Fantastic Fojtů dominates at The Classic

With not an empty seat to be found in one of the world’s most iconic auditoriums, the Czech strongman produced a dominant display to take a 6-point victory over a field that included three World’s Strongest Man winners and no less than seven of this year’s WSM finalists. World records tumbled in what was a truly thrilling strength spectacle!

Claiming event wins in the first two events he steadily built his lead, and with no apparent weaknesses in his arsenal, he offered slim hope to the chasing pack. His evening began with a stunning win in the Circus Press Medley, in which he tore through the five massive circus barbells and dumbbells as if they were training weights. His time was some 9-seconds quicker than Pavlo Kordiyaka, who was the only other man to complete all the implements.

Coming into event two, the Webster Stones, as the current world record holder and with the luxury of going last, he was able to comfortably eclipse the distances of his competitors to take full points with three events to go. Equal third in the Axel Deadlift did little to dent his lead and as the other competitor scrapped it out for the remaining podium places, strong results in the Conan’s Wheel and Atlas Stones saw him maintain his advantage and take his first Strongman Classic win.

Even consecutive world records from England’s Paddy Haynes could not derail the Czech champion who claimed Europe’s Strongest Man back in April and placed 5^th at World’s soon after. With such a strong field, Fojtů confessed in his post-victory interview that he had only been aiming to challenge for the podium but had not expected to take the victory. After this stunning performance few will have any doubts as to his winning capabilities in any contest he enters!

The Dark Horse, Haynes, enjoyed stirring crowd support as he mounted an incredible comeback after disappointing finishes in the two opening events. Things really got moving for the Oxfordshire farmer when he equalled Rauno Heinla’s 9-rep world record in the 360kg Axle Deadlift. It was a feat shortly equalled by 2025 World’s Strongest Man Rauno Nel. The Rhino was also trying to recoup points after a disastrous showing in the Press Medley in which he was denied two down signals by the referee on the second dumbbell. Both Nel and Haynes now share the record with Heinla.

In the penultimate event it was Haynes who would take a second event win, and this time take sole possession of the world record in the Conan’s Wheel after shattering Pavlo Kordiyaka’s 1035° mark. Achieving 1,106°, he then had to wait to see if Nel could do better, but as the South African faltered at just over two revolutions, Haynes was confirmed the winner and continued his ascent up the leader board. Having been placed a lowly 8^th after two events, he was able to take second place overall by virtue of a scintillating Castle Stones run that would give him three event wins in a row!

Haynes’ s turnaround created exciting shifts in the leaderboard as he moved through the field. As he and Nel ascended the ranks, Ukraine’s Pavlo Kordiyaka, who had been in second place for much of the contest, was pushed out of the podium places and into 4^th. In what was an intriguing finale to the contest, the South African took the bronze medal position with an identical points total to Haynes, losing out by virtue of a slower finish in the Castle Stones. It was ultimately a disappointing evening for Nel who having performed to such a high standard at World’s would have been hoping for victory. After an unfortunate start, however, he certainly showed the London crowd why he is one of the sports most exciting and talented athletes!

Nel’s great rival, Mitchell Hopper – the defending and two-time WSM winner was forced to withdraw in the third event. The Moose had started promisingly with 5^th in the Press Medley and =3^rd in the Webster Stones but was unable to budge the Axle Deadlift from the floor and took the decision to step back.

Defending Strongman Classic champion, Even Singleton, had also made a solid start with 3^rd in the Press and 5^th in the Stone Walk but was struggling with the heat and unable to recover in what is always a punishingly fast-paced contest. He too succumbed in the Axle Deadlift and was forced to sit it out on the sidelines with Hooper.

Latvia’s Martins Licis made his return to the Giants Live stage for the first time since 2019, when he had competed at Wembley. The former WSM winner had been forced to sit out a few seasons in recent years following some serious injury but is now very much on the comeback trail and produced a solid performance across all five events. His evening’s highlight came in the final event: the Castle Stones, where he was denied the event win by just 0.08s by Haynes.

As well as Paddy Haynes, the Brits were further represented by England’s Andrew Flynn and two-time Britain’s Strongest Man, Adam Bishop. Equal 5^th in the Axel Deadlift was Bish’s best event result, helping him to place 10^th overall. Flynn, who had arguably been Britain’s best performing athlete at World’s, fared somewhat better, taking 6^th overall courtesy of 4^th place in the Press Medley and 3^rd in the Conan’s Wheel – his best event result.

Australian newcomer, Josh Patacca, produced an excellent showing in his debut Giants Live performance. The Official Strongman Games winner claimed 7^th overall with a best event result of 5^th, coming in the Castle Stones, in which he completed all five implement – no mean feat after such a brutal show!

New Zealand’s Mat Ragg was 8^th in the standings, just 2.5-points behind Patacca and a mere 0.5-points ahead of 9^th placed Nick Gaurdione of America. Both Ragg and Guardione struggled to find their form in this contest but battled on gamely. The pair had placed 7^th and 9^th respectively at World’s and will surely enjoy better showings in the very near future. They placed ahead of Singleton and Hooper, who footed the standings following their withdrawals.

Fojtů’s victorious performance was remarkable not just for the quality of his lifting, but also for its coolness and the obvious confidence he is now exhibiting. His competitors will be looking at him with even greater respect and no one now will doubt his winning credentials, regardless of who he is up against. He combines phenomenal static strength with near-perfect technique and as his “weaknesses” continue to improve the overall package he brings to the stage is now of the very highest calibre. 2026 is proving to be very much Fojtů’s year and there may be much more yet to come!

For anyone who missed the show, you can watch it on demand at www.officialstrongman.com

Be there in 2027 – tickets on sale now for the Royal Albert Hall >>

Overall Standings

Event Results

Event 1: Circus Medley

In order: 100kg dumbbell, 150kg circus barbell, 110kg dumbbell, 150kg barbell, 120kg dumbbell

Event 2: Webster Stones

Weight of Implements: 113kg and 136kg

Event 3: Axel Deadlift for Reps

Axle weight: 360kg

Event 4: Conan’s Wheel

Weight: 200kg in the athletes’ hands

Event 5: Castle Water Stones

Stone weights: 120kg, 140kg, 160kg, 180kg, 200kg