Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson

Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson (; transliterated as Hafthor Julius Bjornsson in English; born 26 November 1988) is an Icelandic professional strongman. With 32 international titles, 60 total wins, 88 podiums and 132 world records which makes him the most prolific record breaker in the history of strength sports, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most decorated strength athletes of all-time.

The winner of the World's Strongest Man, the World's Ultimate Strongman, two times the World's Strongest Viking, three times the Arnold Strongman Classic, five times the Europe's Strongest Man, nine Strongman Champions League wins, ten Giants Live wins and twelve times the Iceland's Strongest Man, he is the only person to have won the World's Strongest Man, the Europe's Strongest Man and the Arnold Strongman Classic in the same calendar year, which he achieved in 2018. Known by his epithets 'king of the deadlift' and 'king of the stones', he is also the reigning World deadlift champion, Eisenhart deadlift champion and the all-time deadlift world record holder at .

Björnsson has also appeared on television as an actor, portraying Ser Gregor "the Mountain" Clegane in the HBO series Game of Thrones for five seasons. He is often simply referred to as "Thor" or "the Mountain", the latter for his Game of Thrones character and his own massive size.

In March 2023, Björnsson was inducted into the International Sports Hall of Fame.

Early life Björnsson was born on 26 November 1988 in Reykjavík, Iceland. As a student at the polytechnic school in Breiðholt, he was enthusiastic about sports and played soccer and did gymnastics, before discovering his passion for basketball in eighth grade. He was also a chess player, with a Blitz rating of 800. He also loved playing video games.

A lanky teenager, Björnsson gained size and strength through daily exercise, combining basic movements (push-ups, chin-ups, and sit-ups) with working at his grandfather's farm during summers and lifting natural stones in the wilderness. His imposing height of is shared with his parents; his father, Björn Þor Reynisson, is

Basketball career Strongman career

After recovering from the ankle injury, and inspired by both Ronnie Coleman and Dorian Yates, Björnsson trained like a bodybuilder for two years. He was later drawn towards the sport of Strongman after being inspired by Jón Páll Sigmarsson and his Icelandic heritage. One day, when Benedikt Magnússon spotted the twenty-year-old, 6 ft 9 in, Björnsson training, he brought to his attention that a strongman competition was taking place the next day and encouraged him to participate. Björnsson then contacted Magnús Ver Magnússon and reserved his spot.

2009 In his very first competition 2009 Westfjord's Viking, Björnsson secured a fourth place finish. The champion Stefán Sölvi Pétursson won all but the second event which was the Leggstein (tombstone) carry. Despite having no formal strongman training, young Björnsson surprised the field by carrying the stone four revolutions around the plinth, breaking the world record. Stefán Sölvi volunteered to coach the youngster and shared his own equipment and gear with him. With the new found friendship, Björnsson kept on improving and won third place in both Grundarfjord Viking and Highland Viking competitions. In 2009 East Coast Giant/ Eastfjord strongman championships, Björnsson won second place behind Páll Logason and broke another world record in the Alfastein carry, with a distance of .

2010 The following year, while training at the 'Strongman Base gym', Björnsson was nicknamed Ljónið (the Lion) by Stefán Sölvi, because he continuously grew bigger and got stronger, eventually exceeding bodyweight by now. Björnsson won Iceland's Strongest Viking and Strongest Man in Iceland, the third and second highest ranking competitions in Iceland, and placed third behind reigning two-times champion Stefán Sölvi Pétursson and Benedikt Magnússon in the 2010 Iceland's Strongest Man, the main national competition. At the Westfjord's Viking competition, Björnsson also managed to break his own Leggstein carry world record. Taking part in his very first international strongman competition, Björnsson emerged runner-up to reigning World's Strongest Man runner-up Brian Shaw by 1 point at the inaugural Jón Páll Sigmarsson Classic.

