Monday, December 21, 2009
Apollon PosterHere's one you don't see every day: a rare poster, circa 1895, advertising the performance of the great French strongman Apollon. In addition to feats of strength, Apollon was also a very good animal trainer. One unique feat of strength which encompassed both areas of his expertise was for Apollon to lift a full grown lion and carry the beast around on his shoulders.
Labels: Apollon, Block Weights, French Strongman, Lion, Performing Strongman, Poster, Strongman Poster
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, December 14, 2009
French Gym ~ 1905Here's an awesome French Gym, circa 1905. Looks like it is Noel Le Gaulois' place. The area in front of the weights was actually a sand pit which was there to provide a surface to drop the weights in case of a missed lift. This area was also used for wrestling.
If you look closely, you can see posters on the wall for Batta, Charles Sampson, and Apollon, among others.
Labels: Apollon, Batta, Charles Sampson, Circus Poster, Classic Strongman Gyms, Globe Barbell, Noel Le Gaulois
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Friday, August 21, 2009
Apollon Trained With KettlebellsYou can add the great French Strongman Apollon to the long list of athletes who have used Kettlebells over the years. This picture is from a course written in 1909.
Labels: Apollon, Kettlebell, kettlebell training
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Thursday, August 20, 2009
John Grimek and Classic WeightsWhen you work at the York Barbell Company you get to lift some classic weights any time you want to. Here's John Grimek about to do just that. The top one is the famous Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell. The middle one is a giant dumbbell which belonged to the great French strongman Apollon. Dave Sheppard can be seen lifting that one here and I can be found using it here. You can see Grimek using the bottom one here.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Dumbbell, Classic Equipment, Globe Barbell, Globe Dumbbell, John Grimek, Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell, York Barbell Company
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, June 08, 2009
Viktor SolovyevViktor Solovyev, the great Ukrania strongman and wrestler, is shown here looking quite impressive in this rare picture take around 1906. As far as his lifting feats, he was able to 'slow clurl' 165 pounds, perform a Crucifix Lift with 60 pounds in each hand and could jerk 293 pounds. As a wrestler, he defeated Franz 'Cyclops' Bienkowski, the French Giant Louis 'Apollon' Uni, George Lurich, Pyotr Krylov and many others on the way to winning several world championships.
Labels: Apollon, British Wrestler, Curl, Cyclops, Franz Bienkowski, George Lurich, Oldtime Strongman, Pyotyr Krylov, Slow Curl, Ukranian Strongman, Viktor Solovyev
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, May 04, 2009
Young ApollonThe famous French strongman Louis "Apollon" Uni at 19 years of age. As the story goes he ran off and joined the circus at 14 and started performing as a strongman a year later. Even at this young age, Apollon's potential for great strength is evident by his thick bone structure. Strength ran in the family, it as said that he was descended from Pompelius Unicus, an undefeated Roman Gladiator.
Labels: Apollon, Circus Strongman, French Strongman, Globe Dumbbell, Louis Uni, Oldtime Strongman
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, April 02, 2009
| George "Rasso" Stanglemeier was an early German strongman famous for his arm strength and development. In fact, he was one of the first strongmen to curl over 200 pounds. He was the leader of the group of strongmen known as the Rasso Trio (who were famously defeated by Apollon.) |  George "Rasso" Stanglemeier |
Labels: Apollon, Bicep Strength, George 'Rasso' Stanglemeier, German Strongman, Rasso Trio
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Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Apollon - "Le Roi des Athletes"An extremely rare posterof the great French Strongman Apollon. he was called "Le Roi des Athletes" (The King of Athletes) for good reason, even a hundred years later no one has even come close to bettering any of his feats. He is shown performing a Muscle Out with a ring weight and a small horse! Apollon's famous wheels are pictured as well.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Feats of Strength, French Strongman, Muscle Out, Poster, Ring Weights
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Dave Sheppard Lifts Apollon's DumbbellA famous picture of Dave Sheppard lifting a classic stage dumbbell that once belonged to the French strongman Apollon. This is the very same dumbbell that I can be seen lifting here. You can't tell by the picture but the handle is made of polished brass, and a true work of art.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Dumbbell, Dave Sheppard, Globe Dumbbell, Thick Handle
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, February 16, 2009
ApollonSomething that you may not have noticed is that the great French Strongman Apollon rarely performed two-arm lifts, instead preferring to train with heavy barbells or dumbbells by lifting them with each hand individually. Even a hundred years later that's still a great way to get strong...
