Strength And Conditioning, Weightlifting
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2024 Arnold Classic Wrap-Up: Mitchell Hooper and Angelica Jardine Reign Supreme
Introduction to the Arnold Classic Experience
Hey, this is Joe Kenn, Senior Contributor for Strength and Conditioning at Sports Ed TV, with a wrap-up of the 2024 Arnold Classic. If you are a fan of strongmen and strongwomen competitions, this is an event that I promise you want to see live and in person. So, with that being said, I would start looking to make a trip to Columbus, Ohio, in 2025 for the Arnold Classic, and you never know, you might run into Arnold himself.
Celebrating the Champions
Let's start off by congratulating the winners. On the men’s side, Mitchell Hooper took home a prize of $80,000. This was Mitch’s second consecutive Arnold Classic Championship. And on the women’s side, Angelica Jardine won her first major event and brought home $25,000. Every individual who participates in this event leaves with some percentage of the overall purse. The men’s total purse was $182,000, and the women’s purse was $75,000.
Highlighting Exceptional Strength
Obviously, anybody who’s in attendance and is competing live at this event is super, super strong. But one of the most impressive things I continue to see at these events that showcase both men and women are the women. They are extremely impressive in what they are doing in the world of strength. For example, 12 women competitors, every single one of them deadlifted over 500 pounds on the Elephant Bar deadlift with several going over 600 pounds. Lucy Underdown won the event with a 302 KG/666 LBS deadlift. Lucy had previously deadlifted over 700 in competition!
On the men’s side, there were several pulls over 900 (6 to be exact), but the return of the Mountain, Hafthor Bjornsson, with an impressive 1,000-plus pound deadlift to win that event. Thor does have the all-time world record on this lift, but no one was close. He only took two attempts. Kudos to Bobby Thompson, who only took his opener at 960 pounds for placing second.
Event Overview and Major Highlights
Generally, the Arnold Classic is a five-event competition with two big events on day one, Friday afternoon, and then three events on day two. The two staple events that are always going to be at the Arnold are a max deadlift, which is now the Elephant Bar Deadlift (It was the Hummer Tire Deadlift), and the huge timber frame carry. The frame weighs an extremely ungodly amount of weight (possibly 400kg+), and you’re running up a ramp to do so.
Saturday started off with the Webster Stones, Jack Stones (220/207 lbs. each) for women to walk for max distance, an Axle Clean and Press for reps for the men, and a Max Dumbbell Press for the women, and the competition concluded with a natural stone medley. We are seeing more stone carried in strongman competitions in the last couple of years. Stone lifting and stone carrying are huge overseas, and they are true tests of strength. With these types of stone carries, not only is the stone an odd object, but each implement weighs differently. For example, for the Dannie Stones, one weighs over 414 pounds while the other weighs approximately 319 pounds. So, crazy grip and forearm strength, as well as stability through the lats and shoulders, are needed.
The overhead press was an axle clean-in the press for reps at 400 pounds for the men—tremendous showing by Mitch and Tom Stoltman. On the women's side, it was a circus dumbbell. Congrats to my favorite Sam Belliveau, who set a new world record at 185 lbs. for two reps.
Conclusion and Call to Action
The final event was a stone medley, various types of natural stones, very, very challenging. The king of the natural stones is Mateusz Kieliszkowski from Poland, and he dominated on the men’s side. Angelica Jardine smashed it on the Women’s side.
Here is a simple wrap-up: this is the extreme of the extreme, a super strong event with high-level competitors, the top of the nation and across the world, being invited. If you are a fan of strongmen and strongwomen, this is an event that I definitely think you should see. This is Joe Kenn for Sports EdTV. Until next time, Words Win.
