Strength athletics in the United States refers to the various

strongman Strongman is a competitive strength sport which tests athletes' physical strength and endurance through a variety of heavy lifts and events. Strongman competitions are known for their intensity, pushing athletes to their physical and mental limit ...

competitions organized throughout United States and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

with the elements of all of

strength athletics Strength athletics is the collection of strength sports which measure physical strength, based on both: non-standard and historical implements as seen in Strongman and Highland games, and standardized and calibrated equipment as seen in Powerlifti ...

taken into account. United States has held a preeminent position as a nation due to the enormous success of its competitors on the international stage, who between Bruce Wilhelm,

Don Reinhoudt Donald C. Reinhoudt (March 5, 1945 – July 3, 2023) was an American powerlifter and strongman. He won the IPF World Powerlifting Superheavyweight Championship four consecutive times (1973–1976), and won the World's Strongest Man in 1979. Wi ...

Bill Kazmaier William Kazmaier (born December 30, 1953) is an American former world champion powerlifter, world champion strongman and professional wrestler. During his illustrious career, he set over 40 powe ...

Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry (born June 12, 1971) is an American former powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, strongman, and retired professional wrestler currently signed to WWE under a Legends contract. Henry is a two-time Olympian (1992 and 19 ...

, Phil Pfister,

Derek Poundstone Derek Anthony Poundstone (born September 28, 1981) is an American police officer, former professional strongman and strength coach from Woodbridge, Connecticut. He was the runner-up at the 2008 World ...

, Brian Shaw, Mike Jenkins and

Martins Licis Martins Licis (, ; born September 28, 1990) is an American professional strongman, notable for winning the 2019 World's Strongest Man, the 2022 Arnold Strongman Classic, and the 2021 Rogue Invitational strongman championships. He's the fourth s ...

have won twelve

World's Strongest Man The World's Strongest Man is an international strongman competition held every year. Organized by American event management company IMG, a subsidiary of Endeavor, it is broadcast in the US during summers and in the UK around the end of Decemb ...

titles, eight

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 t ...

titles, in addition to numerous other international strongman competitions won by various different athletes. United States has both amateur and professional sanctioning bodies in the sport.

Pro/Amateur organizations

American Strongman Corporation ("ASC") is the sole sanctioning body for all professional American strength athletes and organizes the annual America's Strongest Man contest, as well as the NAS US Amateur National Championships, the winner of which receives their pro card to compete in professional contests. North American Strongman ("NASM") organizes the majority of the amateur contests in the United States, and holds pro qualifier events and national championship events throughout the year with men's, woman's, teen's and master's divisions as well as lightweight and heavyweight classes similar to ASC. United States Strongman is a relatively new organization.

America's Strongest Man

America's Strongest Man is an annual

competition held in the United States and featuring only American athletes. It is the most prestigious of the national titles. The contest was established in 1997 in

Primm, Nevada Primm (formerly known as State Line) is an unincorporated town in Clark County, Nevada, United States, primarily notable for its position straddling Interstate 15 at the Nevada–California border. It sits on Ivanpah Dry Lake, which extends to ...

, with

Mark Philippi Mark Philippi (born March 21, 1963) is an American world champion powerlifter and strongman competitor who currently serves as the assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). Philippi is ...

winning the inaugural contest. It has been held twenty-six times in eighteen locations across the United States and has produced twenty champions.

holds the record for the highest number of wins with three, while Brian Shaw,

Dimitar Savatinov Dimitar Savatinov (born 5 May 1980) is an American Strongman from Bulgaria and the former American Deadlift record holder with . He also previously held the world record for the Max Dumbbell press with . Career Savatinov was a high school wrest ...

Lucas Hatton Lucas Hatton (born 28 April 1995) is a professional strongman from Eatonville, Washington and the reigning Strength athletics in the United States, America's Strongest Man. As a collegiate athlete for Pacific Lutheran University, Hatton playe ...

, Steve Kirit and Brian Schoonveld share two wins each.

Champions breakdown

Repeat champions

America's Strongest Woman

America's Strongest Woman was initiated in 2021 and features both American and foreign athletes residing and training in the United States. 18 athletes have participated in the competition over the past four years.

All-American Strongman Challenge

A competition started in 2005 which was initially reserved for American athletes but was later opened for international athletes too.

North America's Strongest Man

North America's Strongest Man is an annual

competition consisting of athletes from both United States and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The event was established in 1992 with Gary Mitchell of the United States winning the inaugural competition. Despite the three hiatus periods (1994-1997, 2004-2006 and 2015-2022), the competition has been held seventeen times. Canada has produced five champions who shared ten titles among them while United States has produced seven champions with a title each for a total of seven. The contest has been always held in

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Champions breakdown

*Results courtesy of David Horne's World of Grip: http://www.davidhorne-gripmaster.com/strongmanresults.html

Repeat champions

NAS US Amateur Strongman Championships

The Amateur US Nationals were created in 1997 and are held annually in various locations throughout the United States, with the winner of each weight class earning their pro card to compete professionally. Traditionally, the winner of the men's heavyweight class will go on to compete in major national and international strongman contests such as the

and the

Men's Heavyweight Champions

Other competitions

*Rainier Classic *Santa Monica Classic *Vice Grip Viking *Olympia Strongman Challenge *Clash of the Titans *Wrath of the Strongest *North Dakota's Strongest Man *Georgia's Strongest Man *Tennessee's Strongest *Orlando's Strongest *Strongest on the Coast *PA Dutch Strong *Cerberus USA Mid-South Regional

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:United States Strongest Man Strongmen competitions National strongmen competitions

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...