Benedikt "Benni" Magnússon (; born 4 June 1983) is an Icelandic

strongman In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or similar circus performers who performed feats of strength. More recently, strength athletics, also known as strongman competitions, have grown in popularity. Thes ...

and

powerlifter Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight single-lift effor ...

. He has held the raw

deadlift The deadlift is a weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting exercises ...

world record since 2011 with . He also set the world record for the heaviest strongman deadlift in 2014 with , which stood until English strongman

Eddie Hall Edward Stephen Hall (born 15 January 1988) is an English media personality, actor, boxer, and former strongman. He won the World's Strongest Man 2017 competition. Hall has also won national competitions such as UK's Strongest Man, Britain's S ...

lifted the next year.

Strongman and powerlifting career

Benedikt formerly held the world record for the

Hummer Hummer (stylized as HUMMER) is a brand of pickups and SUVs that was first marketed in 1992 when AM General began selling a civilian version of the M998 Humvee. Although discontinued in 2010, Hummer returned as a sub-brand of GMC in 2020. ...

tire

of 500 kg (1102 lb) at the

Arnold Strongman Classic The Arnold Strongman Classic is an annual competition featuring strength athletes from all over the world, determining who is the Strongest Man in the World. Created by Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jim Lorimer and Terry Todd, it is an offshoot of the A ...

, in which hummer tires are used instead of

powerlifting Powerlifting is a strength sport that consists of three attempts at maximal weight on three lifts: squat, bench press, and deadlift. As in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, it involves the athlete attempting a maximal weight single-lift effo ...

plates under

rules where lifting straps are allowed. Benedikt finished fifth at the

in 2006 & 2008, and was winner of

Iceland's Strongest Man Strength athletics in Iceland refers to the participation of Icelandic competitors and the holding of Icelandic events in the modern phenomenon of strength athletics inaugurated by the World's Strongest Man. The sport's roots have a long and ancien ...

in 2003 as well as runner up in 2004 and recently in 2010. Benedikt is the current WPO powerlifting world record holder in the deadlift. He lifted in 2005 in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

. He currently holds the Log Lift Icelandic Record, standing at 180 kg (397 lb). He had the strongman deadlift world record, lifting 460 kg (1015 lb) at MHP's Clash of the Titan's IV (

Ronnie Coleman Ronald "Ronnie" Dean Coleman (born May 13, 1964) is an American retired professional bodybuilder. The winner of the Mr. Olympia title for eight consecutive years, he is widely regarded as either the greatest bodybuilder of all time or one of th ...

classic) on 2 April 2011. Benedikt lays out his training routine leading up to his 460 kg (1015 lb) deadlift in two simple steps, starting with the pre-conditioning phase and ending with the muscle-building phase. Between the two phases, he would spend 4–6 days in the gym per week. He is currently sponsored by online sports nutrition brand

Myprotein Myprotein is a British bodybuilding supplement brand which has developed into a family of brands, including Myvitamins, Myvegan, MyPRO and MP Activewear. It was founded in 2004 by Oliver Cookson and bought by The Hut Group in 2011. History My ...

. After his absence from competing due to injury and the following rehabilitation, Benedikt returned and broke the Strongman Deadlift World Record at the Giants Live Strongman competition in Melbourne, Australia by deadlifting 445 kg (981 pounds) RAW with straps. After only eight weeks of training due to an operation to re-attach a finger tendon, Benedikt broke his own strongman deadlift world record at the World Deadlift Championships at Europe's Strongest Man 2014 with a lift of 461 kg (1016 lbs) on a standard bar and plates. Benedikt then went on to compete in the World Deadlift Championships at Europe's Strongest Man 2016, lifting 465 kg (1025 pounds) to equal the strongman world record deadlift on a standard bar, with standard plates, which had been set moments earlier by Eddie Hall. Eddie Hall then went on to be the first person to deadlift 500 kg (1102 pounds), which Benedikt Magnusson attempted also, but was unsuccessful.

Personal life

Benedikt is the brother of fellow

winner Magnús Magnússon.Saturday, December 17, 2005, ''IFSA Team World Championships: Team Europe vs. Team Scandinavia'', by Randall J. Strossen, Ph.D.IronMind
/ref> Benedikt and Britain's Strongest Woman winner ex wife Gemma Taylor co-owned a heavy lifting gym in Iceland called Super Gym, which ran monthly "raw" (without the aid of lifting suits) competitions including Log Lift Max, Deadlift Max, Rolling Thunder Max, Bench Press Max, and Squat Max.

Personal records

Powerlifting competition records

''Done in official powerlifting full meets'' * Squat - 420 kg (937.7 lbs) * Bench press - 220 kg (485 lbs) ''raw'' *

Deadlift The deadlift is a weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting exercises ...

- 461 kg (1016 lbs) *Total = 1042.5 kg (380/220/442.5) / 2298.3 lbs (837.7/485/975.5) ''raw with wraps'' ''Done in Strongman'' *

- 465 kg (1025 lbs) (2016 World Deadlift Championships)

References

External links