Strength athletics in Finland
Strength athletics in Finland refers to the participation of Finnish competitors and holding national strongman competitions.
History
Finland had enormous success on the international stage in the 1990s and early 2000s, having won 3 World's Strongest Man titles, and numerous major European and international competitions. In particular, Jouko Ahola was the 1997 World's Strongest Man & 1999 World's Strongest Man champion, Janne Virtanen won the 2000 World's Strongest Man, and Riku Kiri was a 3 time consecutive Europe's Strongest Man champion from 1995-1997. In recent years Finland has struggled in the major international scene, having not made the finals of WSM since 2002, and not having any major international victories.
National competitions
Finland's Strongest Man
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Finland |
| Established | 1987 |
| Format | Multi-event competition |
| Current champion | |
| Severi Allonen (2024) | |
Finland's Strongest Man is an annual Strongman competition held in Finland and featuring exclusively Finnish athletes, to determine who the strongest Finn of the year is. It was first held in 1987[1] and has produced 19 champions throughout its 33 consecutive years. It is one of the oldest strongman competitions in the world.
Mika Törrö holds the record for the most number of wins with five titles while Janne Virtanen and Jani Illikainen share four titles each. Ilkka Nummisto and Riku Kiri share three titles each as well.[1] Jón Páll Sigmarsson, Bill Kazmaier and Hjalti Arnason were guests in the competition but their placings were not included in the final results.[1]
Champions breakdown
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Arto Lyytikäinen | Markku Suonenvirta | Jari Leino & Kari Pötrönen |
| 1988 | Riku Kiri | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 1989 | Markku Suonenvirta | Ilkka Nummisto | (To be confirmed) |
| 1990 | Ilkka Nummisto | Markku Suonenvirta | (To be confirmed) |
| 1991 | Ilkka Nummisto | Markku Suonenvirta | (To be confirmed) |
| 1992 | Ilkka Nummisto | Jukka Laine | Marko Varalahti |
| 1993 | Riku Kiri | Marko Varalahti | Jarmo Ruotsalainen |
| 1994 | Riku Kiri | Harri Simonen | Jorma Ojanaho |
| 1995 | Marko Varalahti | Sami Heinonen | Jukka Laine |
| 1996 | Jorma Ojanaho | Jouko Ahola | Marko Varalahti |
| 1997 | Jouko Ahola | Sami Heinonen | Jorma Ojanaho |
| 1998 | Janne Virtanen | Matti Uppa | Jukka Laine |
| 1999 | Janne Virtanen | Sami Heinonen | Juha-Matti Räsänen |
| 2000 | Janne Virtanen | Sami Heinonen | Juha-Matti Räsänen |
| 2001 | Janne Virtanen | Juha-Matti Räsänen | Pasi Paavisto |
| 2002 | Juha-Matti Räsänen | Sami Heinonen | Harri Simonen |
| 2003 | Juha-Matti Räsänen | Esa Qvintus | Tomi Lotta |
| 2004 | Tomi Lotta | Juha-Matti Räsänen | Jani Illikainen |
| 2005 | Jani Illikainen | Matti Uppa | Juha-Pakka Aitala |
| 2006 | Jani Illikainen | Juha-Matti Räsänen | Esa Qvintus |
| 2007 | Jani Illikainen | Jani Kolehmainen | Janne Hartikainen |
| 2008 | Jani Illikainen | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2009 | Juha Matti Jarvi | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2010 | Pedro Karlsson | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2011[2] | Jarno Jokinen | Pedro Karlsson | (To be confirmed) |
| 2014[3] | Arto Niemi-Nikkola | Jarno Kirselä | Juha Jokinen |
| 2018 | Mika Törrö | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2019 | Mika Törrö | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2020 | Mika Törrö | (To be confirmed) | (To be confirmed) |
| 2021 | Mika Törrö | Henry Ollila | Severi Allonen |
| 2022 | Mika Törrö | Jarkko Mehtälä | Teemu Pohto |
| 2023 | Jarkko Mehtälä | Jesse Pynnönen | Mika Törrö |
| 2024 | Severi Allonen | Jesse Pynnönen | Mika Törrö |
Repeat champions
| Champion | Times & years |
|---|---|
| Mika Törrö | 5 (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022) |
| Janne Virtanen | 4 (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001) |
| Janni Illikainen | 4 (2005, 2006, 2007, 2009) |
| Riku Kiri | 3 (1988, 1993, 1994) |
| Ilkka Nummisto | 3 (1990, 1991, 1992) |
| Juha-Matti Räsänen | 2 (2002, 2003) |
Regional Competitions
Nordic Strongman Championships
Nordic Strongman Championships consists of athletes from Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark.[4]
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Svend Karlsen | Magnus Samuelsson | Juha-Matti Räsänen |
| 2012[4] | Johannes Årsjö | Lars Rorbakken | Mikkel Leicht |
| 2013 | Johannes Årsjö | Ole Martin Hansen | Juha-Matti Järvi |
- In 2005, the competition was held under IFSA in Kristiansand, and in 2012 and 2013 in Harstad, Norway under Giants Live.
- From 2014 onwards, the competition was promoted to global level, re-titled as the World's Strongest Viking and was held consecutively for 8 years under Strongman Champions League.
International Competitions
World's Strongest Viking
Finland hosts the summer edition of the World's Strongest Viking competition, with the participation of top athletes of the world.
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023[5] | Kane Francis | Ervin Toots | Sigfús Fossdal |
| 2025[6] | Adam Roszkowski | Kevin Hazeleger | Jesper Hansson |
Giants Live
Finland was also the venue for a couple of Giants Live grand prix competitions, named Giants Live Finland.
| Year | Champion | Runner-Up | 3rd Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Martin Wildauer | Vidas Blekaitis | Rauno Heinla |
| 2012 | Laurence Shahlaei | Johannes Årsjö | Lauri Nämi |
References
- ^ a b c "David Horne's World of Grip". Davidhorne-gripmaster.com. 2010-06-21. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ^ Finland’s Strongest Man, Woman: Jarno Jokinen, Kati Luoto Win
- ^ "Finland's Strongest Man: The Next Generation". Randall J. Strossen, IronMind Enterprises, Inc. 9 June 2014. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
- ^ a b "Nordic Strongman Championships: Viking Loses His Title!". Archived from the original on 2013-10-04. Retrieved 2012-06-21.
- ^ "2023 SCL World's Strongest Viking". strongmanarchives.com. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
- ^ "2025 SCL World's Strongest Viking". strongmanarchives.com. Retrieved 29 June 2025.