Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson

Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (; transliterated as Hafthor in English, born 26 November 1988), is an Icelandic professional strongman, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest strength athletes of all time. He is the first and only person to have won the Arnold Strongman Classic, the Europe's Strongest Man and the World's Strongest Man competitions in the same calendar year, and holds numerous Strongman titles from multiple strength federations, including multiple world records. With 30 international competition wins, he is the third most decorated strongman in history behind Lithuania's Žydrūnas Savickas and Poland's Mariusz Pudzianowski, and in terms of pure brute strength, many strength analysts and strongman experts regard Hafþór as "the strongest man to have ever lived".

Hafþór has also appeared in television as an actor, portraying Ser Gregor Clegane in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' for five seasons. He is often simply referred to as "Thor" or "The Mountain" as the latter has been closely identified with that character due to his own massive size.

Early life

Hafþór was born on 26 November 1988 in Reykjavík, Iceland. When he was 11 years old, his family moved to Kópavogur, Iceland. He received his primary education from Grundaskóli and then Hjallaskóli hill school, but due to very high levels of energy as a child, he had difficulty sitting in a classroom or concentrating in his studies. Being a student of the polytechnic school in Breiðholt, he was enthusiastic about sports and played soccer and got into gymnastics before discovering his passion for basketball in eighth grade. He was also a chess player with a Blitz rating of 800 and loved playing video games, both which he continues to date.

A lanky teenager, he gained size and strength through daily exercise, combining basic movements ( push-ups, chin-ups and sit-ups), with working in his grandfather's farm during summers and lifting natural stones in the wilderness. His imposing height of 205 cm (6 ft 9 in) is credited to his 203 cm (6 ft 8 in) father Björn þor Reynisson and his mother Ragnheiður Juliusdottir, who is also of quite tall stature. Hafþór's grandfather Reynir Ásgeirsson is also very tall and just as broad across the chest. Hafþór also has two sisters: Bryndís Björg Björnsdóttir and Hafdís Lind Björnsdóttir.

Basketball career

Hafþór began his athletic career as a basketball player, playing as a center with a bodyweight of around 105 kg (231 lb). He started his senior team career for Icelandic 1. deild karla club Breiðablik in 2004. The following season he transferred to FSu Selfoss, but after about 10 games it was discovered that he had been playing with a broken bone in his ankle and was prompted for surgery. After recovering, in 2006, Hafþór moved to KR in the Icelandic top-tier Úrvalsdeild. However, after a screw in his ankle shattered, he had to undergo a second surgery in November, forcing him to miss the rest of the season.

To commence the 2007–2008 season, he moved back to play for FSu Selfoss and averaged 6.7 points per game, helping the team to achieve a promotion to the Úrvalsdeild. Unfortunately, the troublesome ankle continued and ultimately forced him to retire from basketball at the age of 19, shattering his dream of making it to the National Basketball Association one day.

Between 2004 and 2006, Hafþór played 32 games for the Icelandic junior national basketball teams and 8 games with Iceland's U-18 national team in Division A of the U18 European Championship. In May 2004, he won the Nordic championship with the U-16 team. During the 2004 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship Division B, he helped Iceland achieve promotion to Division A. In 2006, he won the Nordic championship again, this time with the U-18 team.

Strongman career

After recovering from the ankle injury, and inspired by Ronnie Coleman and Dorian Yates, Hafþór trained like a bodybuilder. One day, when four-time World's Strongest Man Champion Magnús Ver Magnússon spotted the 20 year old, 6 ft 9 in, 140 kg (308 lb) Hafþór Deadlifting in his gym 'Jakaból', he immediately realized his potential as a good prospect for strongman which paved the way for Hafþór to train with Stefán Sölvi Pétursson, Benedikt Magnússon, Páll Logason and Ari Gunnarsson.

The following year while training at the 'Strongman Base' gym, Hafþór was nicknamed ''Ljónið'' (the Lion) by Stefán Sölvi Pétursson because he continuously grew bigger and got stronger, eventually reaching his heaviest bodyweight ever of 210 kg (463 lb) in 2012.

