I'm the best in the world
ladies and gentlemen
we're here in Leeds for the World Log Press Championships, yes we're in Leeds because of
the Log Press Championship so we're gonna find out who's got the strongest shoulders on the
planet and then we'll find out who the Strongest Man in Europe is the pinnacle or one of the most
prestigious competitions Europe's Strongest Man Giants Live ¡um! which is for me it's only second
to World's Strongest Man it's probably the the biggest one-day show on earth you know back in
the arena in front of like loads of people who are all kind of raring to see Strong Man go
again ¡yeah! they've called guys from all over the world ¡uh! to battle out 10 of us to see who's the
strongest guy in Europe ¡um! I think it's like 10 000 strong I've come to watch
10 athletes strong field Novikoff ex-champion I come into Leeds ¡uh! special for this great show Luke Stoltman actually
is looking good ¡um! plus he got log and maybe he can come away with the log record as well the
World Record this is going to be a heck of a group five grueling events I'm looking forward to it
so event one is World Log lifting Championships and right here on a wooden log it's not always
done on a proper wooden log we're going to be going for it the weights are going to start
really high event one at Europe's Strongest Man is the max log press so it starts off with
180 kilos which is absolutely huge and the log is massive itself and you just come out
and you press until you fail personally I think probably Luke has the best chance if he's fit
it's a technical lift end of the day you've got to be strong but any overhead pressing usually
if you're a very technical lifter you've got more chance of getting it a lot of guys are struggling
with 180 kilos but the thing is is that when you come to these competitions it's a competition
and variables change circumstances are different environments different I think log we've been such
a technical lift it's one of them things where the pressure does get to you know usually you can
be overcome with that opening weight 180 kilos and seven people failed 180 kilos log lift for Max and
for me it's a not good event it's not bad but my knees in in log lift feel not good I feel pain a
real strong pain I need to work my shoulders and all my body and save my knees and I would admit
that the 180 probably wasn't as comfortable for me as normal too the max logs should be
mine ¡uh! I should get first place in that obviously you've got a game Hicks fantastic Log presser
so hopefully Hicks is on ¡uh! on point tomorrow you know I know he's got an injury hopefully
that's subsided and he's going to fulfill we can have a real battle between the both of us
seven guys not managing to successfully lift the first log you know and then getting zero points
from the off the first three who obviously made that lift Hixxy , Novikov and Luke sort
of established that early lead and the thing is is that in a one-day show with only five events we've
obviously won event down if you've got seven guys who've zeroed and you're immediately in kind of a
nine ten point lead then you pretty much know that you're on the podium like unless something
goes really, really wrong so them free early on sort of established that you know they were the
guys to come here and make the podium the opening weight was 180 kilos I stepped up
it felt really comfortable it was probably one of the fastest I've pressed one eight
it was no big deal there and then I believe we went up to
second attempt was one nine five ¡um! again one nine five felt really comfortable
I believe it was just ¡um! Hixxy myself that pressed to 195.
everyone knows what an awesome press Rex he is just incredible shoulder power incredible pop
¡yeah! pretty cool to be one of those threes ¡um! but for me the last like my attempt in the 207
I should have got that I should have pissed up but unfortunately ¡um! it's one of those things
I'm not gonna beat myself up there's a learning curve so for me every, every show I do now of a
pair of sunglasses my back is simple it's, it's those mistakes that, that can be easily cut out
second event the shield carry nearly 200 kilos for distance what a grueling vet
just to hold that shield on the chest high enough that you've got a good solid grip hands locked
and be able to breathe at the same time while you're moving forward kind of falling back
tough, tough event it's going to take a strength athlete with a ton of muscular endurance and
a lot of wind courage and guts because as you get down the course turn around and come back
your body's just shutting down, you're gasping for air, your legs are burning
your grip may be going and if you drop to just wrist bicep hold, you're just about done
the shield car is very big you know it's it's a big chunky shield and
so I had it quite hard for my biceps if you have a higher up in the biceps then it's got further to
slip down so you can almost get more time slipping down in your arms so I had that quite a happen
initially I was leaning quite far back which put a lot of pain onto my hamstrings and glutes so
I knew I couldn't blast you know leaning so far back with the pain in my hamstrings so
I just kind of changed a little bit and lent forward so it took away the pain which was a
really good shout because in my head I was just gonna go until I couldn't go any more that's
that's what I do so I like these type of events where it's just pain and that's all it is for
me ¡um! I can, I can deal with pain what we go through the competition isn't real pain it's just
it's, it's ¡um! discomfort we're not comfortable but it doesn't last you know that pain passes
so it's not real pain you know five minutes we're ready to go again so if I can
give a hundred percent in everything I do that's all I can ask for myself so ¡um! yeah I was pretty
pretty chuffed with the the second place finishing the shield walk Lalas, Mario's Lalas he I've watched
him a few times before and shield walk and stuff like that and he's ¡yeah! one of the best in the
world so the way he set out he was running with that man he was just like a steam train
back did one round and back again and then it was funny though you can see he was going on going
and then his hamstrings probably started to seize up his lower back and his glutes
but ¡yeah! fair play man he, he, he smashed it he was very impressive in this event and
yeah he got the the one that finished first place
event three Axle Deadlift for reps, huge weight, tough lifters in this comp that axle is 360 kilos
and it's just brutal it's a big handle you're strapped in but you really have to keep the
hips down the head up shoulders back drive the feet through the floor and when fatigue kicks
in at about rep three, four and you know you're against time you gotta rest recover and try to get
