaberate with atlaspowershrugged
My man, They are speaking Spanish, not Basque, The Basque Language is completely different than Spanish. In public places and probably for this documentary they spoke Spanish to make it more viewer-friendly. But between families and in private Basque is widely spoken. They are pure hard work, no BS, just old fashion farm strong, humble, guys, lifting as they've lifted for 100's of years. Cheers mate!
their work ethic and capacity is also clearly visible among other athletes from different disciplines of the region. High speed football and excellent climbers on the bike, always without fear and inhuman willpower
Sounds very similar to frisians in the netherlands
@@hernanscacciaferro9640 No tiene nada que ver con eso, qué cojones dices. La "fama" de terroristas (obviamente injusta) viene por los atentados de ETA. Decir que se les juzga por sus privilegios fiscales (injustos, solo basados en una tradición arcaica) es un simplismo y una forma retorcida de presentar esta problemática.
The Basque language is also called Euskera or Euskara.
Exactly. They all speak both languages. It was a Spanish film crew, that's why he's speaking in Spanish.
Hey, Basque guy here. As others have already commented, this video is recorded in Spanish, not Basque. Most Basque people speak spanish or french (depending on which side of the basque country they live in).
In the video they refer to them as "levantadores" but the Basque name is "Harrijasotzaile". Basque is an aglutinative language, which means that it uses morphemes to create words. In this case: "Harri" means stone "jaso" means lift and "-tzaile" could be translated as "he, who does X", in this case, he, who lifts stones.
Even if Mieltxo Saralegi has the current record (329kg square stone), the most beloved Harrijasoitzaile is Iñaki Perurena, he was famous as a weightlifter and as an actor in the longest running basque soap opera (both lifters are on the video you reviewed).
You might have some Basque lifting shows in the USA, actually. There was quite a lot of migration of Basque people to Boise, Idaho, and now there's a biannual basque festival there. You might be able to try some of these lifts!
Kiriakos beware, Mieltxo Saralegi is coming!
Mieltxo es una bestia! De los mas jovenes, mi favorito es Mikel Lopetegui, el Urra!. Saludos desde Argentina, voy a intentar empezar el deporte por acá
As a lover of languages I have to commend you for the agglutination bit. Also
Basque is an isolate language, making it that much more intriguing. I was in Eastern Oregon a bit ago, in a place not far from Boise, and learned that there were many Basque cattle farmers who moved to that part of my state as well. Had no idea.
Eskerrikasko azalpena gaitik!
Banda yo vi a Perurena en una excursion en primaria 😎
Halako komentarioak ikusteak benetan euskal kulturaz eta euskal herriaz harro sentiarazten nau!
CrossFit: We choose to prioritize functional movements
Basque Strongmen: Hold my anvil...
Hi Zack. I’m basque and I’m glad you’re watching these things. I’ve been following you for some years. Thanks man
Debes tener el apellido más vasco que he leído en mi vida. Mis dieces compadre.
@@terciodeflandes97 yo conocí a un agirrebarrenagagoitia, creo que ese es el messi de los apellidos euskaldunes
@@terciodeflandes97 mi prima se apellida 'Suazolazigorraga' y yo tengo 16 apellidos
@@jeonane6457 son en su mayoría inventados, en el sentido de que juntaban varios apellidos en uno para no tener problemas con las propiedades cada vez mas pequeñas y poder distinguir que era de quien. Animo a que haya mas Inaki Williams, y menos con 32 apellidos que luego ya sabes lo que pasa con la sangre..., estamos? estamos.
I'm a basque decendant. My family moved to Nevada from the native country in the early 1900s and there is a large amount of descended families in the northern Nevada and southern Idaho area. Basque festivals every summer, strength contests, basque dancing, all of it. Glad to be a part of celebrating the culture.
Do you speak in euskera?
Lots of ppl here in the basque country have family in Idaho
@@patxi37 No but I have family that does
I was born and live in the Basque Country, I am happy to hear with the pride you speak of your ancestors, never forget where you come from.