Labels: Apollon, Barbell, Dumbbell, One Arm Lift
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Friday, January 30, 2009
Physical Training in Ancient Turkey The gymnastic exercises of the students of Mekteb-i Sultani, taken in Istanbul, Turkey, circa 1879. Note the use of large globe dumbbells, ring weights, kettlebells and the high bar for gymnastics. All very interesting in that the equipment looks very similar to that which was often used by Apollon.
Labels: Ancient Training, Apollon, Globe Dumbbell, Istanbul, Kettlebells, Ring Weights, Turkey, Vintage Strength Equipment
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Thursday, December 04, 2008
John Lemm"The Swiss Hercules" John Lemm, a champion wrestler, was one of the first men to squat with over 500 pounds. Judging by this picture it is not hard to see why as his thick bone structure and naturally rugged musculature is evident.
Lemm won a famous 1908 wrestling tournament in London billed as "The Battle of Giants" where he defeated (among others) then-title holder Russian Ivan Poddubny and the great French wrestler/strongman Apollon.
Labels: Apollon, Ivan Poddubny, John Lemm, Squat, Swiss Hercules, Swiss Strongman, Wrestler
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Friday, April 25, 2008
| Charles Batta, or, as he was more commonly known "Batta" was an oldtime strongman famous for his incredible grip strength. Standing at 5'10" and a bodyweight of only 200 popunds, Batta was the only man who duplicated one of the Apollon's greatest feats: the lifting of four 44-pound blockweights overhead -- each tied to a finger of one hand. It was also written that Batta cleaned (but did not jerk) Apollon's famous railroad wheels - an incredible feat in its own right, but even more so due to his light bodyweight. |  Batta |
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Batta, Blockweights, Grip Feat, Grip Strength, Oldtime Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Apollon One of the barbells that the great French Strongman Apollon used to lift during his performances had a 2-1/2 inch thick diameter handle and was made up of two hollow spheres which could be loaded with sand to adjust the weight.
This barbell weighed 143 pounds empty and filled with sand it tipped the scales at 198 pounds. Just before he was to perform, a rival strongman played a trick on Apollon and replaced the sand-filled spheres with solid iron ones which brought the weight of the barbell to 341 pounds.
During the performance, Apollon lifted the barbell with ease... Apollon's strength was so great that he did not even notice the difference!
Labels: Apollon, Globe Barbell, Grip Feat, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Thick Handle
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Sunday, January 06, 2008
Thick Bar TrainingAn impromptu shot from a training session last summer. Should there be any question why so many of the oldtime strongmen lifted with Thick Bars?
This thick-handled globe "dumbbell" once belonged to the French Strongman Apollon.
Labels: Apollon, Forearm Strength, Globe Dumbbell, Grip Strength, John Wood, Thick Bar, Thick Bar Lifting, Thick Bar Training
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Saturday, January 05, 2008
 The Arm of Apollon |  ApollonIt has been said that Apollon is the greatest of the Oldtime Strongmen and this picture shows a pretty good reason why. This is a rare photograph made of a plaster cast of Apollon's arm when he was in his prime. While Apollon's upper arm is certainly impressive at over 20 inches, it is his 16-1/2-inch forearm which simply boggles the mind. It should be no surprise why Apollon was so adept at feats of grip strength. |
Labels: Apollon, Arm of Apollon, Forearm Strength, French Strongman, Oldtime Strongman
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Sunday, December 16, 2007
 Apollon | The great French Strongman Apollon was well known for his grip feats. With reported 19-inch Forearms and 9-inch long hands, it's not hard to see why. This allowed him to toy with thick-handled weights that few other strongmen could even budge off the ground. |
Labels: Apollon, Forearm Strength, French Strongman, Oldtime Strongman Feat, Thick Bar Lifting
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Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Apollon Thick Bar Strength FeatThe great Oldtime Strongman Apollon used to perform a number of unusual strength feats in his act -- many of them involved thick-handled equipment to take advantage of his incredible grip and forearm strength.
