UK’s Strongest Man Beats World Record at The Motorpoint Arena Nottingham

Tuesday 22 November saw UK’s Strongest Man Paul Smith attempt to break the 90kg ‘Daddy Dumbbell’ world record on Bolero Square, outside the Motorpoint Arena Nottingham.

Paul, who won his impressive title earlier this year, donned his bespoke Ultimate Strongman singlet as he warmed up with the lighter 78kg ‘Thomas Inch’ dumbbell. Both the excited fans and anticipation grew.

The ‘Daddy Dumbbell’, famous for its obscenely large handle (the width of a Coca-Cola can!) weighs in at a whopping 90kg. To correctly complete a rep, athletes must bring the dumbbell to the shoulder and then press above the head with one hand, whilst awaiting confirmation of the rep from the referee. Only reserved for those with super-human strength, this dumbbell is no easy feat for athletes.

The previous record of 8 reps for this event was held by former UK's Strongest Man Laurence Shahlaei and the late Aaron Page. Setting himself a huge challenge, Smith’s aim was to hit double-digits on reps in order to beat Shahlaei’s previous eight reps and then some!

After a few more rounds of warmups, and the large crowd full of suspense, ‘Baby-Faced Assassin’ Paul was ready for his big moment. With complete ease, the Assassin smashed ten consecutive reps and therefore, setting a new record! The crowd roared as passers-by stopped to watch this incredible feat of strength in amazement.

The UK's Strongest Man 2023 comes to Nottingham Motorpoint over the spring bank holiday weekend, 27th - 29th May. Featuring some of the most iconic and exciting strongman events, including Paul Smith defending his title, there’ll also be a special pre-show from the UK’s Strongest Woman too!

This blog was supplied by The Motorpoint Arena Nottingham.