The 2022 Arnold Strongman Classic (ASC) UK will take place on Sept. 24, 2022, in Marston Green, England. It is a segment of the overall Arnold Sports Festival UK, which takes place over the course of the entire weekend.
The one-day contest will see 14 different top-notch strongmen tackle respective events such as the Super Yoke and the traditional closing Atlas stones. Here’s the confirmed roster of competitors for the 2022 ASC:
2022 Arnold Strongman Classic UK Roster
- Rauno Heinla (Estonia)
- Gavin Bilton (United Kingdom)
- Mitchell Hooper (Canada)
- Zake Muluzi (United Kingdom)
- Žydrūnas Savickas (Lithuania)
- Oleksii Novikov (Ukraine)
- Ryan Bennett (United Kingdom)
- Konstantine Janashia (Georgia)
- Pa O’Dwyer (Ireland)
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen (Greenland)
- Ben Williams (United Kingdom)
- Ervin Toots (Estonia)
- Paul Smith (United Kingdom)
- Louis Jack (United Kingdom)
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Notably, the defending champion of the Arnold Strongman Classic UK, Evan Singleton, will not return to defend his title this year. Singleton toppled Oleksii Novikov (second place) and Trey Mitchell (third place) to win the inaugural edition in 2021.
Here’s an overview of the competitive events in Marston Green.
Super Yoke
Each competitor will have to move a 500-kilogram (1,102.3-pound) yoke during this event as fast as they can. Athletes like Novikov and Hooper might be the favorites for this portion due to their unique combination of agility and strength. In particular, Hooper seemed to thrive with speed events during a 2022 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) early-round blitz.
Deadlift
The 2022 ASC’s Deadlift event is for reps. Athletes will attempt to successfully lock out a 370-kilogram (815.7-pound) deadlift as many times as they can. While it’s different from a traditional deadlift with a barbell, Novikov could again be one of the favorites after pulling 15 reps of a Car Deadlift during the 2022 WSM.
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Bag Over Bar
The Bag Over Bar event will be predicated on speed and power. The athletes that can move their respective implements the fastest will be in a far more favorable position.
Dumbbell Press
During the Dumbbell Press, the competitors will attempt to complete a 100-kilogram (220.5-pound) dumbbell press. With a dumbbell press of 153.2 kilograms (337.8 pounds) from an October 2021 training session, Novikov is once more in a quality spot. That mark would have surpassed Mateusz Kieliszkowski’s official record by 3.2 kilograms (7.1 pounds) if it occurred during a sanctioned competition.
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Arnold Stone Carry
As one of the closing events of the 2022 ASC, the Arnold Stone Carry might be about the heavier athletes utilizing their power and who will still have energy after a grueling contest. Some of those larger competitors like Žydrūnas Savickas, for example, could elect to concede a degree of points on agility-related events so they can perform better during the carry.
Atlas Stones
A strongman tradition continues to push ahead. The Atlas Stones, once more, close a strongman competition. Every athlete’s Atlas Stone run will be determined by their cumulative score from the previous five events. Those scores will have more weight and might determine who wins the final segment. With their agile builds, Hooper and Novikov could be the favorites here, but that will only be clear once most of the dust settles on the 2022 ASC.
Featured image: @mitchellhooper on Instagram
