The World Deadlift Championships

The World Deadlift Championships is a (mostly) annual competition featuring strength athletes from all over the world, competing exclusively in the strongman deadlift. It was created by Giants Live and the championship focuses mainly on the maximum deadlift in pursuit of the deadlift world record, although in the 2017 edition, the event was changed to a 400 kg (882 lb) weight for the most repetitions in 60 seconds before reverting to a maximum weight format in 2019 after a one-year hiatus.

Champions edit

Year Champion Runner-Up Third Place Host City
2014   Benedikt Magnússon   Eddie Hall   Laurence Shahlaei
  Martin Wildauer
  Leeds, England
2015   Eddie Hall   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Rauno Heinla
  Jerry Pritchett
  Leeds, England
2016   Eddie Hall   Benedikt Magnússon
  Jerry Pritchett
  Leeds, England
2017   JF Caron
  Konstantine Janashia
  Benedikt Magnússon   Manchester, England
2019   Rauno Heinla
  Jerry Pritchett
  Rob Kearney
  Adam Bishop
  Nedzmin Ambeskovic
  Wembley, England
2021   Ivan Makarov 1   Pavlo Nakonechnyy
  Evan Singleton
  Adam Bishop
  Oleksii Novikov
  Gabriel Peña
  Nedžmin Ambešković
  Manchester, England
2022   Rauno Heinla   Graham Hicks
  Ivan Makarov 2
  Pavlo Nakonechnyy
  Mitchell Hooper
  Cardiff, Wales
2023
(Men)
  Graham Hicks   Rauno Heinla
  Ivan Makarov 2
  Evan Singleton
  Cardiff, Wales
2023
(Women)
  Lucy Underdown   Rebecca Roberts   Cardiff, Wales

1 While Makarov has declared for Russia, he competed for Ukraine at the 2021 World Deadlift Championships.
2 While Makarov has declared for Russia, he competed for Georgia at the 2022 and 2023 World Deadlift Championships.

Heaviest lifts edit

In history edit

# Weight Competitor Event location and name Bar/ standard World Record?
1 501 kg (1,105 lb)   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Reykjavík, Iceland
Standard/
single ply suit
Yes
2 500 kg (1,102 lb)   Eddie Hall   Leeds, United Kingdom
Standard/
multi ply suit
Yes
3 481 kg (1,060 lb)   Peiman Maheripour   Moscow, Russia
2021 WRPF World Championships
Standard/
multi ply suit
No
4 477.5 kg (1,053 lb)   Peiman Maheripour   Moscow, Russia
2021 WRPF World Championships
Standard/
multi ply suit
No
5 476 kg (1,049 lb)   Rauno Heinla   Cardiff, United Kingdom
Standard/
multi ply suit
Yes
(Over-40s only)
6 475 kg (1,047 lb)   Mitchell Hooper   Australia
Standard/
multi ply suit
No
  Ivan Makarov 1   Manchester, United Kingdom
Standard/
multi ply suit
No
8 474 kg (1,045 lb)   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Ohio, Columbus, United States
Elephant/
raw
Yes
(Elephant only)
9 472 kg (1,041 lb)   Eddie Hall   Botswana
Standard/
multi ply suit
No
10 472 kg (1,041 lb)   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Ohio, Columbus, United States
Elephant/
raw
Yes
(Elephant only)

At the championships edit

# Weight Competitor Year Bar Record Set
1 500 kg (1,102 lb)   Eddie Hall 2016 Standard World Record
2 476 kg (1,049 lb)   Rauno Heinla 2022 Standard Estonian Record, World Record (over-40s)
3 475 kg (1,047 lb)   Ivan Makarov 1 2021 Standard Ukrainian Record
4 470 kg (1,036 lb)   Graham Hicks 2023 Standard -
5 465 kg (1,025 lb)   Eddie Hall 2016 Standard World Record
  Benedikt Magnússon 2016 Standard World Record
  Jerry Pritchett 2016 Standard World Record
8 463 kg (1,021 lb)   Eddie Hall 2015 Standard World Record
9 461 kg (1,016 lb)   Benedikt Magnússon 2014 Standard World Record
10 455 kg (1,003 lb)   Rauno Heinla 2019 Standard Estonian Record
  Jerry Pritchett 2019 Standard -
  Rauno Heinla 2023 Standard -
  Ivan Makarov 2 2023 Standard Georgian Record
  Evan Singleton 2023 Standard -

Continental records edit

  • This list features lifts made with a standard bar.
Region Weight Athlete Nation Year set
Europe 501 kg (1,105 lb) Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Iceland 2020
Asia 481 kg (1,060 lb) Peiman Maheripour   Iran 2021
Oceania 475 kg (1,047 lb) Mitchell Hooper   Australia 2021
North, Central America and Caribbean 467.5 kg (1,031 lb) Dimitar Savatinov   United States 2023
Africa 455 kg (1,003 lb) Chris van der Linde   South Africa 2022
South America 402.5 kg (887 lb) Rafa Crestani   Brazil 2014

Note: Oceanian record was set while Hooper was representing Australia. Since 2022, Hooper has chosen to represent Canada. The record by an athlete who is still representing Oceania is 460 kg (1,014 lb) by Mathew Ragg of New Zealand.

