Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson(born 1988) is an Icelandic

Icelanders

Icelanders are a Scandinavian ethnic group and a nation, native to Iceland.On 17 June 1944, when an Icelandic republic was founded the Icelanders became independent from the Danish monarchy. The language spoken is Icelandic, a North Germanic language, and Lutheranism is the predominant religion...

 strongman

Strongman (strength athlete)

In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or circus performers of similar ilk who displayed feats of strength such as the bent press , supporting large amounts of...

 competitor.

Career

Hafþór began competing in strongman after a severe knee injury ended his basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 career. He met Icelandic strongman Magnus Ver Magnusson

Magnús Ver Magnússon

Magnús Ver Magnússon is a former powerlifter and strongman competitor from Egilsstaðir, Iceland. Magnus won the title of World's Strongest Man four times ....

 at his gym "Jakabol" in 2008, and Magnus stated that Hafþór seemed like a good prospect for strongman. He is one of the tallest strongman ever from Iceland, standing nearly 6' 9" tall,or exactly 205.cm. Hafþór has won several contests in 2010 including Strongest Man in Iceland, Iceland's Strongest Viking, Westfjords Viking, and recently the OK Badur Strongman Championships in Iceland

Iceland

Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

.

Hafþór finished in second place at the inaugural Jon Pall Sigmarsson Classic

Jon Pall Sigmarsson Classic

Jón Páll Sigmarsson Classic is an annual strongman competition consisting of international athletes from various countries. The event was established in 2010 by contest organizer Hjalti Árnason, who was a childhood friend of the late Jón Páll Sigmarsson. The event takes place annually during the...

, finishing behind Brian Shaw

Brian Shaw (strongman)

Brian Shaw is a professional strongman competitor and winner of the 2011 World's Strongest Man competition.-Early life:...

.

Hafþór won the 2011 Strongest Man in Iceland contest on June 4, 2011, and the 2011 Iceland's Strongest Man contest on June 18, 2011.

Hafþór recently placed fourth at the Giants Live

Giants Live

Giants Live or The Giants Live Grand Prix Competition Series was created in 2009 as the official World’s Strongest Man Qualifying Tour taking over from the Strongman Super Series...

 Poland 2011 event on August 6, 2011 and earned a wild card invitation the 2011 World's Strongest Man

2011 World's Strongest Man

The 2011 World's Strongest Man was the 34th edition of World's Strongest Man and was held on the campus grounds of Wingate University in Wingate, North Carolina, USA. The event was sponsored by MET-Rx. The qualifying heats were scheduled for September 15th-18th, and the finals on Sept...

 contest.

Personal Records

• Squat
  Squat (exercise)
  In strength training, the squat is a compound, full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks, quads , hamstrings, as well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body...
  
   - 350 kg(770 lbs.) Raw
• Bench press
  Bench press
  The bench press is an exercise of the upper body. For bodybuilding purposes, it is used to stimulate the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. While on his or her back, the person performing the bench press lowers a weight to the level of the chest, then pushes it back up until the arm is straight...
  
   - 230 kg(506 lbs.) Raw
• Deadlift
  Deadlift
  The deadlift is a weight training exercise where a loaded barbell is lifted off the ground from a stabilized, bent over position. It is one of the three canonical powerlifting exercises, along with the squat and bench press.-Overview:...
  
  - 370 kg(814 lbs.) Raw