They were the sheep herders the wealthy anglo families hired to tend the animals. Interesting that today most are Bolivian, Chilean, Mexican, etc.
This is the purity of strength. Outside the “circus” of the industry. Just pure conviction, strength of character and strength of culture. Hard to find something so authentic so thx for showing this. (Also thx to the editor). Time to go lift some heavy weight
%100 my man
Yo no soy vasco pero me ha hecho tanta ilusion ver este video y este precioso deporte y tradicion reconocido en el canal de Zack. Y sobre todo me gusta ver a los vascos orgullosos comentando. Un saludo!
I am not from the basque country (I am from south of spain actually) but I got really excited to see this video pop up on my feed and see this beautiful sport and its tradition being honored in Zack's channel. On top of everything I am just happy to see people from the pais vasco (basque country) commenting.
navarro, tu ta seguro que no eres vasco, patxi?
@@muertomoridodesaparecido 😂😂😂 here we go again
Aqui tienes a uno de bilbao. Orgullosos de los deportes vascos. Aunque si te digo la verdad quedan pocos deportistas vascos, se está perdiendo y no es muy común ver a gente practicandolo o ver campeonatos. Igual que el idioma; aqui apenas se habla el Euskera solo se enseña como asignatura obligatoria
@@brine7 se habla cada vez mas y los herri kirolak cada vez mas tambien
Me sumo a tus palabras, y las comparto. Tampoco soy vasco, pero me he emocionado al ver el vídeo y, en especial, me ha hecho ilusión ver a Zack apreciar este deporte y esta parte de la cultura del País Vasco. Qué grandes carajo.
I did weightlifting, sprinting and rugby from ages 13-33. Then I bought a farm. Then I experienced what full body strength and endurance heavy work in nature is. Even the mechanized part of things, I do heavy deadlifts every day just hooking up my tractor equipment. Love this video and your deep dive into strength sport across the world Zack. Keep it up! Thank you!
Should I agriculturemaxx for more gains.
@@jooot_6850 It's not gonna give you size, but it will give you density, pop and ooomph in your strength.
@@Chrisisplays I want to hurt people
I'm pretty sure the future of sports science is to correlate and compare with manual labor work and transition to even higher training frequencies
Hello Basque here first of all for taking the time to make the video and enjoy a bit of our culture. Also you made me appreciate and see the beauty of our tradition a bit more. Regarding the language I am a Basque speaker, is an isolated language so it has no links to any of its surrounding languages (roman, germanic…) and its origin is unknown. Sounds totally different from Spanish. Glad you enjoyed a bit of our culture and thanks again for the video.
Nothing too fantastic, is an old Iberian tribal language (there were hundreds) that was originally more spoken in the South of the current Basque country (San Millan de la Cogolla). We need to cut the bs in the Basque Country and stop the need to "belong" by making up stuff. Like our current flag invented copying the union jack in 1890 by the arana bros., let' start to keep it real folks, we are not a thematic park for guiris.
@@Mobutusese ok
Another Spaniard here. Others have answered your questions about language and so on so I'll just say that Basque Country is amazing. Great people, amazing food, beautiful scenery and deep rooted traditions. I am from Barcelona and if I had to live in another place in Spain I'd move to the Basque region. I grew up watching these stone lifting competitions on TV but sadly they don't show them so much anymore. They're amazing. Anyway, great video, it was nice to see you react and get emotional about such pure and honest people and traditions.
As an American with a great love for Spain, co-sign. Barcelona is one of the greatest cities in the world IMO, but I like the Basque Country just as much for the reasons you said.
@@seal869 Barcelona is beautiful but it's still a big city, it's expensive, loud and way too busy sometimes. But maybe I don't appreciate it enough because I live here... Glad you enjoy our neck of the woods, though, but Catalunya and Basque Country are worth a visit, that's for sure!