2011 Björnsson entered the Arnold Sports Festival's limelight after winning second place in the 2011 Arnold Amateur competition in USA behind Mateusz Baron, which was also his first-ever competition abroad. He also got selected to Giants Live and Strongman Champions League, finishing fourth at 2011 Giants Live Poland and fifth at 2011 SCL Canada. The two federations gave Björnsson the opportunity for international exposure, competing against the best strongmen in the world. After earning a wild card invitation, Björnsson got selected to 2011 World's Strongest Man where he and Stefán Sölvi Pétursson both managed to qualify to the finals. At 22 years and 300 days, he became the fourth-youngest WSM finalist in history and secured sixth place in his first WSM appearance, including a world record in the Truck pull event.

In the local circuit, Björnsson won Iceland's Strongest Viking, Strongest Man in Iceland and Iceland's Strongest Man, becoming the first man to win all three Icelandic majors and became the ninth Icelander to win Iceland's Strongest Man (Iceland's most prestigious title) since its inception in 1985. Björnsson also won his first Icelandic Highland Games competition in Akranes.

2012 Björnsson won his first international strongman competition after dominating 2012 King of the Castle competition held in Hämeenlinna, Finland. At 2012 Europe's Strongest Man competition he turned up at a career heaviest bodyweight of at 2012 World's Strongest Man he won his first WSM podium finish by placing third behind Žydrūnas Savickas and Vytautas Lalas with two event wins which included a world record in the natural stone loading event.

Being widely recognized the heaviest and most difficult strongman contest in the world, Björnsson first participated in the Arnold Strongman Classic finals, held annually in Columbus, Ohio, in 2012, placing tenth (last place). Tournament director Terry Todd encouraged Björnsson to keep improving his static strength and predicted that he can win this competition one day. Furthermore, Björnsson broke the tyre drag world record at 2012 Arnold Europe competition and together with Jarno Jokinen, won Ultimate Strongman World's Strongest Team competition held in Mullingar, Ireland. In the local context, Björnsson repeated his Icelandic majors threepeat, and tossed a keg, over at the 2012 Icelandic Highland Games, thus breaking both Riku Kiri's and Gary Taylor's keg-toss world records.

2013 Björnsson started to compete prolifically and completed 14 international competitions in 2013. Among them, he won 2013 Strongman Champions League Latvia, his third international win alongwith a world record in Basque circle, and 2013 SCL World Finals in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He only did one national competition in 2013 and secured his third consecutive Iceland's Strongest Man title.

Björnsson also broke a Guinness world record in the bar bending discipline when he bent 4 x iron rods (each with a inch (1.6 cm) diameter) into U-shape in 30 seconds.

2014 Björnsson started his 2014 by winning the inaugural World's Strongest Viking competition held in Vinstra, Norway, with a world record in Viking lumberjack tree-sledge pull event. He also won his first Europe's Strongest Man title. After breaking the world record in the six-piece Atlas stones run, loading all six stones weighing 100–200 kg (220–441 lb) onto whiskey barrels within 27.05 seconds, Björnsson said "I'm the future of strength, and I'm king of the stones!"

At the 2014 World's Strongest Man in a stacked lineup of 12 athletes in the finals, Björnsson came very close to winning the title, when he finished only half a point behind Savickas, and two and a half points ahead of Shaw. He also broke world records in the Atlas stones and keg-toss for speed events after an duel with Shaw. Shaw tossed all eight kegs weighing over the bar in 16.59 seconds and proclaimed "I don't think that's beatable", only for Björnsson, competing next, to finish it in 16.35 seconds. Björnsson also improved his Arnold Strongman Classic placement to fifth.

Björnsson continued to compete prolifically and completed 13 international competitions in 2014. He won his first Giants Live title by winning 2014 Giants Live FitX Australia held in Melbourne with a world record in the Atlas stone to shoulder for reps event, and also won the 2014 Battle of the North competition held in Tórshavn, Faroe Islands, 2014 SCL Serbia, 2014 SCL Finland, 2014 SCL Holland and 2014 SCL world final taking his international title tally to 11.

