Strength athletics in Norway refers to the participation of Norwegian competitors in the field of

strength athletics Strength athletics, also known as Strongman competitions, is a sport which tests competitors' strength in a variety of non-traditional ways. Some of the disciplines are similar to those in powerlifting and some powerlifters have also successfully ...

in association with the

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 Decem ...

History

The sport's roots have a long history going back many centuries before modern

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. These ...

competitions in the 1970s. However, Norway did not come onto the international scene in modern times until the mid-1990s. Norway has had mixed success on the international stage, with

Svend Karlsen Svend 'Viking' Karlsen (born 6 October 1967) is a Norwegian former strongman, powerlifter, and IFBB professional bodybuilder. Being a winner of the World's Strongest Man, the Europe's Strongest Man, the World Muscle Power Classic and 3 tim ...

winning the

2001 World's Strongest Man The 2001 World's Strongest Man was the 24th edition of World's Strongest Man and was won by Svend Karlsen Svend 'Viking' Karlsen (born 6 October 1967) is a Norway, Norwegian former Strongman (strength athlete), strongman, powerlifter, and Inte ...

title, Norway's only WSM title. In recent years, Norway has had several top international competitors in WSM, including Arild Haugen, Richard Skog, Odd Haugen and

Espen Aune Espen Aune (born 1982) is a Norwegian professional strongman competitor and winner of the 2011 Norway's Strongest Man.Geir TverdaEspen Aune: Det handler om å være den sterkeste. Enkelt og greit. iform.no (2010-03-01). Retrieved on 2011-12-28 ...

National Competitions

Norway's Strongest Man

Norway's Strongest Man ( no, Norges Sterkeste Mann) is an annual

competition held in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The event was established in 1998. Kurt Kvikkstad won in 1998 & 1999, with

Roy Holte Roy is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origin. In Anglo-Norman England, the name derived from the Norman ''roy'', meaning "king", while its Old French cognate, ''rey'' or ''roy'' (modern ''roi''), likewise gave rise to ...

winning the next 3 years.

took the 2003, 2005, and 2006 titles. Arild Haugen won in 2007 & 2008. Richard Skog won in 2009 & 2010.

won in 2011, Skog did not compete due to injury. Ole Martin Hansen is the most successful, having won the title four times.

Official results - top three places

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

Regional Competitions

Nordic Strongman Championships

The Nordic Strongman Championships consists of athletes from

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...

, Sweden,

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...

and

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Magnus Samuelsson Magnus Samuelsson (born December 21, 1969), is a Swedish actor, former strongman and winner of the 1998 World's Strongest Man contest in Morocco. He has also made it to the World's Strongest Man podium 5 times and the finals 10 times and is rega ...

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Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, f ...

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Johannes Arsjo Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as " John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' ...

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Lars Rorbakken Lars is a common male name in Scandinavian countries. Origin ''Lars'' means "from the city of Laurentum". Lars is derived from the Latin name Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum" or "crowned with laurel". A homonymous Etruscan name was born ...

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Harstad ( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the town of Harstad, the most populous town in Central Hålogaland, ...

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References

Strongmen competitions Sport in Norway