LOUIS CYR
Louis Cyr |
The most famous (and strongest) of all the great strongmen from
Quebec, Canada - Louis Cyr's strength appeared to be limitless.
At 17, he won his first contest (by lifting a horse!) and not long afterwards began his career
as a performing circus strongman. Cyr toured with the John Robinson circus, and while he traveled far and wide, John Robinson offered
$25,000 to anyone who could duplicate any one of Cyr's feats. |
What types of feats you ask?
Cyr could hold back horses,
backlift 4300 pounds, lifted 545 pounds with his middle finger only,
lifted and shouldered a 445-pound barrel filled with water and sand, pushed a loaded
freight car up a slight grade, and, of course, lift his famous Challenge Dumbbell.
Of course, Cyr was challenged by many of the strongest men who ever lived and with the exception of
his last contest with Hector Decarie, he came away
victorious each time. Here's a look at some of Louis Cyr's most famous challengers:
David Michaude - Quebec, 1881
Richard Pennel - Philadelphia, 1886
Sebastian Miller
- Montreal, 1891
Cyclops and the false "Sandowe" - Montreal, 1891
Donald Dinnie - Potarch, Scotland, 1892
The McCann Brothers - England, 1892
August Johnson - Chicago, 1896
Otto Rinaldo - Montreal, 1899
Hector Decarie - Montreal, 1906
For his incredible feats, Cyr was awarded the
World's Champion Strongman Belt by Richard K. Fox, editor of the Police Gazette.
Louis Cyr Blog Posts:
Louis Cyr Rock Press
John Grimek Bent-Presses the Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell
Louis Cyr Strikes a Classic Pose
The Louis Cyr Statue
John Grimek vs. the Cyr Challenge Dumbbell
The Richard K. Fox Heavyweight Strongman Championship Belt
The Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell
Strongman Breaks Cobblestones with his Hands
Oldtime Strongman Feats: The Human Link
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Books Written By and About Louis Cyr:
Louis Cyr: The Strongest Man That Ever Lived by George Jowett, 1927
The Strongest Man in History: Louis Cyr, "Amazing Canadian" by Ben Weider, 1976
Memoires De L'homme Le Plus Fort Du Monde by Louis Cyr, 1982
Louis Cyr, Une Epopee Legendaire by Paul Ohl, 2005
The Strongest Man in the World: Louis Cyr by Nicolas Debon, 2007
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The Strongest Man in the World:
Louis Cyr by Nicolas Debon, 2007
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The Strongest Man in History: Louis Cyr, "Amazing Canadian" by Ben Weider, 1976
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Louis Cyr: The Strongest Man That
Ever Lived by George Jowett, 1927
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One of Louis Cyr's Most Famous Feats:
December 10, 1891, Sohmer Park, Montreal, Canada - Louis Cyr resists the pull of two draught horses
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