From 2014 onwards, Björnsson took part in various Highland games competitions in the USA and broke the all-time world records in keg-toss for height and weight over bar events. He also broke the world record in the Jón Páll Sigmarsson stone carry and loaded a Atlas stone for eight reps all by himself at the World's Strongest Team competition held in Stoke-on-Trent, England.

Björnsson also performed in a Guinness World Records duel with Žydrūnas Savickas in Milan, Italy where they collectively broke seven world records.

2015 Björnsson won his second consecutive World's Strongest Viking title. In this competition, he carried a long, in diameter, tree trunk, for five steps, thus breaking a legendary 1,000-year-old world record, set by the Viking Orm Storolfsson, who was said to have carried it for three steps. He also broke the Viking boat pull world record in the same competition.

He also won his second consecutive Europe's Strongest Man title, two more Giants Live titles: 2015 Giants Live Iceland (Viking Challenge) and 2015 Giants Live Sweden (Scandinavian Open), and two more Strongman Champions League titles: 2015 Strongman Champions League Bulgaria and 2015 Strongman Champions League Croatia, taking his international title tally to 17. During these competitions, he established world records in car deadlift, deadlift ladder, wheelbarrow carry, mooring-bitt carry, keg toss, 160–200 kg (353–441 lb) Atlas stones run, Basque circle, and several bus and truck pull events.

At the 2015 World's Strongest Man he secured his fourth consecutive podium finish, placing third behind Shaw and Savickas. He was the only man to topple all 3 Norse hammers for a new world record with the final hammer weighing . Despite breaking the Timber carry world record with worth of barn timber carried on a 40 feet inclined ramp in 10.15 seconds, Björnsson dropped to seventh place at the Arnold Strongman Classic due to a costly mistake in weight selections for the hummer tyre deadlift. At the 2015 World's Strongest Team competition, Björnsson and Matjaz Belsak who competed as team 'Vikings' emerged champions over team Saxons (Mark Felix and Eddie Hall), team Yankees (Mike Burke and Jerry Pritchett) and five more teams. During this competition Björnsson pressed the Ross boulder overhead and carried David P. Webster's Northumberland stone for for two more world records.

At 2015 New Hampshire Highland Games, Björnsson broke Jón Páll Sigmarsson's iconic elevated cart wheel deadlift world record with a pull of in addition to breaking the Lundstrom Stones carry world record and the Weight over bar world record for the third time.

2016 Björnsson climbed back to fifth spot at the Arnold Strongman Classic in Columbus, Ohio and managed to win 2016 Arnold Pro Strongman World Series Australia, 2016 Arnold Pro Strongman World Series South America and 2016 Arnold Pro Strongman World Series Africa with world records in human platform deadlift, circus dumbbell press for reps, triple super yoke, natural stones loading and Thor's hammer one arm lift eventually taking his international title tally to 20.

In 2016 Europe's Strongest Man, despite doing well in other events including a world record in loading the five 140–200 kg (309–441 lb) Atlas stones in 18.16 seconds, he made a blunder at the car walk by gripping the apparatus from the center instead of the sides which compromised his balance, a mistake which cost his title to Laurence Shahlaei.

In 2016 World's Strongest Man, Björnsson came close to winning the title and emerged runner-up to Shaw by two points to secure his fifth consecutive podium finish. During this competition, he broke another Atlas stones world record by loading five 150–210 kg (331–463 lb) stones in 26.80 seconds, shared the circus barbell shoulder press for reps world record and also established another world record in the Aeroplane pull by pulling a plane in a total 25 meter course with an extra uphill on the final meter for 24.90 meters.

Björnsson broke the Weight over bar world record for the fifth time at Caledonian Club Highland Games, and in the national circuit, won his sixth consecutive Iceland's Strongest Man title (surpassing Jón Páll Sigmarsson) and fourth Strongest Man in Iceland title. He also initiated his own training facility 'Thor's Power Gym'.

2017 At the Arnold Strongman Classic, Björnsson emerged runner-up to Shaw with his best performance in the competition up to this point. He broke the world record in the Rogue bag over bar for max weight by throwing a sandbag over a bar and pressed the Austrian Oak log for 3 repetitions.