six seven and eight for the win it's just a ball buster at this point Bish had dropped out the comp
so to be honest for first place on the deadlift i was looking for Hixxy to actually win it because
I know Heinla was struggling with a hamstring tear two or three weeks ago in Manchester and
I wasn't sure if he'd be kind of 100 from that if he was on form obviously I'd have Heinla
so for me this one it's just finished as as high up as I can on the table when you've got
the likes of Adam Bishop who's probably the best deadlift for reps in the world Rauno Heinla great
deadlifter Oleksii great deadlifter ¡um! there's some phenomenal deadlifters ¡um! and strength so
if I can keep up with them if I can get kind of five six reps you know I'm doing really well and
do myself justice so ¡um! yeah again just bulge to the wall on this one and see what I can get
m3 was the the axle deadlift for reps it's 360 kilos I wanted six reps since if I could have got
six reps that would have been really, really good points for me and I think that is there the way I
don't know what happened but the way I was pulling I was feeling a lot of ¡um! pain in my inner pec
¡um! I don't know it was cramp but like in the third rep when I pulled it it just started to
kind of spasm a wee bit so I could have maybe squeezed out another rep or maybe another two reps
but I knew the the reps I needed was six reps to get good points so for me finishing my three
reps or five reps would have been the same result I think it was fourth from bottom or
third from bottom in this one so I still got some points which is the the main thing for me
but with the guys around ¡uh! I'm smashing them out the beast and deadlifts
and then Hixxy as well I think I was in front by two and a half
no a point there was a point in front of a Graham after the actual deadlift going into the car walk
fourth event car walk nearly a thousand pounds one length 20 meters tough competition you know
you got to pick up and go if you're heavy you can lift heavy question is how fast can you move
so I've had four car walk 450 kilos of massive weight on your back on your shoulders and just
run to the 20 meter course as fast as you can a guide to watching that even tomorrow might
be Novikoff we see the Royal Albert Hall what he did with the frame carry and I think it's this is
kind of similar so he'll be the one to watch tomorrow I think in that event this is I really
enjoy these type of events now something I've worked really hard on I can do quite well again
I think I can get a top three finishing this ¡yeah! I'm looking to put in a really fast time and just
keep being consistent that's my goal for tomorrow is be consistent and win the events I can there's
a brutal event and this is why this competition is held in such high regard because the weights are
incredible the events bounce off each other within five minutes and then there's three events back to
back that are taxing the whole body ¡um! yeah event four will be even tougher the car walks always
a fun favorite you know it looks pretty crazy when we're picking up a car and running as fast
as we can so I'm confident these events now ¡um! whereas they might have been a weakness before me
before but if I can get my pick up right and I'm just power just go ¡um! I've got big legs strong
core so I can just power and just go as fast as I can I believe I can win these type of events and
Luke Stoltman quick in the hips big smile but he gets serious when it comes down to the car walk
Luke's yoke has improved a lot especially that car walk you know it's hard and he put in a really
good time but you know he's been doing really well on the yolks at worlds his training has
been going really well so I wasn't surprised to see him do that well you know he's a, he's a, he's
a very, very good joker now that put me in quite a commanding position going into the last event
I think I was in two and a half points in front of second from the front of Oleksii
¡uh! going into the last event so it was mine until it was basically going in the stones
event five the castle stones, so five stone quiker stay ones, is a nice position to be and for me and two and half points
a normal the best stone after years, always really focus and anyone else I just said myself again pure in the fast time
up down twice second times, most the times us work normal and so sinc
¡yeah!, so normal one for me today twenty seconds so ¡um!
I remember my coach Dan, don't do anything stupid, you are just lifting stones
so is not anythink stupid ¡um! so mains was ready, ready solid a dissapoint ¡um!
is not doubts in my head anything o like you can see myself some ex driving then Friday was
been in a podium first place up, that didn't change anything in the show ¡um! down change the fly, down change the Saturday
now was in a first place us all was in my mind so I was again just a man thru the stones
two, twice second round, when you are the strongest man, that's the only thing I had to do
it wasn't anything I have not done before so again is just a normal thing for me to do. So that's were my mind was and doing it with
you know Oleksii is well, we have agreed
Agreed things with a great respect for Oleksii
I believe he is one of the greatest athletes in the word and the sport also, for me it was an honour to go up against Oleksii and do so well
when points are on the line, maybe Luke Stoltman will step up and get a point there and do a fast time atlas stones loading
100 to 180 man against man ¡here we go! the castle stones the first direct arena in Leeds, listen for the wistle from Darren Sadler, it is on
on the way we go and is fire for the stone, both men, driving that stone up. Stoltman got the second and the third, eyes on
this is an intense match tremendous battle, both men so close, ending the stones is Novikov!
with the myth of their quickest Luke Stoltman eighteen behind and that is gonna be critical and masively dramatic finish
you know thankfully the the vision worked you know I managed to come second in the
stones Oleksi one stones and then that gave me ¡uh! first place in the podium Europe Strongest man
right then who is Europe's Strongest Man put up the scores ¡here we go!
¡Luke Stoltman! Europe Strongest man,
Ladies and Gentleman
is Europe Strongest man 2021
that's what makes it for me these Giant live shows we've got the best
crowds supporters fans whatever you want to call them in the world you know so to have
ten thousand plus people in the stadium was absolutely insane and for me to come out on top
it was ¡uh! a bit of a fairy tale you know to to to win my first Giants Live show Europe
Strongest Man in front of that crowd was just something special I'll be able to take that
for the rest of my life. I am Luke Stoltman Europe's Strongest Man