CONGRATULATIONS have poured in for Scottish athlete Tom Stoltman after his second consecutive victory in the World's Strongest Man contest.
While Stoltman won the competition in California in late May, his triumph was only screened for UK viewers on New Year's Day.
What a feeling becoming the 2 time champ Christmas viewing going be great! 💪💙 pic.twitter.com/JVI9qx5oSa
— Tom Stoltman (@stoltman_tom) July 20, 2022
"To do it once is unbelievable," Stoltman told USA TODAY Sports by phone at the time. "Back to back? Almost unheard of."
Stoltman became the 10th competitor to win the event twice and is the first strongman to claim consecutive titles since Brian Shaw of the US won his third and fourth crowns in 2015 and 2016.
Congratulations! You do us proud. 💪🎉
— Jamie Stone MP (@Jamie4North) January 2, 2023
Jamie Stone MP said Stoltman did "us proud", a sentiment echoed by his LibDem colleague councillor Molly Nolan. Tory MSP Murdo Fraser added that Stoltman was a "star".
The Scot has spoken previously about his experience with autism, which was noted by some congratulating him on his achievement.
"Great work and a great ambassador for ASD [autism spectrum disorder]. I am on the spectrum too, so it’s inspiring for me too," one Ryan Rysdale wrote.
The 6 foot 8 Invergordon native surged past Ukraine's Oleksii Novikov in the final two events at the competition in Sacramento. Martins Licis (United States) won the silver medal on a tiebreaker over Novikov, who finished third.
Novikov won three consecutive events (deadlift, Flintstone barbell and bus pull) to lead the pack going into the power stairs. Stoltman trailed by 3.5 points going into the second-to-last event, but Novikov mustered only four points compared to Stoltman's nine. The final event was Stoltman's signature one: the Atlas Stones.
"You still have to keep your head in it," said Stoltman, whose nicknames include "The Albatross" and "King of the Stones." "You can't overthink these things."
Stoltman credited his team around him for keeping him focused all the way to the end. They often repeated positive affirmations. Having his wife, Sinead, with him in Sacramento was special, Stoltman said.
In the end, he won by 10.5 points thanks to his victory in the Atlas Stones.
"It was kind of an easy ride to the end for me," Stoltman said.
Lifting runs in the family. His older brother, Luke, is a five-time Scotland Strongest Man winner and won the Europe Strongest Man title in 2019.
At the World's Strongest Man, Tom Stoltman steadily improved his results before winning in 2021. He finished fifth in 2019 and took third a year later.
Another member of Stoltman's support system who he wanted to shout out was his nutritionist. As the two-day competition progressed, Stoltman said he felt stronger.
"My body feels unbelievable right now," he said.