In 2017 Europe's Strongest Man after an iconic battle with Eddie Hall Björnsson won his third title, and famously answered Bill Kazmaier, "This is not a beauty contest, this is Strongman!" amidst a Bell's palsy affected face. He Axle pressed and broke the world record in loading the five 120–200 kg (264–441 lb) Atlas stones (Giants Live heavy set) in 17.54 seconds, one-motioning all the stones.

In 2017 World's Strongest Man Björnsson again came close to winning the title but ended runner-up to Hall by one point and secured his sixth consecutive podium finish. He deadlifted 1,000 lbs+ for the first time in his career and squatted for 12 repetitions despite returning from a recent quad tear.

Björnsson proceeded to win 2017 Festival des Hommes Forts de Warwick and 2017 WoW Stronger, taking his international title tally to 23 and during the latter, surpassed Paul Anderson's power clean and press from 1955 World Championships, Munich with a muscle clean and press. He also broke the block press world record with and squatted raw for 29 repetitions.

In the national circuit, he won his seventh consecutive Iceland's Strongest Man and fifth Strongest Man in Iceland titles. During 2017 Iceland's Strongest Man, he surpassed both Andrés Guðmundsson's near two full revolutions around the pen and Gregg Ernst's linear 70 metres (229 ft 8 in) which eluded everyone for more than 25 years, by carrying the legendary Húsafell Stone 90 metres (295 ft 4 in) for a new all-time world record.

2018 2018 marked the most dominant calendar year in strongman history with Björnsson winning the Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man, World's Strongest Man, Iceland's Strongest Man and World's Ultimate Strongman, while remaining undefeated.

Björnsson defeated the defending champion, Brian Shaw, and won the 2018 Arnold Strongman Classic, becoming only the seventh person to win the prestigious title, fulfilling Dr. Terry Todd's vision just four months prior his demise. In the fourth event, he broke the elephant bar deadlift world record with , beating Jerry Pritchett's from previous year, to establish the heaviest raw deadlift in strongman history. Björnsson also shouldered the Odd Haugen tombstone and pressed the Apollon's Axle and wheels for 4 repetitions.

With a near strict log press of which made him World Log-lift Champion, and an Axle deadlift world record for reps of for six repetitions, Björnsson won the 2018 Europe's Strongest Man, winning his fourth title, becoming the second highest ESM winner in history.

After six consecutive podium finishes and three times getting so close to winning the title, Björnsson finally became the World's Strongest Man in 2018, winning the competition by six-and-a-half points over the runner-up, Mateusz Kieliszkowski. Björnsson became the third Icelander to win the title, after Jón Páll Sigmarsson and Magnús Ver Magnússon. During heats and the finals, he broke world records in the keg drop squat, car deadlift and Basque circle.

Björnsson won the inaugural World's Ultimate Strongman, held in Dubai, in a stacked field of twelve athletes with a silver dollar deadlift, and dominant performances throughout the competition, taking his international title tally to 27. At the national circuit, he won his eighth straight Iceland's Strongest Man, and broke the Weight over bar world record for the ninth and tenth times.

Also from 2018 onwards, Björnsson significantly increased his static strength under the mentoring of his strength coach since 2016, Sebastian Oreb, strict pressed , and increased his squat to during training and during Thor's Powerlifting Challenge. The latter squat was controversially red lighted due to depth, but even with his 2nd attempt squat of , Björnsson equaled Bill Kazmaier's classic powerlifting total, doing it raw.

2019 Björnsson successfully defended his title at the 2019 Arnold Strongman Classic in dominant fashion and broke his own elephant bar deadlift world record, increasing the heaviest raw deadlift in strongman history to in only his second attempt out of the three allowed and broke the Weight over bar world record for the eleventh time.

