| Jon Pall Sigmarsson (April 28, 1960 -- January 16, 1993) was a strongman, a powerlifter , and a bodybuilder from Iceland who won the World's Strongest Man Competition four times (1984, 1986, 1988, 1990). In 1984 Jón won the Icelandic bodybuilding title in the +90 kg. class. His achievements in powerlifting also include Icelandic records in the bench press and the squat, but his best performances were usually in the deadlift event, in which he set the European record many times and multiple world records in strongman competition deadlift variations, such as the rectangular handled wheel and one handed deadlift. In 1986, Jon first wrestled English Author and Guinness World Record Holder Sir Brian Sterling-Vete in a demonstration match for the TV news and print media held at Finnur Karlsson's gymnasium in Reykjavik, Iceland. Halfway through the match Jón and Sterling had plotted to surprise the audience with a supposed angry outburst leading to the two of them demonstrating their skills as martial artists. This very typical 'showmanship' became synonymous with both Jón and Sterling. In 1987, a contest called Pure Strength '87 was held on the grounds of Huntly Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. In this event, Jón Páll, Bill Kazmaier and Geoff Capes competed to define the strongest man of all time, where Jón Páll won 8 out of 10 events. A famous quote, "there is no reason to be alive if you can't do deadlift" was shouted by Jon Pall when he won the deadlift event at this ... |
