The 2022 Arnold Strongman Classic was a strongman contest that took place in Columbus, Ohio from 4–5 March 2022 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. The Arnold Strongman Classic is seen as one of the biggest and most prestigious strongmen events on the circuit. This year marked the return of the competition after the 2021 edition was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Martins Licis won the competition for the first time, becoming only the fourth man to win the Arnold Strongman Classic and the World's Strongest Man competitions after Zydrunas Savickas, Brian Shaw and Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, with Oleksii Novikov finishing in second place, and Bobby Thompson and Luke Stoltman finishing joint third place.
Qualifying Due to the COVID-19 pandemic preventing any qualifying event from the Arnold Strongman Tour in 2020 and 2021, this edition had an invitational system where athletes were invited based on past achievements in the sport. Athletes that qualified and their method for qualification are as follows: Name Nationality Method of Qualification Maxime Boudreault 2021 Magnús Ver Magnússon Strongman Classic Champion JF Caron 3rd Place, 2021 Shaw Classic; 3rd Place, 2020 World's Strongest Man; 2018 & 2019 Canada's Strongest Man Rob Kearney 6th Place, 2021 Rogue Invitational; 2019 Arnold Strongman Australia Champion Mateusz Kieliszkowski (withdrew) 4th Place, 2021 Rogue Invitational; 2nd Place, 2018 & 2019 World's Strongest Man Martins Licis 2021 Rogue Invitational Champion; 2019 World's Strongest Man; 3rd Place, 2020 Arnold Strongman Classic; 2nd Place, 2019 Arnold Strongman Classic Evgeny Markov 2020 Arnold Amateur Strongman World Champion Trey Mitchell 2021 Shaw Classic Champion; 4th Place, 2021 World's Strongest Man Oleksii Novikov 2020 World's Strongest Man; 3rd Place, 2021 Rogue Invitational Luke Stoltman 2021 Europe's Strongest Man Tom Stoltman 2021 World's Strongest Man; 2nd Place, 2021 Rogue Invitational Bobby Thompson (Reserve) 2019 Arnold Amateur Strongman World Champion
Event results Event 1: Double T Squat Notes: 3 lifts per athlete, weights to be submitted before each round. Special Note: Double T stands for Terry Todd, whom the event is named in honour of. # Athlete Nation Weight Event Points Overall Points 1 JF Caron 10 10 2 Rob Kearney 9 9 3 Martins Licis 8 8 4 Bobby Thompson 7 7 5 Oleksii Novikov 6 6 6 Maxime Boudreault 4.5 4.5 6 Tom Stoltman 4.5 4.5 8 Trey Mitchell 3 3 9 Evgeny Markov 2 2 10 Luke Stoltman 1 1
Event 2: Monster Dumbell Press Weight: for max repetitions. Time Limit: 90 seconds # Athlete Nation Repetitions Event Points Overall Points 1 Oleksii Novikov 7 10 16 2 Rob Kearney 4 9 18 3 Martins Licis 3 7 15 3 Evgeny Markov 3 7 9 3 Luke Stoltman 3 7 8 6 Maxime Boudreault 1 5 9.5 7 JF Caron 0 2.5 12.5 7 Bobby Thompson 0 2.5 9.5 7 Tom Stoltman 0 2.5 7 7 Trey Mitchell 0 2.5 5.5
Event 3: Austrian Oak Notes: 3 lifts per athlete, weights to be submitted before each round. # Athlete Nation Weight Event Points Overall Points 1 Luke Stoltman 10 18 2 Trey Mitchell 9 14.5 3 Bobby Thompson 8 17.5 4 Martins Licis 7 22 5 Oleksii Novikov 4.5 20.5 5 Rob Kearney 4.5 22.5 5 Maxime Boudreault 4.5 14 5 Tom Stoltman 4.5 11.5 9 Evgeny Markov 1.5 10.5 9 JF Caron 1.5 14
Event 4: Timber Carry Weight: Course Length: ramp Time Limit: 30 seconds Notes: No straps are allowed. Fastest time wins, then distance. # Athlete Nation Time Event Points Overall Points 1 Maxime Boudreault 8.41 10 24 2 Martins Licis 10.03 9 31 3 Oleksii Novikov 8 28.5 4 Tom Stoltman 7 18.5 5 Luke Stoltman 6 24 6 Bobby Thompson 5 22.5 7 Evgeny Markov 4 14.5 8 Rob Kearney 3 25.5 9 Trey Mitchell 2 16.5
Event 5: Stone to Shoulder Weight: for max repetitions. Time Limit: 2 minutes 30 seconds. Notes: Athletes were awarded points for getting the stone to their lap or torso but not completing the full repetition. # Athlete Nation Repetitions Event Points Overall Points 1 Martins Licis 2 10 41 2 Oleksii Novikov 1 (1 torso) 9 37.5 3 Bobby Thompson 1 8 30.5 4 Luke Stoltman 0 (2 torso) 6.5 30.5 4 Evgeny Markov 0 (2 torso) 6.5 21 6 Trey Mitchell 0 (1 torso) 5 21.5 7 Maxime Boudreault 0 3 27 7 Tom Stoltman 0 3 21.5 7 Rob Kearney 0 3 28.5
Final standings # Athlete Nation Points Martins Licis 41 Oleksii Novikov 37.5 Bobby Thompson 30.5 Luke Stoltman 30.5 5 Rob Kearney 28.5 6 Maxime Boudreault 27 7 Trey Mitchell 21.5 7 Tom Stoltman 21.5 9 Evgeny Markov 21 10 JF Caron 14
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(2021 Arnold Strongman Classic not held)