Life
Pavlo Kordiayaka has established himself as one of the sport’s top-tier competitors after twice reaching the World’s Strongest Man final and winning Europe’s Strongest Man in 2023. At an impressive 6’ 5” (1.95m) tall and a “mere” 133kg (293lb) in bodyweight, he is one of the more athletically built men on the strongman circuit. With superb overhead strength and excellent mobility, Pavlo firmly believes that a strongman doesn’t need to weigh 200kg or deadlift 500kg to win at the highest level.
Prior to getting involved in strongman, Pavlo had taken part in many different sports, including football, acrobatics, dancing, boxing, wrestling and even mixed martial arts. Coming from Lviv, in the Ukraine, he is good friends with 2020 World’s Strongest Man, and fellow Ukrainian, Oleksii Novikov. He was introduced to the sport of strongman by another former Ukrainian World’s Strongest Man, Vasyl Virustyuk, who topped the podium in 2004.
Career
Having started his strongman journey at just 18-years of age, Pavlo began his competitive career contesting Ukraine’s Strongest Man, making his debut in 2017, where he placed 5th. The following year he improved his placing drastically, taking 2nd place behind Oleksii Novikov by 5.5 points.
In 2019 Kordiyaka began competing internationally, taking part in the Arnold Amateur Strongman World Championships in Columbus, Ohio, as well as the Marijampolé International in Lithuania, where he finished 3rd.
That same year Pavlo again finished 2nd at Ukraine’s Strongest Man, narrowing the gap to Novikov to just 3 points. In 2020 he won his first national title, defeating his friend, Novikov, by 4 points. However, he was unable to defend his title in 2021 and was forced to withdraw from the contest due to injury. That did not prevent him from finishing 2nd at Middle East’s Strongest Man, in Dubai, and winning the Official Strongman Games in Daytona Beach, defeating Spenser Remick by the narrowest of margins.
In 2022 he was able to finish 4th at his debut at Giants Live’s Europe’s Strongest Man and secured his place at World’s where he placed 3rd in his heat, just missing out on a final place after an epic Stone-Off with Canada’s Maxime Boudreault. He consoled himself with a victory at the Marijampolė International in Lithuania, defeating Mantas Lalas.
Coming off the back of that win, Pavlo just missed the podium at the World Strongman Championships, but six months later was able to secure his first Giants Live victory by winning Europe’s Strongest Man in Leeds. Within a few weeks he won his heat at World’s, beating Tom Stoltman, and was then able to place 6th in the final.
In 2024, Pavlo was able, once again, to qualify for the World’s Strongest Man final, eventually placing 8th. He lost his European title to Luke Stoltman, finishing 8Th at ESM, but improved his placing to make the podium at the Strongman Classic, in London, taking 3rd overall.
Best Title
At the 2023 Europe’s Strongest Man contest, at Leeds’ First Direct Arena, Kordiyaka won Europe’s premier title, becoming the continent’s strongest man. His 4-point victory over his compatriot Oleksii Novikov came as a surprise to some, but his performance was a dominant one. Winning the opening event; the Log Ladder, he never looked back and took further event wins in the Load & Push and the Conan’s Wheel, where he established a new world record of 1009°.
Competition Results
World’s Strongest Man: 2025 – 8th place, 2024 – 8th place, 2023 – 6th place, 2022 – 3rd in heat
Giants Live
Europe’s Strongest Man: 2025 – 5th place, 2024 – 9th place, 2023 – Winner, 2022 – 4th place
Strongman Classic: 2025 – 11th place, 2024 – 3rd place, 2023 – 8th place
World Tour Finals: 2023 – 4th place, 2022 – 5th place, 2024 – 9th place
Rogue Invitational: 2024 – 9th place
Official Strongman Games: Winner 2021
Ukraine’s Strongest Man: 2020 – Winner, 2019 & 2018 – Runner-up, 2021 – 8th place
Shaw Classic: 2024 – 15th place
Magnús Ver Magnússon Classic: 2023 – 5th place
Strongman Champions League: 2023 Cyprus – winner
2023 World Strongman Championships: 3rd place
2021 Savickas Classic: Runner-up
Marijampolė International: 2022 – Winner, 2021 – Runner-up, 2021 & 2019 – 3rd place
Middle East’s Strongest Man: Runner-up, 2021
Best Lifts
Competition Lifts
Deadlift: 363kg/800lb
Log lift: 200kg/441lb
Axle Press 200kg/441lb
Circus Dumbbell: 132kg/291lb
Conan’s Wheel: 1009° (World Record)
Present Day
Kordiyaka’s most recent contest results have seen him place lower down the order than usual and he finished the 2024 season with 15th at the Shaw Classic and 9th place results at both the World Tour Finals and the Rogue Invitational. Pavlo is comparatively weak in the Deadlift, and this can cost him valuable points, though it’s a discipline he has worked hard to improve. With the right events, Pavlo is still capable of beating anyone.
Media
Pavlo can be found on Instagram: @pavlo_kordiyaka, where his 35k followers keep abreast of his training and competitive activities. His YouTube channel @pavlokordiyaka includes plenty of the same kind of content and he features in an interview by Laurence Shahlaei on his channel: Big Loz Official, where he talks about his preparations for World’s Strongest Man in difficult circumstances.
Channel 5 have televised the 2024 season during the Christmas period, including the World’s Strongest Man heats and final, and the Giants Live World’s Strongest Man Arena Tour events, including Kordiyaka’s performance at Europe’s Strongest Man and at the World Tour Finals. These competitions are available to view on My5.
