5 of the Most Famous Old-Timey Strongmen
Bodybuilding is as big, if not bigger, than ever, with YouTube screaming at you, whether you want it to or not, about the correct macros for body recomposition. I’ll admit, the guy in the thumbnail is pretty ripped, and I’m sure he could squat a considerable sum, but what’s missing in this culture of pushing your body to its physical limit, for me at least, is a little pomp and circumstance. Lifting stuff you found in a dockside junkyard, not competition-grade barbells. Saying things like “up we go” and “hup hup” when performing your feats. Letting cars drive over your chest, for strength. Where are the singlets with one shoulder strap?
I’d be much happier getting served Instagram Reels of these classic famous, truck-hauling beefhorses…
Louis Cyr
Now this is who I’m talking about. He’s a dictionary definition of an absolute unit. Guy’s hurling around weights the size of most men’s wives and then eating a steakhouse out of business, not going home to crush a Tupperware of salmon and brown rice in his eating window.
You know that thing from cartoons where a guy lifts a weight simply labeled “1 ton”? Louis Cyr almost did that in real life, once lifting 1,897 pounds. Allowed on all fours and using his back, he got a total of 4,327 pounds off the ground. Even into his 40s, he was best not fucked with. A 26-year-old strongman on the rise named Hector Decarie claimed himself stronger, and the 42-year-old Cyr lifted himself off his couch to successfully defend his title, including showing that his back was still capable of lifting a more than respectable 2,870 pounds.
Apollon
Look at that husky body-fat percentage! That lack of muscle definition! The shamefully small amount of visible veins!
Though he might not be nearly as Instagram-ready, most bodybuilders would avoid a direct comparison when it comes to numbers with Louis Uni, known as Apollon. After all, you wouldn’t want to badmouth him unless you were prepared to conquer the signature weightlifting feat still named for him: lifting The Apollon Wheels. Which are what they sound like, except probably heavier than you’re imagining: They were a pair of railroad car wheels, connected by a 2-inch thick axle, the whole thing weighing 366 pounds. Apollon reportedly lifted them with a clean-and-jerk twice a day.
Thomas Topham
Another incredibly strong man who doesn’t have any need to look so outwardly remarkable. In terms of raw lifting ability, though, all you need to do is read the caption to the above illustration and see “1,836 pounds” mentioned to understand the kind of absolute legend we’re dealing with here. Thomas Topham’s history in performative heave-ho wasn’t even in search of global fame either: He performed strongman stunts at his own pub simply to entertain and attract potential customers.
Of course, at a certain point, people stopped caring how well he could pull a pint, and were there more to watch him bite down on an 100-pound table and lift it by his teeth.
Eugene Sandow
Okay, I’ll admit that this fella is a certified hunk who’s more than camera-ready. He’d have a YouTube channel that would produce a small country’s monthly GDP, and be an immediate subscription for even the casual bodybuilder. But despite this — and being considered “The Father of Modern Bodybuilding” — it’s impossible to deny the old-timey-ness to his physique — as imposing as it may be.
Angus MacAskill
Angus MacAskill was a literal Scottish giant and soldier who was outlandishly strong. See that picture above? The guy on the right is 6-foot-5. He just doesn’t look it next to the 7-foot-9, 425-pound MacAskill. That wasn’t deadweight, either, with MacAskill reportedly being able to lift a 2,800 pound ship’s anchor, or haul a full-grown horse over a 4-foot-fence all by his lonesome. As happens when you do things like that, MacAskill got a call from P.T. Barnum and toured the world as a circus performer.
Rest well in your gigantic coffin, Angus MacAskill — an incredibly strong man who was also, according to his contemporaries, an all-around solid dude.