@@seal869 you can go everywhere . You would any place you go in spain
why?? am Basque and love Andalucia, Castilla, Madrid etc...
I would suggest you come to an event held in Boise, Idaho. It’s called Jaialdi and is held every five years. All of these activities will be on full display. Weightlifters from Spain come do exhibitions and several locals also compete. Next one is 2025! Hope to see you there
I don't often comment on UA-cam videos, but man, your content is so DAMN refreshing. It is not often that I can actually look at 30 minutes long videos about strength training without getting bored to death.
I love that you try to put the light on other forms of lifting, talking about the history of strength sports throughout the world, and adressing all other things that may not be directly related to the minutiae of programming and training: the philosophy, the lifestyle, all things that are truly interesting to strength sports passionate around the world.
Thank you and Alex for your outstanding work !
Basque Country is one of my favorite places in the world. Cool culture, cool language, beautiful landscapes, some of the best food I’ve ever had in my life. A place everyone should get to know
Please keep this world-lifting series going!
I think sumo, would interest zack a lot, the comeback of ternunofuji and his training, some old kisenosato lifting videos, hakuho ofc. , they train in the gym aswell and lift heavy and are super flexible, way more than weightlifters especially internal rotation of the hip, keep up
Agree!
Thanks for showing our culture around the world Zach! The Basque Country is a very magical place, history, mythology, the lands, the mountains, the forests, the clima, the food, the people, the oldest language in all Europe the EUSKERA and lots of more things to show around the entire world!!!! A hug from this magical place, the Basque Country❤️🤍💚
Man, this is the most emotional video you’ve done so far. Thanks so much for your words and for giving visibility to this sport.
Hi there Zac, im from Spain, Palma de Mallorca actually, and here in Spain we have a saying about the people of "Comunidad Basca", or Basque Country.
We normally say every year as a meme, that for Christmas, their kids get stones and not present to play around, becausa presents are boring if you are that strong!
And by the way, is you want to look in to it, the great majority of "pro" crossfit people here in Spain come from the north, a few of them are from that country
Never heard of that in my whole life...pero vale lo que tu digas colega...
hey zack my father comes from the basque region and he has always heavily immursed us in his basque culture and I have spent time in the Basque country with my family over there. As a basque weightlifter I am amazed to see this on one of my favorite weightlifting channels! Definitely take a visit if you can it is a seriously ancient culture.
It's touching and emotional because we are watching people talking about their deep and true passion. I love it.
That is the content I signed up for Zack. So many emotions in one clip. The purity of those traditions, family,hard work,appreciation for one another and love for the strength work.
I just got emotional as fuck. When he started talking about age. One day we’ll look back at ourselves in our prime and then just go “damn that was quick. I miss those hardcore sessions that I’m not able to do anymore.”
As a basque here I am so glad that it is taking more visibility to these kind of sports and even de country itself, as many people mentioned, the video is in Spanish yet the accent is a very strong accent from the Basque Country, very different from any other language.
Another thing is “Jobs converted into sports” even cutting wood for fire is a sport here or reap the herb is a sport.
Cheers for the video, a very great one!!
I love how those kids at the end were involved in it. They’re definitely continuing the sport. I personally train for strongman, i still have a long way to go though. As 9 year old kid i started working on a farm to earn some money because my family didn’t have much, until i was 14, then i just did nothing for a while because of difficulties in life. But even in school, with sports i was always the strongest because of what i did at the farm. Then once i was 17 i got a fulltime job working in construction, not knowing much and just being there to carry things, learning carpentry as time went on. But because of my job and past experience with sports in school. I started thinking if i have potential to do this strongman sports i watched a 1000 time, because i loved it. And now after only really training for 2 years for the sport, I’ve already competed a few times in local competitions, getting in the top 5 every time. The strongman competitions in my country aren like worlds strongest man, with guys only training because it’s their job. Here almost everyone of the has a job in construction, or on a farm or anything else physically demanding. I think it’s really underestimated how much that does for your strength. These days, just not a lot of people want to do those jobs.