Iceland's Strongest Man

With the newfound friendships and guidance, Hafþór progressed in the sport and went on to win several strongman contests in Iceland multiple times from 2009 onwards, including Westfjord's Viking, Eastfjord Strongman Championships, Highland Viking, Iceland's Strongest Viking, OK Badur Strongman Championships, Akranes Strength Challenge and Strongest Man in Iceland. After placing 3rd behind his friends Pétursson and Magnússon in 2010, Hafþór won his first Iceland's Strongest Man title (Iceland's most prestigious title) in 2011 becoming the 9th Icelander to win the title since its inception in 1985. His winning streak continued and in August 2020, Hafþór won the Iceland's Strongest Man for the 10th consecutive time.

In January 2015, at the World's Strongest Viking competition held in Norway, Hafþór carried a , log for five steps, thus breaking a legendary 1,000 year old record set by Orm Storolfsson.

Strongman Champions League

Hailing from its IFSA roots, the Strongman Champions League organized several Grand Prix events which attracted a lot of athletes from around the world. It gave Hafþór the opportunity for international exposure, competing against the best strongmen in the world. From 2013 to 2015 Hafþór prolifically competed (upto 14 competitions in a single year) throughout many Grand Prix competitions in Germany, Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Latvia, Russia, China, Malaysia and Brazil, winning 8 international titles, 3 silver medals and 2 bronze medals.

Europe's Strongest Man

After placing 5th and 4th in 2012 and 2013 respectively, Hafþór won the 2014 Europe's Strongest Man competition in Leeds. The competition is organized by Giants Live. During the competition, after making a new world record in the Atlas stones event, he famously answered the reporter ''"I'm the future of strength, and I'm king of the stones!"''. Hafþór successfully defended his title in 2015, but in 2016, despite doing well in other events, he made a mistake at the car walk by gripping the apparatus from the center instead from sides, which compromised balance and eventually lost the title to Englishman Laurence Shahlaei. He regained the title in 2017 after an iconic battle with Eddie Hall and famously answered Bill Kazmaier ''"This is not a beauty contest, This is Strongman!"'' and successfully defended the crown again in 2018 and 2019 becoming a 5 x times Europe's Strongest Man Champion.

In addition to his 5 titles, Hafþór has also won the 2014 Giants Live FitX Melbourne, 2014 World's Strongest Viking, 2015 Giants Live Viking and 2015 Giants Live Sweden, making him the greatest Giants Live champion of all-time with 9 wins.

World's Strongest Man

Hafþór took part in World's Strongest Man after earning a wild card invitation to the 2011 contest and placed 6th. At 22 years and 300 days, he's the 4th youngest WSM finalist in history. Taking part again in ensuing years, he placed third in 2012, 2013 and 2015, and finished runner-up in 2014 to Žydrūnas Savickas by half a point, and again in 2016 to Brian Shaw by two points and finally in 2017 to Eddie Hall by one point, before becoming the World's Strongest Man in 2018 winning the competition by six and a half points over the runner up Mateusz Kieliszkowski. Hafþór was also the third Icelander to win the title after Jón Páll Sigmarsson and Magnús Ver Magnússon.

In his attempt to defend his title, Hafþór unfortunately suffered a torn plantar fascia during the group stages and emerged third place overall behind Martins Licis and Mateusz Kieliszkowski after doing all the events of the final while suffering from the injury, thus achieving the longest continuous podium streak in World's Strongest Man history with 8 (2012-2019). Hafþór has also won more vehicle pulls, stone events, and medleys & loading races than any other competitor in the history of the competition. Among the past winners who have managed to qualify for the finals at a 100% ratio, Hafþór and Mariusz Pudzianowski top the list with 9 finals out of 9 appearances. In May 2020, Hafþór stated that he would not return to Giants Live or World's Strongest Man competitions.

Arnold Strongman Classic

Hafþór entered the Arnold Sports Festival's limelight after winning 2nd place in the 2011 Arnold Amateur competition which was also his first ever competition abroad. This paved him the way to qualify for the Arnold Pro Strongman World Series, eventually winning the Arnold Brazil, Arnold Australia, Arnold South Africa and Arnold Canada competitions.

