World’s Strongest Man returns to our screens for Channel 5’s festive broadcast schedule! Beginning on Saturday 21st December, the shows will run for 11 programmes until the climax – the World’s Strongest Man final – on New Year’s Day at 7.30pm.
The first 5 shows comprise the Giants Live World’s Strongest Man World Tour, with five 1-hour contests, including Britain’s and Europe’s Strongest Man, as well as the Strongman Classic from the Royal Albert Hall. The world’s best Strongman will be battling it out for not just the titles and winner’s trophies, but also the coveted invites to the main event: World’s Strongest Man!
Five 1-hour heats of the World’s Strongest Man 2024 will be aired nightly at 7.00pm from the 27th of December until the 31st December. The winners and runner-up from each of these 6-man qualification rounds will qualify for the Grand Final on January 1st – a 90-minute strength extravaganza – to decide who will be crowned this year’s World’s Strongest Man.
Has it really been a year since we watched Mitchell Hooper become the first Canadian to hold aloft the World’s Strongest Man winner’s trophy? It certainly feels as though a lot has happened since the man they call “The Moose” dethroned the two-time champ, Tom Stoltman, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. But as 2024 draws to a close, it’s finally time for strength fans, replete from their Christmas festivities, to sit back in front of the good old telly and watch the 2024 World’s Strongest Man – all five heats, the Grand Final, and not forgetting, of course, five episodes of the Giants Live, Worlds’ Strongest Man World Tour!
By the time the Grand Final is aired on New Year’s Day, Strongman aficionados will have been able to soak up 10-hours of bar-bending, log-lifting action! Competitors for the Giants Live contests earn the right to appear at World’s Strongest Man if they can finish in the top three places. The contests begin with Britain’s Strongest Man and end with the World Tour Finals, taking in Europe’s Strongest Man, the Strongman Classic and the World Open. Here’s when to tune in:
Giants Live World’s Strongest Man Arena Tour Shows on Channel 5 this Christmas 👇
Giants Live
Britain’s Strongest Man: Saturday 21st December 2024, 6.30-7.30pm
Europe’s Strongest Man: Sunday 22nd December 2024, 5.20-6.15pm
The Strongman Classic: Monday 23rd December 2024, 7.00-7.55pm
Strongman World Open: Tuesday 24th December 2024, 7.15-8.15pm
World Tour Finals: Thursday 26th December 2024, 7.00-7.55pm
World’s Strongest Man
World’s Strongest Man Heat 1: Friday 27th December 2024, 7.00-8.00pm
World’s Strongest Man Heat 2: Saturday 28th December 2024, 7.00-8.00pm
World’s Strongest Man Heat 3: Sunday 29th December 2024, 7.00-8.00pm
World’s Strongest Man Heat 4: Monday 30th December 2024, 7.00-8.00pm
World’s Strongest Man Heat 5: Tuesday 31st December 2024, 7.00-8.00pm
World’s Strongest Man Final: Wednesday 1st January 2024, 7.30-9.00pm
Giants Live World’s Strongest Man Arena Tour
Show 1: Britain’s Strongest Man
The Stoltman brothers from Scotland will be travelling south of the border to attempt to wrest the British title from the hands of defending champion Adam Bishop. Wales’s Gavin Bilton, last year’s runner-up, will also attend Sheffield’s Utilita Arena, vying to become the first Welsh winner since 1991!
Show 2: Europe’s Strongest Man
From Leeds’s Mecca of Muscle, the First Direst Arena, 12 men will be facing 5 gruelling tests of strength to determine who will be this year’s King of Europe. Defending champion Pavlo Kordiyaka will need to be at his best to resist the challenges from former champion, Luke Stoltman and Ukrainian teammate Oleksii Novikov – the 2020 World’s Strongest Man winner.
Show 3: The Strongman Classic
Known as the jewel in the Giants Live crown, an absolutely stacked field will be assembling at London’s iconic Albert Hall for a mouth-watering contest that features a world record attempt in the Axle Press. 2023 World’s Strongest Man, Mitchell Hooper, will be taking on arch-rival, Tom Stoltman!
Show 4: World Open
Birmingham’s Utilita Arena hosts another stellar line-up of 12 of the world’s strongest, including an in-form Mitchell Hooper. Britain’s Luke Richardson returns to the fray after years of injury woe and will need to be at his best with the likes of Evan Singleton and Gavin Bilton at his heels.