Hello, basque from Navarre here! I appreciate the video a lot, very emotional. I have to mention that the lenguaje of the video is spanish, not basque, basque (or euskera) is very different to any romance lenguaje (spanish, french, Italian, catalan...).
I'm happy for the interest you shown for this culture ♥️
Here in the basque country we all speak spanish and little by little less people speaks euskera. That guy from the beginning is a legend around here, a very special character.
Ez da egia. Geroz ta gehiago dakite euskaraz baina gutxiago hitzegiten da kalean, hori bai. Begiratu zazu estadistikak
@@bobbobson4030 BOBO SON
@@bobbobson4030 TON TON
Nit gonna lie, its a shame euskera is loosing speakers. I feel like us spaniards should make our biggest effort to defend it. Lots of Spanish words come from euskera.
It is obligatory by the school system, but ni cristo lo usa con colegas porque es un coñazo de mucho cuidao...a contar cuentos a Las Vegas "viper"...
This one made my eyes well up, more than once. I’ve seen stuff on these basque guys before. GOLD. Untouchable.
There are some cultures that would survive a system collapse (power, money, etc) vastly better than the rest.
Also Perurena (the man talking who lifts cilincrical at the end) is such a charismatic person. Well known across all the Basque country, a person who loves the Basque culture and has made a lot to promote it and preserve it.
This got me today. I've been discouraged because my progress isn't as quick as I would like. But just the real truth that I'm functionally fitter than I've ever been. I can confidently try new sports and activities. I can run and play with my kids. And I feel fantastic! I need to remember it's not about my definition and PRs. It's about the fact that my life is infinitely better because of my fitness journey. Thanks for the reminder Zack.
As a Basque that I am, this video and the reactions of the people make me feel deeply proud of my roots. Sport has always been an important part of Basque culture, traditional rural sports (such as stone lifting), cycling, soccer, rowing races in the sea, the many varieties of Basque pelota (among them the one that is known in the US as "Jai Alai"), etc. Euskaldune naiz eta harro nago (I am Basque and I am proud)
These videos of yours are truly something different in the fitness industry. Hope you never stop man
Watching this event makes me wish I can go back to the Bag lift from the crossfit games and show that clip to everyone implying that the shoulder position naturally causes back problems because of the weight and awkwardness.
This video proves that human bodies are capable of much more.
the point is, you dont have to risk your shoulders to train amateur. When people die from boxing there is no doubt about the risk of the sport. Same with weightlifting.
Those with a genuine passion and love for moving heavy objects understand how you're feeling Zack...
the basque people are very well spoken because they have a lively improvised poetry culture
Are you for real? That’s awesome if true.
@@thebiggestpanda1 hi! That's true! There are national contests of "improvised poetry" as you called it, here in Basque Country is called BERTSOLARITZA. If you have some questios ill be glad to answer! Cheers!
I remember watching this documentary a few years ago and I loved it! Knowing that some of my ancestors came from this region fills me with pride. I hope to visit someday.
I’m absolutely loving these videos on folk lifting!
Nahiz eta Mieltxo Saralegi pisu handiena jaso duen harrijasotzailea izan, guretzat preziatuena Iñaki Perurena da. Euskaditik kanpo hedatzaile nagusia izandakoa, gizon jatorra eta apala. Oso bideo ona, segi horrelakoak igotzen.
Although it is true that Mieltxo Saralegi is the lifter who has raised the heaviest stone, Iñaki Perurena is the most beloved ambassador of the sport, spreading it across foreign countries. A very nice and humble man. Keep uploading good content like this, I love your videos.
Hi Zack. I just got emotional at the same part as you!
I believe that if you enjoyed this, you’ll also enjoy watching some Basque Pelota. A sport where the pelotaris (players) hit a stone-hard leather ball with their hands so that it rebounds in a wall. A very exciting and physically requiring sport. Cheers from the Basque Country
I came across this video last year and I swear it makes me cry every time I see it. It’s amazingly pure and juman.