He also dominated 2019 Europe's Strongest Man with only requiring to load three of the five Atlas stones in the last event, becoming a five-time Europe's Strongest Man Champion. After winning the axle deadlift for reps Björnsson famously answered Bill Kazmaier, "What is this, I didn't know I was gonna come here and do cardio!" and held the each, Pillars of Hercules for 55.13 seconds.

In his attempt to defend his World's Strongest Man title, Björnsson tore his plantar fascia during the group stages and ended up being third, behind Martins Licis and Mateusz Kieliszkowski, thus achieving the longest continuous podium streak in World's Strongest Man history, with eight (2012–2019). Björnsson won more vehicle pulls, stone events, and medleys and loading races than any other competitor in the history of the competition. Among the past winners who have managed to qualify for the finals at a 100% ratio, Björnsson and Mariusz Pudzianowski top the list, with nine finals out of nine appearances.

In the national circuit, he won his ninth consecutive Iceland's Strongest Man, defending the title also against foreign athletes Tom Stoltman and Luke Stoltman, thus beating the record of Magnús Ver Magnússon's eight ISM titles. In this competition, he loaded five natural stones weighing 137–212 kg (302–467 lb) in 50.42 seconds for another world record and also extended his Húsafell Stone all-time world record. He also upscaled and relocated 'Thor's Power Gym' to its current location at Dalvegur, Kópavogur.

2020 During his Arnold prep in February 2020, Björnsson deadlifted for two repetitions and became the first person in history to deadlift 1,000 lbs+ for two reps. Two weeks later, he deadlifted for an unofficial world record on the elephant bar, also making it the heaviest raw deadlift of all-time. During this prep, Ha Björnsson þór also incline pressed dumbbells for 7 repetitions, one arm overhead pressed a Cyr dumbbell, overhead pressed a natural stone, and lifted the Thomas Inch dumbbell.

After successfully defending his crown again in 2020, Björnsson became only the second man in history to win the Arnold Strongman Classic three times in a row, after Žydrūnas Savickas. He pressed both a Inver stone and Cyr dumbbell overhead and deadlifted raw for a comfortable win. This win took his international title tally to 30.

Following a 7 week prep, Björnsson deadlifted at 'Thor's Power Gym' in Kópavogur, Iceland, while being refereed by Magnús Ver Magnússon under the sanctioning of World's Ultimate Strongman, and broke the all-time deadlift world record of held by Eddie Hall for the past 3 years and 9 months. The lift was globally televised live by ESPN, and the Guinness World Records verified it as 'the heaviest deadlift of all-time'.

After winning Iceland's Strongest Man for the tenth consecutive time, Björnsson retired from Strongman for a brief period of time to pursue his boxing journey.

2021–2023 In 2022, a significantly downsized Björnsson made a guest appearance at the Rogue Invitational in Austin, Texas, and broke the weight over bar world record for the twelfth time, with a clearance of . The following year, and still downsized, he casually lifted in the IronMind Rolling thunder while visiting Glenolden, Pennsylvania for a promotional event.

2024 Following a three-year hiatus due to boxing and powerlifting, Björnsson returned to the 2024 Arnold Strongman Classic and effortlessly deadlifted to win the inaugural event. Since he was still recovering from a major pectoral tear from the previous year, his pressing power was only adequate for the overall fourth place. Two weeks later, Björnsson secured second place at the Arnold UK, after breaking the world record for the raw deadlift for reps event, performing ten repetitions with on a stiff bar within sixty seconds.

Björnsson debuted at the 2024 Strongest Man on Earth competition at Shaw Classic expo and finished runner-up with five event wins from eight to Mitchell Hooper. He broke world records in keg toss with , and Manhood stone (Max Atlas stone), hoisting a stone over a 4 ft (48 in) bar for 2 repetitions. During the prep for the competition, he squatted raw for 5 paused repetitions and loaded a Manhood stone.

He also returned to the Strongman Champions League, winning 2024 SCL Dubai and emerged joint-second at 2024 Rogue Invitational with a world record in Inver stones, one-motioning the 5 stones weighing 125–191 kg (275–420 lb) onto Whiskey barrels in 27.34 seconds. Björnsson also won his eleventh Iceland's Strongest Man title.