One of his signature feats involved a a unique 4-globed barbell with a 2-1/2 inch diameter handle. The two inner globes were solid while the outer globes were hollow which allowed the weight to be adjusted by filling them with sand or shot.
When full, the whole affair weighed 314 pounds. Apollon would "clean" the weight to his chest then press it with two hands...
While the barbell was overhead, he would balance it on one hand, lift his leg out in front of him, then allowed the bell to drop and caught it in the crook of his elbows.
Labels: Apollon, Grip Strength, Oldtime Strongman, Strongman Feat, Thick Bar, Thick Bar Lifting
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Apollon: King of StrengthLouis Uni, the French Strongman known professionally as "Apollon," was certainly one of the greatest, if not the greatest strongman who even lived.
It was Apollon, along with Louis Cyr who were dubbed "Les Rois de la Force" (Kings of Strength) by Professor Desbonnet because their strength was so far above and beyond the ordinary.
Apollon, who was at his peak during the 1890s, stood 6"2' and in solid muscular condition, around 260 pounds.
While he was certainly thickly-muscled and strong all over, he excelled in grip an forearm feats, especially lifting thick handled weights, such as the Challenge Weight that bears his name.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Forearm Strength, Grip Strength, Les Rois de la Force, Louis Uni, Oldtime Strongman, Professor Desbonnet, Strongman Feat
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, October 22, 2007
John Davis Lifts The Apollon WheelsSeptember 13th, 1949 -- American Olympic Weightlifting Champion John Davis succeeds in cleaning & jerking the famous Apollon Wheels. This weight once belonged to the great French Strongman Louis "Apollon" Uni who would lift it each night in his act.
The wheels themselves weigh 366 pounds connected by a 1.93" diameter axle making this feat an incredible test of grip strength. The widest diameter of each disc is 26 inches.
After passing out on a previous attempt, (dropping the weight and slightly bending the axle) John Davis cleaned the ponderous weight with a mixed grip, switched hands in mid-air, and jerked it overhead.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Grip Strength, John Davis, Olympics, Strongman Equipment, Strongman Feat, Thick Bar
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Monday, October 15, 2007
J.C. Tolson - The Young Mighty ApollonJ.C. Tolson was a British performing strongman in the 1920's who took the name "The Young Mighty Apollon" after his hero, the great French Strongman Louis "Apollon" Uni.
As he traveled the continent, he issued a strength challenge to all which included the following feats:
Few accepted his challenge.
Labels: Apollon, J.C. Tolson, Oldtime Strongman, Overhead Press, Steel Bending, Strongman, Strongman Feat, Young Apollon
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Norb Schemansky Lifts The Apollon WheelsAt the turn of the century, the French strongman Apollon introduced his famous challenge weight -- a pair of railcar wheels attached by a thick axle.
The whole affair weighed 366 lbs. but the real challenge laid in the 1.93 inch thick axle which meant that only the strongest pairs of hands would ever have a shot at breaking it free of the ground.
Apollon, who likely had the strongest grip in history, was the only man who ever lifted it for decades...
Many a strongman tried but all failed until the great french weight lifter Charles Rigoulot finally achieved the feat in 1930 after having trained for it over the course of several months.
Nearly two decades later the American weightlifting champion John Davis was able to lift the wheels on his second try (after passing out on his first attempt.)
On October 14th, 1954 another American weightlifting champion, Norbert Schemansky, "cleaned" the Apollon wheels and jerked them three times in succession, thus writing his name (again) in the record books.
Labels: Apollon, Apollon's Wheels, Charles Rigoulot, Grip Strength, John Davis, Norb Schemansky, Strongman Equipment, Strongman Feat, Thick Bar
www.oldtimestrongman.com
All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
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