The strength runs deep. And manifests itself in a beautiful way. Very special. Thank you for sharing it with us all.
I am from Spain and this made me really happy, our culture is amazing, thank you Zack, you are awesome
hey man, another basque here and the way you spreed our culture, you show respect and try to understand and learn more about it it's something we will be greatful forever. We are not a big community and this means a lot for us.
Thanks again, or eskerrik asko as we say in the Basque Country, agur gudari
I'm not basque but spanish, good to see this culture spread.
Thanks for your content
Zack if you ever come to northern Spain you have a home and a translator , lifting events are during the summer mostly.
Kaixo! Glad to see you looking to our Harrijasotzailes!
you should also do a video on Great Gama who lifted 1200 kg stone and the stone is kept in baroda museum in India
It's an incredible that multiple societies, Basques, Scott's, Icelanders and Pakistani's developed a system of meritocracy where stone lifting was the method by which you were measured by. Societies separated by thousands of miles had the same ideas in the same time span, completely parallel to eachother.
i mean, moving the heaviest rock is a universally respected feat in the animal kingdom so its not that incredible. Humans are competitive and strength can be measured objectively, its literally the most basic display of dominance in nature. What's more interesting is that cultures that incorporate trials of physical strength seem to outlast the far larger civilizations that try to assimilate them. Having strong individuals improves the structural integrity of your culture it seems.
@@sirisrex7542 Yeah, its pretty basic. Me lift big rock = me strong. Me lift bigger rock = me stronger than you. Since rocks can be quite easily found in nature, its simple that they would be used for that purpose.
I just enjoyed every single minute of the video. Thanks for showing our culture! Cheers from Basque Country!
The Basque language (Euskara) is a language isolate, meaning it's unrelated to any other existing languages. Goes to show how old it is. By the way, the people in the clips were speaking Spanish but with a very distinct accent.
Hey zack,
Maybe whenever you go to Ireland to hang out with Clarence you could look up whenever theirs a public competition like this in Basque and fly from Ireland to Spain and experience it in person.
Maybe theirs a spanish lad who would be interested to be a translator.
Just throwing the thought out there since it gripped you so deeply.
Great video, never knew about this either, very emotional story.
My great grandfathers come from this country, it's sooo cool to see and know some of their culture, love this video and it will be awesome to travel there and have some fun playing with some stones 😅
Best thing I have ever seen on UA-cam, this is what we all know lifting to be but have taken the modern path... just an Epic story that should not be lost...
This is the first video of yours I've watched and I'm so glad I did. Subbed!
The amazing thing about these people (from the perspective of an American) is that they're still very connected to some of the most important things in life, like heritage, honor, etc.
I found myself getting emotional, too. Partly due to a craving for the drive and love they have, and partly due to the realization that I don't have anything like that in my life.
I can do something about it, though! They are, so why can't I? 🚀❤️🙏💪
Zack, you should come to Spain sometime. Even though this tradition is most prevalent in the Basque provinces, all throughout the rural areas of the country people maintain a love for lifting. Maybe it is not as obvious, but in the festivities during the summer this strength contests are made to congregate the comunities
This is where i live!! Thanks for the video
My mom's family is from Spain and came to my country to try get a better life, they worked non stop on the land, i remember watching my cousins, great uncles and great great uncles doing some feats of strength. This video made roll some tears, it has been years since i seen some shit like that, they always would compete to see who was stronger, cutting wood, carrying logs etc, real strength. They would always make you work, i remember been 3 years old and my great great grandma making a competition about feeding ducks and chicken, in my family the strongest people were called toro (bull), now i am almost 30 years old and my great aunt calls me and my younger cousin toro, and it's an honor to be called that, because i have seen and heard of tales from generations of my kin doing crazy shit, killing wolfs with their bare hands, building bridges, opening roads etc. Thank you Zack, for a moment i was brought back at the farm with many members of my family, laughing and working on the land.