Show 5: World Tour Finals
Glasgow’s OVO Hydro will once again be the venue for what is the finale of the Giants Live World Tour. Can anyone stop the mighty Mitchell Hooper? Luke Stoltman will be on home turf and will head a talented line-up featuring Britain’s Luke Richardson and “Big Thicket” Trey Mitchell, from Texas!
World’s Strongest Man 2024
In its 47th year, World’s Strongest Man is firmly established as a British Christmas television tradition. This year’s contest was held in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, for the second year running, and was another internationally diverse contest, with 30 athletes representing fifteen nations!
The competitors are seeded and placed into five heats of six athletes, with the top two progressing to the Grand Final. Defending Champion, Mitchell Hooper, of Canada, would have to see off challenges from Scotland’s two-time champ, Tom Stoltman, as well as the man they call T-Rex, former WWE wrestler, Evan Singleton from the USA.
Heats
Each of the heats are a one-hour programme with the Grand Final lasting 90-minutes. This year, all five heats feature identical events, so all thirty competitors will face the same challenges, eliminating any questions of “easier “or “harder” routes to the final. The events to look forward to in the heats are: The Webster Stones, Deadlift Ladder, Sandbag Steeplechase, Viking Press and the Car Walk. The athletes in second and third place after five events will face each other in the Stone-off to claim the second qualification spot for the final.
Heat 1: Europe’s Strongest Man, Luke Stoltman, of Scotland, will look to make yet another WSM final, but will have to see off challenges from Trey Mitchell of America – a man who has placed 4th in previous years – and Canadian rookie, Tristain Hoath.
Heat 2: Defending champion Mitchell Hooper goes against Mexico’s Austin Andrade – a man who is quickly establishing himself as one of the world’s best! Welsh Bull, Gavin Bilton will be bidding to make his first final appearance.
Heat 3: Britain’s Adam Bishop is a former finalist and will be looking to repeat that feat this year. New Zealand’s Matt Ragg and Latvia’s Aivars Šmaukstelis will be standing in his way, as well as Ireland’s Pa O’Dwyer.
Heat 4: T-Rex, Evan Singleton (USA), has a loaded heat to come through, with Britain’s Kane Francis and South African Jaco Schoonwinkel – who made the final last year – all ready to battle in out for qualification.
Heat 5: The final heat features 2-time champion Tom Stoltman of Scotland. Can the man they call The Albatross win a third title and cement himself as one of the sport’s greats? Canadian newcomer Wes Derwinsky also lines up as well as former finalist Bobby Thomspon from the USA.
The Grand Final
The ten athletes who qualified will have six classic tests of strength and power standing between them and the glory of claiming the sport’s greatest prize. Athletes accrue points depending on their placement, with the competitor with the highest points total after six events being crowned champion. In the event of any ties, the result is split by the athletes’ performance in the final event – the Atlas Stones.
Events 1: KNAACK Giant’s Medley – competitors must complete a 40m course carrying a spine-crushing 454kg/1,000lb super yoke and then a 300kg/661lb frame for 20m each.
Event 2: Max Axle Press – with an opening weight of 170kg/375lb the athletes will battle it out in a rising-bar contest to see who can lift the heaviest weight overhead. A failure means elimination and the winning lifter will be looking to exceed 210kg/463lb!
Event 3: Keg Toss – The athletes will compete to see who can throw a 15kg/33lb keg over a rising bar, with the greatest heigh earning maximum points. The world record for this exceeds 7m/23ft!
Event 4: Conan’s Wheel – with 250kg/551lb crushing down on their chests, the competitors must walk a circle of pain until they can continue no longer. The man who completes the most revolutions will carry the day in this classic test of strength endurance.
Event 5: Tyre Deadlift – 374kg/825lb will be loaded on to barbells and the athletes will lift in pairs to determine who can amass the most repetition in 60-seconds. This is a basic but brutal test of back strength and yes, that is correct, reps with over 800lb!
Event 6: Atlas Stones – the traditional finale and an event that often throws up some surprises. Five progressively heavier granite orbs await the competitors, and each one must be lifted onto its plinth. The final pairing should decide the destination of this year’s title, and this is one event that has provided no shortage of drama over the years!
