Now all the fun and games of Game of Thrones is over it’s back to the serious business.
Hafthor Bjornsson might play The Mountain in the hit HBO show but he made his name being a seriously strong bastard.
He already has two Europe’s Strongest Man titles but so far a World’s Strongest Man crown has eluded him, finishing 3rd and 2nd in the past two years.
The 6ft 9in Icelandic monster reckons 2016 could be the year he conquers the world, and he’s training like an absolute machine to make it happen.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIIdtD-gljQ/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
But he’s going to have to bring his A game to get past reigning champion Brian Shaw as well as Britain’s Eddie Hall after he pulled a world record 500kg deadlift.
He was recently beaten by Swindon strongman Laurence Shahlaei who stopped him from winning his third straight European title.
Now he is deep in training to take on the strongest men on the planet at WSM 2016 over in Botswana, which starts August 12.
The group stages will see Thor pitted against the likes of British strongman Terry Holland in five events including the loading race, Fingal’s finger, deadlift, keg toss and Atlas stones.
The 400lb Icelander is currently on a strength training camp in Thailand with Australian strength coach Sebastian Oreb while he shoots the film Kickboxer: Retaliation.
Deadlifting has been a cornerstone of his WSM strength programme, which will obviously help him in the deadlift round, but will be essential in lifting the heavy pivoting logs in Fingal’s finger.
He worked his way up to a 380kg weight for two reps, but he’s going to have work hard to outdo Britain’s world record deadlifter Eddie Hall.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIsUSLpAPUA/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
One event that Thor excels in is the keg toss. The former basketballer is an incredible power athlete who broke the world record just last year, throwing the 33lb keg over a height of 24ft 6ins.
But he is still training like a madman to ensure nobody gets near him at the event, working on his explosive power and kettlebell throws.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIITMc3g4z5/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
It almost seems like there’s a personal battle between Thor and Stoke-on-Trent powerhouse Hall, who posted this video just days ago with 30kg kettlebells.
But not to be outdone by the Brit, Thor went for the spectacular in training, getting some serious height with these ‘bells.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BItFe4oA7tg/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
The Atlas stones is one of Thor’s strongest events. The man mountain claimed the King of the Stones title emphatically at Europe’s Strongest Man in 2014, being the only man to complete all five stones, including the final 200kg boulder.
He’s been working on his heavy squatting, which translates over well to getting the stones out of ‘the hole’ and up onto the platforms.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BIhnxrCA6Ef/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
But nothing beats the real thing for getting to grips (literally) with hulking the awkward, spherical weights off the deck. The 27-year-old has been hitting some serious stones work ahead of the WSM finals. Here’s the big man casually hitting the 175kg stone for three reps…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BItNK-LAiLX/?taken-by=thorbjornsson
