RHYS THOMAS
LOCAL strength gym Iron Strength Power and Performance is set to join thousands of athletes across the world as they participate in this year’s Static Monsters event, taking on some of the most difficult and famous strongman lifts.
Over 70 events are being hosted across the world for Static Monsters including in Cairns this year by Iron Strength who has joined with a gym in Townsville to hold a combined event on 28 October.
As Static Monsters is a global strongman event, athletes competing have the chance to get globally ranked against people from all over the world in the two lifts.
The two lifts for the event are the axle deadlift and the log press, the most renowned and arguably the most difficult lifts in strongman competitions.
Iron Strength head coach and director Elias Wright said these two lifts were chosen due to their history to the sport and just how much strength is needed to complete them.
“For the heavy guys north of 300kg for an axle deadlift is a reasonable lift and I think we will see anything from the 300 to 360kg range for Cairns,” he said
“The log is a really challenging movement, it is from the ground to overhead and they have to clean it first then press it overhead.
“Log press has always been a big staple in strongman and same with the axle – strongman is the definition of unconventional lifting.”
Iron Strength has been involved in Static Monsters since 2017, just a few years after the competition began and has competed every year since.
This year’s competition is set to be the biggest by far with 36 competitors signed up for the event in just a few weeks.
The youngest competitor this year is 16 years old and the ages progress through to the masters category with a few people in their 50s set to compete.
Athletes have three attempts at each lift to get the highest possible score, called the monster total, and that total is how they win their weight class.
“We actually do overall totals as well and not every gym does but we like to do it and we give inaugural trophies as well, based on a coefficient score – basically based off bodyweight to lift ratio but it basically levels the playing field,” Mr Wright said.
“This is 100 per cent a spectator event and it is completely free to attend, we encourage people to come along and watch – it is not something you see everyday, it is extremely heavy stuff and the axle and log are things you don’t see floating around every gym.”
There will be food on the day provided by Cairns food truck Boxhead Burgers with the first lifts of the night set to begin at 5pm.
Iron Strength Power and Performance is located at 2/81 Fearnley St in Portsmith.
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