Parteen gets a lift from Strongmen

Men running around with cars and flipping giant tyres weighing over 70 stone will be just some of the sights on show in Parteen this weekend as some of the world’s top strength athletes compete in an international event.
Taking place in Shanakyle on Sunday, four two-man teams from Ireland, England and Scotland wiil take part in the event, hosted by the Limerick Strongman.
The teams feature three athletes who competed at last year’s World’s Strongest Man competition in Malta and all eight athletes have been national champions in their home country.
Representing Ireland will be James Fennelly from Kilkenny, is the reigning Republic Of Ireland’s Strongest Man. At just 25, James has won the Irish title twice and is a world champion power lifter. He will team up with four times All-Ireland champion Dave Warner from Northern Ireland. Warner (40) is a former competitor in the World’s Strongest Man event.
Mark Felix (43) from Lancashire will be one half of England’s team in Parteen. He will partner Laurence Shahlaei from Gloucester.
Scotland’s representatives, Christopher Innes and Lewis McClean, have maybe the least experience between them but both have been Scotland’s Strongest Man.
At 35, Slawek Toczek has finished eighth at the Worlds Strongest Man competition. Representing Poland, he is teamed with 39-year-old Jarek Dymek, the winner of the Europe’s Strongest Man title in 2005. Dymek is a training partner of Marius Pudzianowski, five times World’s Strongest Man and one of the sport’s most popular figures.
Six gruelling events have been organised. Both athletes must lift the car-wheelbarrow and run 60 meters in total.
Each team member must flip a 450kg (70 stone) 5ft tall tyre four times then tag his partner to do four more.
Both team members must lift 600kg (94 stone) for each representative with the most repetitions winning.
The men must lift a giant steal log weighing 250kg (39 stone) and press it over their heads. The team that does the most reps in 90 seconds wins.
One athlete lifts a 380kg (60 stone) super yoke apparatus and runs 30 meters tagging his team mate who runs 30m back down the course with the 280kg (44 stone) pair of farmers walk in his hands. Fastest time wins.
Teams must load objects into a sled and pull the 1000kg (1 ton or 157 stone) sled 30m down the course with the fastest time winning.