Records on other bars and standards edit

Lift details Weight Athlete Nation Year set
Silver Dollar (Elevated 18" height) 580 kg (1,279 lb) Rauno Heinla   Estonia 2022
Hummer tyre (Elevated 15" height) 549 kg (1,210 lb) Oleksii Novikov   Ukraine 2022
Axle bar (Elevated 18" height) 499 kg (1,100 lb) Gabriel Peña   Mexico 2021
Elephant bar (Standard 9" height) 474 kg (1,045 lb) Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson   Iceland 2019
Power bar - Conventional (Standard 9" height) 460.4 kg (1,015 lb) Benedikt Magnússon   Iceland 2011
Power bar - Sumo (Standard 9" height) 3 487.5 kg (1,075 lb) Danny Grigsby   United States 2022

3 This lift has been included as a reference - sumo deadlifts are classified as illegal in strongman competitions.

Individual results edit

2014 edit

The 2014 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England on 9 August 2014 during the 2014 Europe's Strongest Man. Magnússon set a new world record with a lift of 461 kg (1,016 lb).[1]

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Benedikt Magnússon 461 kg (1,016 lb)
2   Eddie Hall 446 kg (983 lb)
3   Martin Wildauer 435 kg (959 lb)
  Laurence Shahlaei
5   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson 420 kg (926 lb)
  Mark Felix
  Johannes Årsjö
8   Graham Hicks 400 kg (882 lb)
  Vytautas Lalas
  Krzysztof Radzikowski
  Andy Bolton
12   Mikhail Koklyaev No lift
X   Brian Shaw Withdrew

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
World Benedikt Magnússon 461 kg (1,016 lb)
  Icelandic Benedikt Magnússon 461 kg (1,016 lb)
  English Eddie Hall 446 kg (983 lb)
  Austrian Martin Wildauer 435 kg (959 lb)
  Swedish Johannes Årsjö 420 kg (926 lb)

2015 edit

The 2015 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England on July 11, 2015. Hall set a new world record with a lift of 463 kg (1,021 lb).[2]

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Eddie Hall 463 kg (1,021 lb)
2   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson 450 kg (992 lb)
3   Rauno Heinla 435 kg (959 lb)
  Jerry Pritchett
5   Andy Bolton 430 kg (948 lb)
6   Mark Felix 400 kg (882 lb)
  Krzysztof Radzikowski
  Terry Hollands
  Dainis Zageris
  Matjaz Belsak
11   Dimitar Savatinov 360 kg (794 lb)
12   Luke Stoltman No lift

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
World Eddie Hall 463 kg (1,021 lb)
  English Eddie Hall 463 kg (1,021 lb)
  Estonian Rauno Heinla 435 kg (959 lb)
  Slovenian Matjaz Belsak 400 kg (882 lb)

2016 edit

The 2016 World Deadlift Championships were held at the 2016 Europe's Strongest Man event at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, England. Hall set a new world record, becoming the first person in history to deadlift 500 kg (1,102 lb).[3]

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Eddie Hall 500 kg (1,102 lb)
2   Benedikt Magnússon 465 kg (1,025 lb)
  Jerry Pritchett
4   Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson 440 kg (970 lb)
5   Laurence Shahlaei 420 kg (926 lb)
  Terry Hollands
  Mark Felix
  Marius Lalas
9   Johannes Årsjö 400 kg (882 lb)
  Dimitar Savatinov
  Adam Bishop
12   Mateusz Kieliszkowski No lift
  Stefan Solvi Petursson

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
World Eddie Hall 500 kg (1,102 lb)
  English Eddie Hall 500 kg (1,102 lb)
  Icelandic Benedikt Magnússon 465 kg (1,025 lb)
  American Jerry Pritchett 465 kg (1,025 lb)

2017 edit

The 2017 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Giants Live Finals event in Manchester, England. In this edition, the championships were changed to a deadlift for the most repetitions in 60 seconds format with a fixed weight of 400 kg (882 lb) .[4]