Widely recognized as the heaviest and the most difficult strongman contest in the world, Hafþór first participated in the Arnold Strongman Classic finals annually held in Columbus, Ohio in 2012, placing 10th (last place). But after a continuous progression, placing 8th in 2013, 5th in 2014, 7th in 2015, 5th in 2016 and 2nd in 2017, Hafþór defeated the defending champion Brian Shaw and won the 2018 Arnold Strongman Classic in Columbus, Ohio becoming only the 7th man to win the prestigious title. In the fourth Event Hafþór broke the Elephant bar Deadlift world record with beating Jerry Pritchett's which was established the previous year.

Hafþór successfully defended his title at 2019 Arnold Strongman Classic in dominant fashion and improved on his Elephant bar Deadlift world record, increasing it to in only his second attempt out of the 3 allowed attempts.

After successfully defending his crown again in 2020, Hafþór became only the second person in history to win the Arnold Strongman Classic 3 x times in a row after Žydrūnas Savickas.

World's Ultimate Strongman

In 2018, Hafþór won the inaugural World's Ultimate Strongman held in Dubai in a stacked field of 12 athletes. This year also marked the most dominant calendar year in strongman history with Hafþór winning the Iceland's Strongest Man, Europe's Strongest Man, World's Strongest Man, World's Ultimate Strongman and the Arnold Strongman Classic.

Also from 2018 onwards, Hafþór significantly increased his static strength under the mentoring of his strength coach since 2016: Sebastian Oreb and increased his squat to during training and during Thor's Powerlifting Challenge. In February 2020, Hafþór deadlifted for 2 reps and became the first person in history to deadlift 1,000 lb for reps, and two weeks later, deadlifted an unofficial world record on the elephant bar with . All of the lifts were performed raw (only wraps for squats and straps for deadlifts).

On 2 May 2020, Hafþór deadlifted under strongman rules (standard bar with figure 8 straps and single-ply suit) at Thor's Power Gym, Kópavogur, Iceland while being refereed by Magnús Ver Magnússon under the sanctioning of World's Ultimate Strongman and broke the almost 4 year old strongman deadlift world record of by Eddie Hall. The lift was globally televised live by ESPN and the Guinness World Records verified it as 'the Heaviest Deadlift of all-time'.

In August 2020, Hafþór announced his retirement from strongman competitions.

Rogue Invitational and potential comeback

After a two and a half year hiatus from competitive strongman, Hafþór announced his retirement from boxing, having already gone back to strength training. A couple of weeks later on 30 October 2022, Hafþór participated at the 2022 Rogue Invitational in Austin, Texas and threw the Scottish Highland Games weight over using one arm for a new world record. He indicated a potential comeback to competitive strongman and powerlifting.

Competitive record

Strongman

Placements: 56 x 1st places, 12 x 2nd places and 11 x 3rd places = 79 x podium finishes from 96 total competitions.

Winning percentage: 46.1% in International circuit & 84% at National circuit

Podium percentage: 75.4% in International circuit & 97% at National circuit

Top 5 percentage: 92.3% in International circuit & 100% at National circuit

Powerlifting

Despite the fact that Hafþór never trained specifically for powerlifting, he did two full competitions during his strongman career and another post retirement. In 2011 Íslandsmót tournament, at the age of 22, he totaled 930 kg (2,050 lb) raw, winning 2nd place overall behind Páll Logason. During 2018 Thor's powerlifting challenge (sanctioned by the 'World Raw Powerlifting Federation'), with only 5 weeks of a casual preparation, Hafþór totaled 1,100 kg (2,425 lb) raw, which was at the time, the 5th highest raw superheavyweight powerlifting total of all-time. He won 2nd place for highest bench press behind Kirill Sarychev and won 1st place for the highest squat, highest deadlift, highest total and highest Wilks score, winning the overall competition. After a two and a half year hiatus from strength training, Hafþór competed in Thor's Powerlifting Meet 2022 with a 6 week preparation and totaled 970 kg (2,138 lb) raw.