At SC24 conference in Atlanta, Georgia organized by VDURA, Haf Björnsson ór deadlifted 282.6 Petabytes of data, for the world record of highest amount of data lifted by a human.

2025 At the 2025 Arnold Strongman Classic, Björnsson finished third, securing his fifth podium finish at the competition. He deadlifted raw on the elephant bar and behind the neck push pressed becoming the only man in history to deadlift 1,000 lb+ and shoulder press 500 lb+ within the same competition.

He also came second place at 2025 Siberian Power Show in Russia behind Kieliszkowski and won Iceland's Strongest Man for the twelfth time, including the fastest one-motioned 5 set Atlas stone run in history in 15.95 seconds for another world record.

At 2025 Eisenhart Black Deadlift Championships held in Bavaria, Germany, Björnsson deadlifted and broke his own all-time world record deadlift. The lift, which was followed by Björnsson screaming "I'm the fucking strongest!", was performed in suboptimal conditions, amidst rainy outdoors on a faulty carpet platform at 1:00 am, requiring a mid-comp technique change. Due to these adversities, numerous critiques recognized it as the greatest lift ever and it made Björnsson the first and only man in history to deadlift more than 500 kg, twice.

Six weeks later at 2025 World Deadlift Championships held in Birmingham, England, he broke the all-time world record deadlift yet again, this time by speed repping . Björnsson then went on to win the entire Giants Live World Open competition on the same day, dominating over a stacked lineup, eventually making him the greatest Giants Live champion of all time with ten wins. Many experts, fellow athletes and fans widely consider it to be the single greatest lift and performance of all-time and it also made Björnsson the first and only man in history to deadlift more than 500 kg, thrice.

2026 At the 2026 Swaglift Day held in Czech Republic, in a fatigued state just six days after attempting the heaviest deadlift ever at the Enhanced Games, Björnsson deadlifted for seven reps under one minute, breaking the deadlift for reps world record in Strongman.

While enjoying a family holiday, he made a guest appearance at 2026 Sherwood Park Highland gathering festival in Edmonton, Canada and broke the weight over bar world record for the thirteenth time, with a clearance of .

Competitive record

Strongman Placements: 60 x 1st places, 17 x 2nd places and 11 x 3rd places = 88 x podium finishes from 106 total competitions. Winning percentage: 44.4% at International circuit & 82.4% at National circuit Podium percentage: 76.4% at International circuit & 97.1% at National circuit Top 5 percentage: 93.1% at International circuit & 100% at National circuit

Powerlifting Despite the fact that Björnsson never trained specifically for powerlifting, he did two full competitions during his strongman career and another post-retirement. In the 2011 Íslandsmót tournament, at the age of 22, he totaled raw, winning second place overall, behind Páll Logason. During the 2018 Thor's Powerlifting Challenge (sanctioned by the 'World Raw Powerlifting Federation'), with only five weeks of casual preparation, Björnsson totaled raw, which was at the time the fifth-highest raw superheavyweight powerlifting total of all time. Then on 13 February 2023, Björnsson proceeded to officially announce his return to strength sports, stating he will attempt to break the all-time powerlifting total world record at the end of the year. On 15 April 2023, he competed in his first out of three scheduled powerlifting meets, on his journey towards breaking the world record, and squatted , but tore his left pectoral muscle on his last bench press attempt of , forcing him to withdraw from performing the deadlifts. A week later, he underwent a five-hour surgery in Los Angeles, where the muscle was successfully re-attached to the bone, promising a full recovery.