Results edit

# Name Repetitions
1   JF Caron 5
  Konstantine Janashia
3   Benedikt Magnússon 3
4   Žydrūnas Savickas 2
5   Mikhail Shivlyakov 1
6   Laurence Shahlaei 0
  Nick Best
  Terry Hollands
  Cheick "Iron Biby" Sanou

2019 edit

The 2019 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Wembley Arena in Wembley, England, as the opening event for Giants Live Wembley. In this edition, the championships returned to the max weight deadlift format.[5]

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Rauno Heinla 455 kg (1,003 lb)
  Jerry Pritchett
3   Rob Kearney 440 kg (970 lb)
  Adam Bishop
  Nedžmin Ambešković
6   Martins Licis 420 kg (926 lb)
  Mikhail Shivlyakov
  Mark Felix
9   Mateusz Kieliszkowski 400 kg (882 lb)
  Tom Stoltman
11   Luke Stoltman No lift

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
  Estonian Rauno Heinla 455 kg (1,003 lb)
  Bosnian Nedžmin Ambešković 440 kg (970 lb)

2021 edit

The 2021 World Deadlift Championships were held at the AO Arena in Manchester, England, as the opening event for Giants Live World Open.

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Ivan Makarov 1 475 kg (1,047 lb)
2   Pavlo Nakonechnyy 453.5 kg (1,000 lb)
  Evan Singleton
  Adam Bishop
  Oleksii Novikov
  Gabriel Peña
  Nedžmin Ambešković
8   Mikhail Shivlyakov 425 kg (937 lb)
  Rauno Heinla
  Gavin Bilton
  Andy Black

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
  Ukrainian Ivan Makarov 475 kg (1,047 lb)
  Mexican Gabriel Peña 453.5 kg (1,000 lb)
  Bosnian Nedžmin Ambešković 453.5 kg (1,000 lb)
  Welsh Gavin Bilton 425 kg (937 lb)

2022 edit

The 2022 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Cardiff International Arena in Cardiff, Wales, as the opening event for Giants Live World Open. During this competition, as a result of another nationality change, Ivan Makarov became the first strongman to hold the national deadlift record for three different countries, having set the new Georgian record at 453.5 kg. Makarov, at the time of the championships also held the Ukrainian (475 kg - set 2021) and the Russian records (470 kg - set 2019).

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Rauno Heinla 476 kg (1,049 lb)
2   Graham Hicks 453.5 kg (1,000 lb)
  Mitchell Hooper
  Ivan Makarov 2
  Pavlo Nakonechnyy
6   Gavin Bilton 425.5 kg (938 lb)
  Oleksii Novikov
  Evan Singleton
9   Andy Black 400 kg (882 lb)
  Shane Flowers
  Pa O'Dwyer

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
World (over-40s) Rauno Heinla 476 kg (1,049 lb)
  Estonian Rauno Heinla 476 kg (1,049 lb)
  Georgian Ivan Makarov 453.5 kg (1,000 lb)
  Welsh Gavin Bilton 425.5 kg (938 lb)

2023 edit

The 2023 World Deadlift Championships were held at the Cardiff International Arena in Cardiff, Wales, as the opening event for Giants Live World Open. This was the first championships to have female competitors, with Lucy Underdown setting a new undisputed world record of 318 kg (701 lb).

Results edit

# Name Weight
1   Graham Hicks 470 kg (1,036 lb)
2   Rauno Heinla 455 kg (1,003 lb)
  Ivan Makarov 2
  Evan Singleton
5   Austin Andrade 430 kg (948 lb)
  Gavin Bilton
  Jamal Browner
  Shane Flowers
9   Evans Nana 400 kg (882 lb)
  Rob Kearney
  Oleksii Novikov
  Pa O'Dwyer
  Luke Stoltman
14 (1F)   Lucy Underdown 317.5 kg (700 lb)
15 (2F)   Rebecca Roberts 280 kg (617 lb)
16   Oskar Ziółkowski No Lift

Records edit

Nation Name Weight
  Georgian Ivan Makarov 455 kg (1,003 lb)
  Welsh Gavin Bilton 430 kg (948 lb)
  Ghanaian Evans Nana 400 kg (882 lb)
World (women) Lucy Underdown 318 kg (701 lb)
  English (women) Lucy Underdown 318 kg (701 lb)
  Welsh (women) Rebecca Roberts 280 kg (617 lb)

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Europe's Strongest Man 2014". www.strongman.org. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  2. ^ "World Deadlift Championships 2015". www.strongman.org. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  3. ^ "See the results for the Europe's Strongest Man + World Deadlift Championships". www.floelite.com. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  4. ^ "2017 World Deadlift Championship Results". www.startingstrongman.com. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  5. ^ "Giants Live Wembley 2019 – full results and show round up". www.giants-live.com. Retrieved 2 August 2020.

External links edit