Results of the 1995 World Musclepower Championship
Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

1. Magnus Ver Magnusson
2. Forbes Cowan
3. Gary Taylor
4. Wayne Price
5. Nathan Jones
6. Phil Martin
7. Joe Onosai
8. Colin Cox
9. Andy Andersson
10. Chuck Haase
11. Jaromir Nemec
12. John McManus
(Iceland)
(Scotland)
(Britain)
(South Africa)
(Australia)
(United States)
(Samoa)
(New Zealand)
(Scotland)
(Canada)
(Czechoslovakia)
(United States)
94.0 pts.
79.5 pts.
77.5 pts.
75.5 pts.
71.5 pts.
71.0 pts.
67.5 pts.
49.5 pts.
42.5 pts.
25.5 pts.
23.0 pts.
20.0 pts.


Results by Event



Event #1 - Arm-Over-Arm Car Pull: The competitors pulled a chain of cars connected by rope in this event. All of the competitors were able to finish the course within the time limit with the exception of John McManus. Forbes Cowan won this event, and was followed closely by Magnus in second. Third and fourth place were taken by Nathan Jones and Wayne Price, respectively.

Event #2 - Flintstone Overhead Barbell Press: The weight on the bar started at 145 kg. (319 lbs.) and only 3 of the 12 competitors were unsuccessful - Nemec, Andersson, and McManus. The bar then increased to 155 kg. (341 lbs.) and only Cox and Haase failed. Twenty kilos were added to the bar and it was at this weight of 175 kg. (385 lbs.) that Magnusson, Cowan, and Wayne Price each failed. Now only 4 men remained.
Onosai and Taylor found 185 kg. (407 lbs.) to be quite easy, while Phil Martin and Nathan Jones dropped out at this weight. Both men also pressed 195, and finally, Gary Taylor jumped the weight up to 225 kg. (495 lbs!) and left Onosai in his dust to win the event.

Event #3 - The Squat: This event used live weight in the form of children sitting on a platform. The squats were to be performed quite deeply (as they should be!), so the weights were not as high as you usually see in strongman competitions. By the time the weight had reached 280 kg. (616 lbs.), only four men remained - they were Colin Cox, Joe Onosai, Gary Taylor, and Magnus Ver Magnusson. Each was successful at 280, and only Onosai failed at 300 kg. (660 kg.). The weight was then increased to 320 kg. (704 lbs.) and the three remaining men all failed, resulting in a three-way tie for first place.

Event #4 - McGlashan Stones: This event was performed with all 5 traditional stones loaded onto barrels about 5 feet high. John McManus was able only to complete 2 stones, Onosai and Andy Andersson each completed 3 stones, while Jaromir Nemec, Colin Cox, Gary Taylor, and Forbes Cowan completed 4 - Forbes absolutely blazed through the first four, but was not able to get the fifth stone onto the barrel.
Four men were able to complete all five stones. Phil Martin just barely got the last one on the barrel, Nathan Jones completed all five in good time, Wayne Price was even quicker, but it was Magnusson who tossed the stones atop each barrel to win. In fact, the photo used on the IronMind t-shirt (and the Iceland Air postcard) of Magnus with the 5th McGlashan stone was taken during this competition.

Event #5 - Farmer's Walk: The cylinders carried by the competitors in this event weighed 300 lbs. and they had to carry them around a circular track. Many of the contestants didn't finish the course. Magnusson won the event with Forbes Cowan and Gary Taylor close behind. Phil Martin and Nathan Jones also finished the course, but with slower times.

Event #6 - Hercules Hold: The competitors had to hold large barrels on pulleys at either side. Gary Taylor set a good time at about 52 seconds. He was then beaten by Forbes Cowan, who scored about 56 seconds. Finally, Magnusson held on for 58 seconds to win yet another event.

Event #7 - Caber for Height: I'm not sure of the exact heights of the bar over which the caber was being thrown. But five men successfully cleared the bar at the first height, and they were Martin, Magnusson, Cowan, Price, and Jones. The bar was then raised and only Phil Martin and Wayne Price were successful. At the final height, which I believe was 6.2 meters (I may be wrong on this one), only Phil Martin cleared the bar. He not only won the event, but set a new world record!

Event #8 - Tug of War: This was the naval style tug of war that was used in the 1995 WSM competition. The top competitors in this event were Joe Onosai and Magnus Ver Magnusson. In Joe's first match, he absolutely destroyed John McManus and moved on to compete against Forbes Cowan. By beating Cowan, he moved into the final against Magnus who had defeated Colin Cox in an earlier round to move on. Onosai bested Magnusson in the final to take the event. In a couple of other notable pulls, Phil Martin beat Gary Taylor, and Wayne Price beat Nathan Jones in an incredibly long match.

Event #9 - Super Yoke: The competitors were supposed to carry two large engine blocks attached to a wooden pole which rested on their shoulders. Gary Taylor went first in this event and only walked about two feet. Nathan Jones then gave it a try and had similar results. When he dropped the apparatus off his shoulders, one of the engines almost took off his right leg. The organizers made a good decision and abandoned the event in the interest of the competitors' safety.

Event #10 - Pole Push: After a number of earlier round match-ups, four competitors advanced to the semi-finals in this one-on-one event. In the first semi-final round, Magnusson tossed Forbes Cowan out of the circle and Gary Taylor dropped Joe Onosai on his knees. Cowan then met Onosai to decide third and fourth place and also dropped him to his knees (Joe is strong but needs to work on his balance!). Gary Taylor conceded anticlimactically to Magnusson and the champion won the final event, taking the competition 14.5 pts. clear of his nearest opponent.