I fucking choked up at the end. That was one hell of a ride. Basques are so special, it's incredible. Euskaltel-Euskadi, Athletic Club and pelota I knew about - I had no idea about this.
Damn man wether it's the Pakistani stone lifting, Levantadors, Highland Games, Icelands lifting stones, Indian Club Lifting and Wrestling, Sumo wrestling, sengalese wrestling, etc, etc
There's such culture and history of strength and training all over the world
I'm so jealous definitely wish I could have been born into a lineage of one of these strength cultures that is so deeply attached to their personhood and ancestral history
Legendary stuff
Maybe one day I'll make enough money to become a strength tourist or make a show touring the world to see all these
Thanks Zack for the spotlight in my land :)
Thank you for this video. It`s a wonderfull feeling to be proud of my country trough your eyes. This is what means my country to me; our culture. Sorry for not beeing able to express my feelings in english, thank you again
I didn't know I needed this series of videos
A few thoughts.
1. Has anybody converted my Excel skills into sport yet? That's my fieldwork.
2. The Basque language is completely unrelated to any other languages, so it would sound nothing like Spanish. But you already know that, as others have pointed it out. It's fun to look at a language tree and see how all the languages relate.
3. I'm so goddamn happy I follow your channel. I'd've never heard of this otherwise. My roots are Spanish (Iberian, generally). My family moved to Mexico in the early 1900s, and I was born and raised in Texas. This video shows me everything I ever wanted from a culture. A community. A tradition. A passion and love of life. The tree! I might just move our lineage back there.
Maybe you've found out by now but competitive Excel is very much a thing, look it up.
This is a very pleasant surprise, not many people know about basque people to begin with and even less their strongmen sports. Im gonna send this to my dad right now.
the passion in this video is why strength sports are so amazing
You're so easily one of the best fitness UA-camrs Zack, thanks for bringing such a passionate and genuine perspective to us. So awesome to see someone so humble and who cares about these topics so much. Keep up the awesome work.
Sincerely,
the "Lady" in your "Lady & gentlemen" :)
Bavarian next with the Steinheben!
16:27 I completely agree. Don't get me wrong it's super cool to see people like Mateusz shoulder a 470lb stone but I want to see our natural limitations.
A former pro highland gamer Ryan Stewart here in Utah has built up a community of stone lifters and is bringing Basque, Bavarian, Finnish, and all sorts of other styles to us. It's super fun to be a part of it all
Like you said Zack, this is farm strength, it requires not only toughness but also endurance and discipline, most these guys have a job and the will to train but most importantly honesty.
As a Basque, i am very proud watching your video. Greetings from Basque Country
Hey Zach! I'm Basque, thanks for making the video and spreading knowledge about our culture
This reminds me of what Ivan Djuric always talks about. We go into the gym to make ourselves tired, but there's people out there working their asses off all day long outside and come home wanting a meal.
I remember watching that documentary out of curiosity about my far removed basque roots. They do speak basque briefly a few times and it's unrecognizable.
For any of those interested in history or the Basque people in general, the book Basque History of the World is worth a read
My man with the Shadow of the Colossus music at the end.
Fantastic video Zack, thank you for sharing.
Hey zack! As a basque suscriber, this is amazing to see! You would love a trip to the basque country!
It fills me with joy to see out culture being noticed more and more. I hope you take a look into our languaje as well, it is very unique, it has nothing to do with spanish nor french, witch also makes it one of the hardest to learn.
I am from Pamplona, maan this was an amazing vid, im so proud of being basque
Wholesome. Reminded me of why I love lifting - there's something special about it.
Yesss.. 329kg!!I'm from Spain and still can't believe how strong these guys are.
Amazing video. I love Basque culture in France & Spain.
Heartwarming seeing traditional lifestyles , honest hard work past through generations ❤
thanks for making this video Zack! Greetings from Donostia, Basque country
i'm basque, and I have to say thanks for reacting this.
