Mariusz

Mariusz began training strength sports at age 13½, in December, 1990. Mariusz cites his key strength supplement as malted milk. "I met a kid, he was 12 years old," he said in a interview. "I could not lift him, then he tried to, and he lifted me up 6 inches in the air. He was strong." This motivated him to work out and become the world's strongest man.On May 1, 1999 Mariusz entered his first Strongman competition, which was held in P,,ock, Poland. He achieved his first major success at the international level in 2000 when he finished fourth in his first World's Strongest Man competition. He returned to win the WSM contest in 2002, and retained his title in 2003 by the largest margin ever achieved in the competition. In March, 2004 he also became the Strongman Super Series World Champion. He initially finished third in the WSM contest in 2004, but was later disqualified after testing positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance. He was forced to return his prize money, stripped of the International Federation of Strength Athletes points from the event, and received a one year ban from competition. Pudzianowski did not dispute his banned substance violation and waived his right to have his stool sample verified. He then returned to win the title for a third time in 2005.In the 2006 World's Strongest Man contest, he came second to the American Phil Pfister, the first American to win the championship since 1982. Pudzianowski led the competition until the final event- the Atlas Stones- where Pfister completed a come-from-behind victory by putting the last Atlas Stone in place less than one second before Mariusz.Pudzianowski came back to take first place in the 2007 World's Strongest Man, joining Jón Páll Sigmarsson and Magnús Ver Magnússon as the only four-time winners. Mariusz maintains his agility, conditioning, and general physical preparedness through other athletic endeavors. He is a practitioner of Kyokushin karate (fourth kyu), which he has been practicing between the age of 11 to 13 (later between the age of 26-27). He was also a competitive boxer for seven years (1992-1999), three of which were spent in the Kosedowski League. Mariusz is a favorite in every strongman competition he enters, having been defeated only twice in Poland through 2002, with his worst placing being a respectable second.Pudzianowski's father was also a large weightlifter and winner of the Polish weightlifting championship in his youth. When he saw his son's size and potential at a young age, he began to give him advice in weightlifting. This relationship continues today, as Mariusz has revealed that his father continues to coach him in his training.Unlike some strongmen, Mariusz retains a very low body fat percentage which helps him with his speed and endurance.Following the example of bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger, he intends to pursue acting after his strongman career (he already played in 6 Polish films so far). Along with his brother Krystian he also founded the Pudzian Band.