Personal records

* Deadlift –
* Squat –
* Log press –
* Axle press –
* Bench press –
* Cyr Dumbbell –
* Húsafell Stone – for
* Atlas Stones – 5 Stones weighing 120–200 kg (264–441 lb) in 17.54 seconds
* Keg toss – 8 kegs () over in 16.35 seconds
* One arm Weight over bar – over

Legacy

During his 10 year international strongman career, Hafþór won all major Strongman competitions and titles which were available at that time including World's Strongest Man, Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man, Strongman Champions League, Giants Live, World's Ultimate Strongman and his 30 international wins ranks him as the 3rd most decorated strongman of all-time. Even though he was noted primarily for his strengths in the moving events during initial years of his career (for example: Medley's and loading races, Keg-tossing, Power stairs, Vehicle pulls and Natural Stones which require good stamina and athleticism), Hafþór kept on improving and upscaled his brute strength which helped him excel in static events as well (for example: Deadlifts, Squats, Log Presses, Axle Presses, Circus Dumbbell etc.) making him a well rounded strongman by the year 2018. Experts believe the three years from that point onwards (2018, 2019 and 2020) as the 'highest peak performance' of any strongman in history considering Hafþór's dominance and having no weaknesses at any event. During these three years, the only instance Hafþór failed to win a competition was due to an injury and apart from it, remained unbeaten. Hafþór's international accolades and winning everything there is in the sport cemented his legacy as one of the greatest strongmen of all-time and due to numerous world records and feats of strength involving brute strength and static lifts, many analysts and strongman experts regard Hafþór as "the strongest man to have ever walked the earth".

Boxing career

On 2 May 2020 after breaking the Deadlift World Record, Hafþór challenged its previous record holder Eddie Hall to a boxing match. Despite having no boxing experience whatsoever, Hafþór learnt the fundamentals of boxing and made commendable progress under the guidance of his coaches Billy Nelson, Vilhjálmur Hernandez and support from his two main sparring partners Skúli Ármansson and Bill Hodgson. With a stricter diet which differed from his strongman days, Hafþór also transformed himself to suit the new sport, losing in the process. He started training twice a day (upto five hours per day) with a weekly routine which was segmented into fourteen sessions. They consisted of six boxing training sessions, four strength training sessions (two each for upper and lower body) and four endurance training sessions.

Hafþór's first exhibition match was against ex-WBO European light-heavyweight champion Steven Ward in January 2021. For his second exhibition match he faced the 2010 Commonwealth Games Heavyweight Gold Medalist Simon Vallily in May 2021. The two fights provided him his first real ring experience. On 18 September 2021, Hafþór faced Canadian Professional Arm-wrestler Devon Larratt in his first non-exhibition boxing match. Devon volunteered for the fight when Eddie Hall withdrew himself after sustaining a bicep tear during training. Within the first round of the fight, referee was forced to stop the fight awarding Hafþór the win via TKO (technical knockout).

The Mountain vs. The Beast

On 19 March 2022, after almost two years since its announcement, Hafþór and Eddie finally faced each other in Dubai which was taglined The Heaviest Boxing Match in History. Eddie started the first round with continuous haymakers but Hafþór kept his composure and stuck to the basics, focusing on a solid jab and better footwork. Once he realized Eddie's game plan, Hafþór took control of the fight by bludgeoning and knocking down Eddie twice to the floor in rounds three and six. Eddie sustained bleeding lacerations on top of both eyes and Hafþór won the fight via unanimous decision.

Boxing record

Acting career

Hafþór was cast as Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane for the fourth season of the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' in August 2013. This was his first main acting role, and he is the third person to depict the character after Conan Stevens played the role in season 1 and Ian Whyte in season 2 but the first actor to portray Clegane in more than one continuous season with his appearances in seasons four through eight. He was also cast for the lead role in the Philadelphia Renaissance Faire during their debut season in 2015. He appeared as 'King Thor', the leader of a Viking raiding party intent on capturing the city of Amman.

In 2018 Hafþór played Mongkut, the main villain in '' Kickboxer: Retaliation'' opposite Alain Moussi and Jean-Claude Van Damme in a story about a kickboxer (Moussi) who was sedated and taken to a prison in Bangkok, where he is forced to fight a giant for freedom and a large sum. In the same year he also played Big John in the film ''Operation Ragnarok'' about a town in the south of Sweden isolated after a viral outbreak and the trapped Swedes and immigrants uniting to survive an onslaught.