Highland Games Björnsson participated in the 2011, 2012 and 2017 Icelandic Highland Games; the 150th anniversary of the Caledonian Club of San Francisco's 2015 Highland Games also followed by 2016 edition; and was a guest participant at the New Hampshire Highland Games (also known as Loon Mountain Highland Games) in 2014, 2015, and 2017. During these competitions, he broke multiple world records in deadlift, stone carry, stone press, keg toss, and weight over bar events. x 3 reps Deadlift on elephant bar (raw with straps) – , x 2 reps Deadlift for reps (equipped with straps) – x 7 reps Squat (raw with wraps) – , x 2 reps Squat for reps (raw with wraps) – x 5 reps (paused), x 8 reps (paused), x 29 reps Bench press (raw) – , dumbbells per hand x 12 reps Log press – , x 3 reps Axle press – , x 4 reps Barbell push press (behind the neck) – x 3 reps Manhood Stone (Max Atlas Stone) over 4 ft bar – , x 2 reps Atlas Stones (5 stones) – in 17.54 seconds, in 15.95 seconds Húsafell Stone – for Bale tote (super yoke) – for 4 metres in 28.65 seconds Timber carry (on 35' inclined ramp) – in 10.15 seconds (with straps), in 8.40 seconds (Raw grip) Keg toss – over , over Keg toss run – 8 kegs over in 16.35 seconds Weight over bar – over Plane pull – for 24.90 meters 'uphill, with an extra uphill on the final meter'

Legacy During his international strongman career, Björnsson won all the major strongman competitions and titles that were available at that time, including World's Strongest Man, Arnold Strongman Classic, Europe's Strongest Man, Strongman Champions League, Giants Live, and World's Ultimate Strongman, and his thirty two international wins rank him as the third most decorated strongman of all time. During these three years, the only time Björnsson failed to win a competition was due to an injury,

On 2 May 2020, after breaking the Deadlift World Record, Björnsson challenged its previous record holder, Eddie Hall, to a boxing match. Despite having no boxing experience whatsoever, Björnsson learned the fundamentals of the sport and made commendable progress under the guidance of his coaches, Billy Nelson and Vilhjálmur Hernandez, and support from his two main sparring partners, Skúli Ármansson and Bill Hodgson. With a stricter diet that differed from his strongman days, Björnsson also transformed himself to suit the new sport, losing in the process. For his second exhibition match, he faced the 2010 Commonwealth Games Heavyweight Gold Medalist, Simon Vallily, in May 2021. The two fights provided him his first real ring experience. On 18 September 2021, Björnsson faced Canadian professional arm-wrestler Devon Larratt, who volunteered for the fight when Eddie Hall withdrew, after sustaining a biceps tear during training. Within the first round, the referee was forced to stop the fight, awarding Björnsson the win via TKO (technical knockout).

The Mountain vs. The Beast On 19 March 2022, after almost two years since its announcement, Björnsson and Hall finally faced each other in Dubai in a fight taglined The Heaviest Boxing Match in History. Hall started the first round with continuous haymakers, but Björnsson kept his composure and stuck to the basics, focusing on a solid jab and better footwork. Once he realized Hall's game plan, Björnsson took control of the fight by bludgeoning and knocking Hall down twice, in rounds three and six. Hall sustained bleeding lacerations on top of both eyes, and Björnsson won the fight via unanimous decision.

Boxing record

Acting career Björnsson was cast as Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane for the fourth season of the HBO series Game of Thrones in August 2013. This was his first main acting role, and he is the third person to depict the character after Conan Stevens played the role in season 1 and Ian Whyte in season 2, but the first actor to portray Clegane in more than one continuous season, with his appearances in seasons four through eight. He was also cast for the lead role in the Philadelphia Renaissance Faire during their debut season, in 2015. He appeared as 'King Thor', the leader of a Viking raiding party intent on capturing the city of Amman.

In 2018, Björnsson played Mongkut, the main villain in Kickboxer: Retaliation, opposite Alain Moussi and Jean-Claude Van Damme, in a story about a kickboxer (Moussi) who is sedated and taken to a prison in Bangkok, where he is forced to fight a giant for freedom and a large sum of money. In the same year, he also played Big John in the film Operation Ragnarok, about a town in the south of Sweden isolated after a viral outbreak and the trapped Swedes and immigrants uniting to survive an onslaught.

