Shetland shines on the European strength stage
FOUR Shetlanders enjoyed great success at the Doncaster dome this weekend in the Natural Strongman European Championships.
Three of the four secured top five finishes to qualify for the world championships in August.
Cameron Nisbet was the winner of the men’s under-72kg category, with Tegan Patterson and Alec Robinson both finishing fourth – in the women’s under-73kg category and men’s under-23 age category respectively.
Lee Brain placed eighth in the men’s masters under-90kg section.
The first event was an alternating clean and press between an axle bar and a log, with competitors having the choice of a lighter or heavier weight – a single repetition at the heavier weight beating the lighter.
Patterson managed a repetition of each at 65kg for fourth, while Nisbet had one rep at the heavier 100kg to finish third.
Brain failed to register a rep on the lighter 90kg option, before Robinson scored a successful lighter 100kg rep to take fourth.
The second event was an axle bar deadlift for repetitions, once again with the option of two weights and the heavier weight trumping the lighter one.
Patterson managed a personal best, with three repetitions at the lighter 155kg to tie for fifth.
Nisbet took an event win with five repetitions at the heavier 230kg, and Brain had a better showing with six reps at 210kg.
For Robinson, 230kg proved too much and no reps were completed.
A yoke had to be carried on the back down a 10-metre course on event three, before running back to pick up and carry a sandbag which was thrown over the yoke cross bar.
Patterson finished this event with a 200kg yoke and 80kg sandbag in 49.13s for fourth.
Nisbet had a nail-biting race, ending with a tied time of 41.36s for joint first with 280kg and 100kg, while Brain finished just within the time limit at 58.36s on a heavier 300kg and 100kg.
Robinson had the crushing weights of 320kg and 120kg, and managed a very fast time of 8.3s for the first yoke carry, but the sandbag proved too challenging.
Event four was a series of five kettlebell shaped sandbags, which had to be thrown over a 4.1m bar in the fastest time.
Patterson managed three bags in 14.33s for third, with Nisbet managing the entirety of his 12-20kg run in 34.07s for another event win.
Brain got up to the 18kg bag in a time of 17.24s before Robinson completed up to the 20kg bag in 18.11s for a personal best and fourth.
The fifth event was of four increasingly heavy circus dumbbells which needed to be pressed single-handed overhead in the fastest time.
Patterson managed to complete two in a time of 16.05s for fourth, before Brain hit a competition personal best by managing the 40kg and 50kg lifts in 43.11s.
Nisbet lifted the first three dumbbells almost in unison with the other two competitors on the competition floor, but a quicker rep on the final dumbbell for a time of 29.73s secured the win.
Robinson hit a very convincing personal best, managing his first two dumbbells in 19.79s for fourth place.
The final event was the “dash, carry, load”, where competitors start with a bar set around chest height before running down a 10-metre course to pick up and carry back a sandbag.
They then load the sandbag over the bar as many times as possible within the remainder of the 60 seconds.
Patterson loaded an 80kg four times for sixth place, before Nisbet loaded his 100kg bag 10 times for an event and competition win.
Brain loaded his 120kg bag three times for sixth place, while Robinson managed another personal best by completing two reps of a 130kg bag for fourth.
The athletes thanked Shetland Weight Training Club for sponsorship and use of its facilities.
Shetland’s Strongest Man, Woman and Novice competitions will be held at the Research fishing shed in Lerwick on Saturday 5 September.
The club said the novice competitions have been designed with a degree of accessibility, so anyone interested in trying it should contact the club.
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