The next year, he starred with Mike Tyson in the action film ''Pharaoh's War'', about a former soldier (Tyson) with a mysterious past leading a group of Egyptian refugees through the desert to protect them from a group of evil mercenaries.

In 2022, Hafþór had a minor role as Thorfinnr the Tooth-Gnasher in the historical epic fantasy '' The Northman'' which starred Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy and Willem Dafoe.

Filmography

Film

Television

Other ventures

Martial Arts

Since beginning with boxing, Hafþór has stayed involved in a range of martial arts. In 2020, he appeared on episode 10 of Karate Combat with Bas Rutten and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Josh Palmer, prior to having a training session with Palmer that was released to the public. He then visited Mjolnir MMA to train with UFC veteran Gunnar Nelson in May 2021, and was filmed grappling with the professional fighter. In December 2022, Hafþór met Gordon Ryan prior to his match with Nicky Rodriguez at UFC FightPass Invitational 3 and was filmed having a sparring match with him.

Personal life

Family & Relationships

Hafþór had some troubled relationships with his former girlfriends during his late teens and early twenties who accused him of domestic violence including Thelma Björk Steimann (the mother of his daughter), who feared for her life once during a vacation. She pressed charges, but the police investigation found no grounds for action and Hafþór has since charged her with slander. However, things escalated to a point where Hafþór was not allowed to see his daughter for 3 years. The situation settled over the years and he frequently visits his daughter, Theresa Líf, who resides in Denmark with her mother.

Since late 2017 Hafþór dated Canadian fitness model Kelsey Morgan Henson whom he met in Alberta during a promotional event for Icelandic Mountain Vodka and touring for the Warwick Strongman Festival. The couple garnered a lot of attention because of their height difference. They married in August 2018 and on 26 September 2020 welcomed their son, Stormur Magni Hafþórsson.

Nutrition

During his Strongman days, Hafþór had to constantly force feed himself to maintain his size and strength. He used to consume up to 8,000 calories a day during 2012 - 2017 to maintain a 180–190 kg (397–419 lb) physique and increased it up to 10,000 calories a day in his prime which is considered 2018, 2019 and 2020 to maintain a 200–205 kg (441–452 lb) physique. As a general rule, his macro balance was 2:2:1 carbs to protein to fat ratio. A typical breakfast may consist of eggs, bacon and french toast while a typical lunch may consist of rice, steak (or ground bison or salmon), potatoes, spinach, carrots and chicken stock. He had six to eight healthy meals a day with the exception of "one cheat meal once in a while is fine as long as you stay on track the rest of the time".

From mid 2020, he downsized his caloric intake to around 5,000 calories a day with a much stricter diet which helped him with his body transformation to suit Boxing.

Health concerns

Hafþór has had occasional sleep troubles in the past after heavy meals due to his large body weight. In March 2017, he was diagnosed with Bell's palsy which paralysed half of his face. In an interview, when asked if he had ever used steroids, Hafþór answered: "Yes, I have. When you want to be the best, you do whatever it takes". Hafþór did not provide further information related to the cycles or whether his use of the substances was ongoing however he has never failed a drug test during his entire career. Hafþór recovered from Bell's palsy later that year; however, he still has a slight facial droop on the right side.

Endorsements

In 2016, Hafþór co-founded the spirits brand 'Icelandic Mountain Vodka' which is a seven-time distilled Icelandic vodka. The company also produces gin.

Together with Unnar Helgi Danielsson and Dylan Sprouse, Hafþór is also a co-founder and brand ambassador of 'Thor's Skyr', a traditional, Icelandic high protein cultured dairy product which is high in probiotics and low in sugar.

Hafþór also owns 'Thor's Power Apparel', a family business retailing branded merchandise via an online shop, and is also a brand ambassador for SodaStream.

References

External links

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"Hafthor Bjornsson basketball profile"
Eurobasket.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Björnsson, Hafþór Júlíus
1988 births
Living people
Icelandic strength athletes
Icelandic male weightlifters
Icelandic men's basketball players
Icelandic male television actors
Centers (basketball)
Úrvalsdeild karla (basketball) players
Sportspeople from Reykjavík
Breiðablik men's basketball players
KR men's basketball players
Twitch (service) streamers