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Janne Virtanen

This article is about the Finnish strongman, for the Finnish actor, see Janne Virtanen (actor).

Janne Virtanen (born 16 November 1969) is a Finnish former strongman who won the World's Strongest Man championship in 2000. He was runner-up in 1999 and finished third in 2001. His other championships include four-time Finland's Strongest Man (1998, 1999, 2000, 2001), Helsinki Grand Prix (2000), and the Turkey Grand Prix in 2002 in Istanbul. He also won second place in Europe's Strongest Man twice, third place in World Muscle Power Classic and won World's Strongest Team four times with Jouko Ahola, Pasi Paavisto and Juha-Matti Räsänen.

Following his second consecutive failure to reach the final of the World's Strongest Man in 2007, he announced his retirement but entered into the third qualifying heat of the competition in 2008 as his last appearance.

He currently works as a heavy duty carpenter in Finland.

Personal Records

  • Deadlift (raw with straps) – 340 kg (750 lb) (2001 World's Strongest Man, group 4) and 365 kg (805 lb) (during training)
  • Log press – 155 kg (342 lb) (2002 IFSA Turkey Grand Prix)
  • Axle press – 161 kg (355 lb) (2009 Strongman Super Series Romania Grand Prix)
  • Keg Toss – 20 kg (44 lb) over 5.18 metres (17 ft 0 in) (2000 Beauty and the Beast)
  • Celtic cross carry – 200 kg (441 lb) for 64.23 metres (210 ft 9 in) (2000 IFSA Ireland Grand Prix) (World Record)[2]

Completed contests

References

  1. ^ Previous Strongman Contests Top 3 davidhorne-gripmaster.com. Retrieved 7 January 2021
  2. ^ "STRENGTH RECORD, Section 13 - Revolving, Pushing & Carrying". www.strengthrecord.com. Retrieved 12 April 2025.