Feats of strength on display during inaugural Manitoba Classic Strongman Competition

Feats of strength were put on display at a Winnipeg gym Sunday.

Challengers put their bodies to the test as they duked it out for the first annual Brickhouse Gym’s Manitoba Classic Strongman Competition.

“It hasn’t really been done consistently in Manitoba for quite some time,” said Paul Taylor, owner of Brickhouse Gym. “We wanted to put something together that the athletes could bank on yearly, something for them to train for, something to help grow the sport, something to help enrich the community, and keep Winnipeggers entertained.”

But don’t let the name fool you. Nearly half of the 20 competitors were women.

“I think that’s awesome. At the end of the day women are strong and they want people to know about it, so they’re coming out and showing what’s up.”

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Participants flexed their pipes to get through events like the “arm over arm truck pull”, “pressing medley”, and “car deadlift.”

There were five drills in total en route to the championships.

The inaugural event also featured the world’s strongest man, Mark Henry as the event’s MC. Henry also held a seminar Saturday to talk about the sport.

“When you hear from him, you’re hearing from someone who has been to the top of the mountain, in so many different sports. So no matter what kind of background you have athletically, there’s a lot that can be learned from listening to him.”

The two time Olympian and WWE hall of famer holds a number of power-lifting records in the US.

Brickhouse Gym plans to make this an annual event.