The next year, he starred with Mike Tyson and Amr Saad in the action film Pharaoh's War, about a former soldier (Tyson) with a mysterious past leading a group of Egyptian refugees through the desert to protect them from a group of evil mercenaries.

In 2022, Björnsson had a minor role as Thorfinnr the Tooth-Gnasher in the historical epic fantasy The Northman, which starred Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Ethan Hawke, Claes Bang, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Willem Dafoe.

Filmography

Film + Year Title Role Notes 2015 Eddie: Strongman Himself 2017 Devilish Deeds Psycho Phil Bell 2018 Kickboxer: Retaliation Mongkut 2018 Operation Ragnarok Big John 2019 Hamlet Pheroun FrankEgyptian film; supporting role 2022 The Northman Thorfinnr 2026 Masters of the Universe Goat Man

Television + Duration Title Role Notes 2014–2019 Game of Thrones Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane Recurring role 2015 A League of Their Own Himself Series 9, Episode 7 2017 Born Strong Himself Documentary film 2018 Keith Lemon: Coming to America Himself Series 1, Episode 6

Other ventures Martial arts Since beginning with boxing, Björnsson has stayed involved in a range of martial arts. In 2020, he appeared on episode ten of Karate Combat, with Bas Rutten and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Josh Palmer, prior to having a training session with Palmer that was released to the public. He then visited Mjolnir MMA to train with UFC veteran Gunnar Nelson in May 2021 and was filmed grappling with the professional fighter. In December 2022, Björnsson met Gordon Ryan prior to his match with Nicky Rodriguez at UFC FightPass Invitational 3 and was filmed having a sparring match with him.

Personal life Family and relationships Björnsson has had a tumultuous relationship with Thelma Björk (the mother of his daughter). She has accused him of domestic abuse, however a subsequent police investigation dismissed the case. Björnsson charged her with slander. Things escalated to a point where Björnsson was not allowed to see his daughter for three years. The situation settled over the years, and he frequently visits his daughter, Theresa Líf, who resides in Denmark with her mother.

In late 2017, Björnsson began dating Canadian fitness model Kelsey Morgan Henson, whom he met in Alberta during a promotional event for Icelandic Mountain Vodka and touring for the Warwick Strongman Festival. The couple garnered media attention because of their height difference. They married in August 2018, and on 26 September 2020, welcomed a son.

On 10 November 2023, the couple announced on Instagram that they had lost a baby girl at 21 weeks of gestation.

Nutrition During his Strongman days, Björnsson had to constantly force-feed himself to maintain his size and strength. As a general rule, his macro balance was 2:2:1 carbs-to-protein-to-fat ratio. A typical breakfast could consist of eggs, bacon, and French toast while a typical lunch may consist of rice, steak (or ground bison or salmon), potatoes, spinach, carrots, and chicken stock. He had six to eight healthy meals a day, with the occasional exception: "one cheat meal once in a while is fine as long as you stay on track the rest of the time".

From mid-2020, Björnsson reduced his caloric intake to around 5,000 calories a day, with a much stricter diet that helped him with his body transformation, to suit boxing.

In March 2017, he was diagnosed with Bell's palsy, which paralysed half of his face. He recovered later that year, though he still has a slight facial droop on the right side.

In an interview, when asked if he had ever used steroids, Björnsson answered: "Yes, I have. When you want to be the best, you do whatever it takes". He did not provide further information related to the cycles or whether his use of the substances was ongoing. He has never failed a drug test during his entire career.

Endorsements In 2016, Björnsson co-founded the spirits brand Icelandic Mountain Vodka, which is a seven-time distilled Icelandic vodka. The company also produces gin.

Together with Unnar Helgi Danielsson, Dylan Sprouse, and Terry Crews, Björnsson is also a co-founder and brand ambassador of Thor's Skyr, a traditional Icelandic high-protein cultured dairy product high in probiotics and low in sugar.

Björnsson also owns 'Thor's Power Apparel', a family business retailing branded merchandise via an online shop, and is also a brand ambassador for SodaStream.