A Tullibody man will take his place among the UK’s biggest and best known behemoths after securing a spot at the UK’s Strongest Man competition later this year.
Chris Beetham, who works as a structural engineer away from the gym, secured his spot at the showpiece event after coming in second at the Scotland’s Strongest Man event in Grangemouth last weekend.
The competition – which featured five gruelling events including the truck pull, dumbbell press and the Atlas stones – offers the chance for the top finishers to take their place among the strongman elite at the national competition.
Chris will take to the stage hoping to follow in the footsteps of the Stoltman brothers, Tom and Luke – who have become household names around the world, with Tom the current World’s Strongest Man for the second year running.
The gruelling schedule includes balancing his work life and a young family with hours of training a week at his own personal gym, including specialist event training at the various strongman disciplines.
He told the Observer: “I’ve been competing for a few years but this was my first time on the podium and it was nice to be placing like that.
“It’s the second time I’ll be going to UKSM and I made it the hard way this year through the eliminator and it’s a good feeling to be cementing myself at that level.
“I’m so lucky that I have an understanding fiancee and family and everyone chips in and helps me to do this."
He added: “I watched World’s Strongest Man at Christmas every year as a kid and I’ve always been interested in it.
“I used to play rugby and fractured my back and when I went to a private physio, he was competing in strongman at the time and so I got to know him and asked lots of questions about it.
“The injury meant I couldn’t go back to contact sports but I loved the gym so it was a natural stepping stone to enter powerlifting competitions and it’s all gone from there.”
The date and setting for the 2023 event is yet to be announced, but Chris admits his first taste of the UK contest in Milton Keynes last time has made him hungry to do better next time around.
Chris added: “I never thought I would get near this level to be honest and I’ve set goals every year and more often than not, I’ve managed to achieve them.
“My lifetime goal was just to get to UKSM so to get there two years in a row is just an amazing feeling.
“I made day two of the event last year, so my goal this time is to get to the final day and be among the last eight men.”
