The 5 Oldest Strongman
The normal trajectory for any professional athlete usually reaches the end in the mid 30s. This does not apply for Strongman professionals, with many competing well into their later years.
There are studies of muscle loss when you age, especially after 30. It is said you can lose between 3-5% of muscle mass every decade even if you are active! But time and time again, most strongman have proven that they are able to retain their strength and mass despite their age, through rigorous training and insane calorie dense diets.
There are a few strongman who are still competing at the top level at their late age. Here is our list of the oldest strongman in the sport.
Odd Haugen
If you don’t know who this man is, then you are missing out on one of the legends of strength sports. Odd Haugen is a veteran of the sport and holds numerous records. On his Youtube channel, he is still showing the whole world how much strength he still has despite being at the age of 72!
He makes lifting look easy. In one of Martins Licis videos, you can see him deadlifting 205kgs for reps in a conventional stance. Note that he only had a belt on and no straps. All this while he was 70 years old! It is hard enough for anyone at a younger age, but he makes it look easy.
Odd Haugen has incredible grip strength and regularly posts on his Instagram. Nowadays he trains with Martin Licis in his Wreck-It Gym in El Segundo, California.
Nick Best
Nick Best is well known on the strongman circuit for being a veteran lifter. He is an active pioneer in the sport, known for being on Youtube as part of the group with Brian Shaw, Eddie Hall and Robert Obsert in HISTORY’S “The Strongest Man In History”. Best’s whole family appeared on TLC, dubbed as the strongest family in the world.
Best started in powerlifting, winning the USAPL National Powerlifting Championships in 1996 and 1997 in the 125kg class. He has qualified for the World’s Strongest Man every year since 2010, with his best positioning coming in 6th in 2010. At the age of 52, he participated in the 2020 World’s Strongest Man.
Nick Best is known for his lifting spirit, pushing his body to the limits. A gentleman of the sport, he displays great sportsmanship by encouraging his competitors to do better in every event.
Mark Felix
Mark Felix started strongman late, only becoming interested in competing professionally when he turned 37 in 2003. He has qualified for every World’s Strongest Man tournament since 2007. At the age of 55, he qualified for the 2021 World’s Strongest Man, making him one of the oldest competitors in the sport!
Felix has an incredible grip that has won him numerous international contests. One of his greatest feats of strength was his world record Hercules Hold in the Giants 2019 competition. This was when he was 52!
His best positions in the World’s Strongest Man came in 2007 and 2015, coming in 7th and 8th respectively. He saw more podium success in Britain’s Strongest Man, coming in 2nd place four times and 3rd place twice.
Mark Felix is a true veteran of the sport, and goes to show you that age doesn’t matter when it comes to strongman!
Žydrūnas Savickas
Žydrūnas Savickas, known as Big Z, is a legend in the sport winning the World’s Strongest Man 4 times and coming runner up 6 times. His last competition was back in 2018 when he was 42 years old.
Big Z doesn’t need an introduction of just how much impact he had on the sport, as his achievements speak for themselves. He showed that no matter what your age, you can still compete at the highest level. To this day he still competing, winning Lithuania’s Strongest Man in 2020 at the age of 44. Nowadays he is sporting a slimmer physique but still looks incredible.
Ilkka Nummisto
An interesting one. Ilkka Nummisto did actually not start out in strongman, he was a Finnish sprint canoer, competing in four Summer Olympics! He started out in strongman once his Olympic career concluded. Nummisto greatest performance in the World’s Strongest Man competition was lifting all the five McGlashen Stones in 1986.
Nummisto won Finland’s Strongest Man between 1990 and 1992. He competed at the World’s Strongest Man between 1986 and 1992. Incredibly, he was 48 when he was competing in 1992.
Sadly Nummisto passed in 2019. He will forever show everyone it is never too late to start strongman!