The ,,Lady and Gentlemen'' gets me everytime :D
Its soo cool to watch someone from another continent enjoy our culture
I'm watching this over Martin's web series. I've learned more in the past two videos from you on cultures built around strength than I ever did at university schooling. Thank you!
very cool of you to record at Trillium Lake
Strenght training varies from every location, specialy in rural areas,like here in the Philippines we have farmers here that can carry loads that they could not lift alone, loads that would take two persons to lift then the one who would carry it will slip under then carry the load for up to 3 to 5 km more or less distance... thats how we carry copra in our place....
So cool you've covered this Zack! I've grown up in the Basque Country, loving these rural sports that almost no-one outside Spain know about. It's great that you show some of this to the world. True strongmen have worked over thousands of years to preserve these traditions.
Stone lifting is one of the most impressive sports we have, but to me wood chopping or Aizkolaritza in basque is the champion of testing athletes strength AND endurance. Plus the discomfort of breaking your lower back and knowing that a bad swing can cut your foot in half xD That's uncomfortable.
Second time watching this video and I have more tears in my eyes than the first time. I love this so much
Thanks from Basque Country.
I couldn't sleep a while back and came across this on Netflix at like 2:30 in the morning. I was amazed at these people.
Greetings from the Basque Country. Martins Licis has visited us and has made three video documentaries for his channel here on UA-cam. I recommend that you see them, even the Basques themselves have moved us. Thank you also for spreading and opening our traditions and our rural sport to the world.
Basque people are fascinating and unique. I didn't know about the stone lifting traditions among them before I watched this video. Great to see!
Thanks from the Basque Country. I recommend that you watch the three videos that Martins Licis made on his channel about the lifters here. It surely fascinates you.
@@Quehuevohtengo Thank you for the suggestion! I will do that.
Hi, another Basque here. I alwayd liked tifting weights gym, weightlifting...
A friend of mine does basque sports "herri kirolak" in basque which means "coutry sports". I lifted some kind of rocks. It crazy lifting a round heavy rock to the shoulder, the first part is the harder one, yo have to round the rock with your arms and many of the force done against the rock is with the forearms.
The next day all my forearms were purpled 🤣🤣.
I had great time though. Very nice to see other people around the world enjoys it!!!
Actually the basque country is spread between france and spain, and recognised by neither. Because of this, during the 60s 70s and 80s, the basque independentists did a lot of terrorist attacks, kidnapping etc.
On a lighter tone, their language predate every roman language like latin (so it is way older than the spanish or french language)
What do you mean by "recognised"? It is its own autonomous community in Spain. Although it isn't a department in France, but france is a centralised state anyway
In fact the constitution of Spain declares that Spain is a plurinational state, and basque is one of 6 "historic nationalities"
@@Alberto-xz7th Recognised a an independent country as many basques would want
@@romaintagliaferro3189 Oh ok I misunderstood your comment then. But I mean if that's what you mean then saying it is not recognised within a different country is pretty paradoxical lmao
@@Alberto-xz7th yeah you're right, but im sure they'll get the point considering most subs don't even know about the basque country
Zach you need to come to Spain and watch it first hand, you would love it!! You can come to San Sebastián which is in the Basque Country Autonomy and enjoy the beach, the sightseeings and the awesome food we have.. Spain is much more than what meets the eye... and we are small but strong and stubborn.
So cool to see a semi intact place and culture these days. I wish them the best in preserving it!
Thanks for bringing this documentary to my attention! The character of these people is so awesome, it’s all for the love of the sport.
Maan, thank you for giving some visibilility to you comunity about basque strength and culture, my culture. We have more thank strength but thank you! Now I discovering you and your chanel and it's amasing, you are amaizing! Jeep up!!💪
I agree with you.
Lifting a balanced barbell is fun and can be challenging, but working with stones and all sorts of odd objects is real strength used in real life.
Please continue to explore strength sports and traditions from around the world, this is so interesting.
Yesss! Finally we touch on the subject !