It’s Keene’s first win in professional strongman since 2016.
Rongo Keene is the winner of the 2022 Magnús Ver Magnússon Strongman Classic (MVMSC). During the contest that took place on Nov. 18-20, 2022, in Reykjavík, Iceland, the Australian athlete captured his first victory since the 2016 Australia’s Strongest Man (ASM) contest.
The two competitors who joined Keene on the podium were Canada’s Maxime Boudreault (second) and Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted (third), respectively. For Boudreault, it’s his first podium finish since winning the 2022 Canada’s Strongest Man (CSM) in late August. Meanwhile, Melsted once again finished in the top three at the MVMSC after a second-place result at the 2021 iteration.
Here are the final standings from the 2022 Magnús Ver Magnússon Strongman Classic:
2022 Magnús Ver Magnússon Strongman Classic
- Rongo Keene (Australia) — 87.5 points
- Maxime Boudreault (Canada) — 81.5 points
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted (Iceland) — 79 points
- Vilius Jokužys (Lithuania) — 72.5 points
- Colton Sloan (Canada) — 68.5 points
- Stefán Karel Torfason (Iceland) — 65.5 points
- Ervin Toots (Estonia) — 65.5 points
- Mika Törrö (Finland) — 56.5 points
- Jacob Finerty (United States) — 54.5 points
- James Jeffers (Canada) — 51.5 points
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson (Iceland) — 50 points
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen (Greenland) — 46.5 points
- Pierre Motal (France) — 33.5 points
- Ryan England (United Kingdom) — 26.5 points
Here’s an overview of the respective results at each event of the 2022 MVMSC.
Event One — Rock Press
The weight of the six stones during the opening rock press event of the 2022 MVMSC ranged from 100 to 150 kilograms (220.4 to 330.7 pounds). In the end, Keene, Melsted, and the United States’ Jacob Finerty finished in a three-way tie for first place. They all successfully lifted the fifth stone, which weighed 138 kilograms (304.2 pounds).
- Rongo Keene — 138 kilograms (304.2 pounds) | Tied-first
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — 138 kilograms (304.2 pounds) | Tied-first
- Jacob Finerty — 138 kilograms (304.2 pounds) | Tied-first
- Vilius Jokužys — 122 kilograms (268.9 pounds)
- Colton Sloan — 112 kilograms (246.9 pounds) | Tied-third
- Stefán Karel Torfason — 112 kilograms (246.9 pounds) | Tied-third
- Mika Törrö — 112 kilograms (246.9 pounds) | Tied-third
- James Jeffers — 112 kilograms (246.9 pounds) | Tied-third
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — 112 kilograms (246.9 pounds) | Tied-third
- Maxime Boudreault — 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds) | Tied-fourth
- Ervin Toots — 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds) | Tied-fourth
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds) | Tied-fourth
- Pierre Motal — 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds) | Tied-fourth
- Ryan England — 100 kilograms (220.4 pounds) | Tied-fourth
Event Two — Natural Stones
In an event akin to the famed Atlas stones, the respective athletes had to lift four stones ranging from 130 to 185 kilograms (286.6 to 407.8 pounds) in the fastest time possible. Iceland’s Kristján Jón Haraldsson lapped the rest of the field, being the only athlete to finish lifting all four stones in less than 30 seconds en route to the event win.
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — Four stones in 26.73 seconds
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — Four stones in 32.17 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault — Four stones in 33.21 seconds
- Ervin Toots — Four stones in 34.13 seconds
- James Jeffers — Four stones in 38.79 seconds
- Stefán Karel Torfason — Four stones in 45.41 seconds
- Vilius Jokužys — Three stones in 16.33 seconds
- Rongo Keene — Three stones in 19.39 seconds
- Jacob Finerty — Three stones in 21.74 seconds
- Mika Törrö — Three stones in 24.97 seconds
- Colton Sloan — Three stones in 25.12 seconds
- Pierre Motal — Three stones in 25.96 seconds
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — Three stones in 33.68 seconds
- Ryan England — Two stones in 19.9 seconds
Event Three — Hammer Throw
The hammer throw event — where the competitors hurl a 21-kilogram (46.3-pound) hammer implement as far as possible — finished the first day of the contest. Iceland’s Stefán Karel Torfason won the event when he threw his hammer 9.9 meters.
- Stefán Karel Torfason — 9.9 meters
- Vilius Jokužys — 9.22 meters
- Maxime Boudreault — 9.14 meters
- Ervin Toots — 8.78 meters
- Mika Törrö — 8.43 meters
- Rongo Keene — 8.32 meters
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — 8.03 meters
- Jacob Finerty — 7.94 meters
- James Jeffers — 7.81 meters
- Ryan England — 7.55 meters
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — 7.41 meters
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — 7.19 meters
- Colton Sloan — 6.62 meters
- Pierre Motal — 6.47 meters
Event Four — Husafell Stone Carry
To start the second day, the competitors had to carry around the usual Husafell stone weighing 186 kilograms (410 pounds) in a circle for a maximum distance, with one rotation being 35 meters. Lithuania’s Vilius Jokužys ultimately finished on top when he took his stone 83.9 meters.
- Vilius Jokužys — 83.9 meters
- Maxime Boudreault — 80 meters
- Colton Sloan — 75.3 meters
- Stefán Karel Torfason — 70.9 meters
- Ervin Toots — 67.2 meters
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — 58.9 meters
- Rongo Keene — 51.4 meters
- James Jeffers — 51.2 meters
- Mika Törrö — 49.6 meters
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — 48.9 meters
- Pierre Motal — 48.7 meters
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — 45.4 meters
- Jacob Finerty — 36 meters
- Ryan England — 35.9 meters
Event Five — Stone-to-Shoulder Medley
In the stone-to-shoulder medley, the athletes had to lift four successive stones weighing from 100 to 145 kilograms (220.4 to 319.6 pounds) to their shoulders as fast as they could. Keene had the best result, lifting all four stones in 34.16 seconds, more than two full seconds faster than the next-best competitor.
- Rongo Keene — Four stones in 34.16 seconds
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — Four stones in 36.2 seconds
- Maxime Boudreault — Four stones in 36.91 seconds
- Colton Sloan — Four stones in 52.07 seconds
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — Four stones in 54.77 seconds
- Ervin Toots — Four stones in 1:01.89 seconds
- Vilius Jokužys — Three stones in 22.69 seconds
- James Jeffers — Three stones in 22.73 seconds
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — Three stones in 26.69 seconds
- Jacob Finerty — Three stones in 30.02 seconds
- Pierre Motal — Three stones in 31.35 seconds
- Ryan England — Three stones in 35.66 seconds
- Mika Törrö — Three stones in 38.91 seconds
- Stefán Karel Torfason — Two stones in 12.39 seconds
Event Six — Farmer’s Walk
In a slight shift from the usual farmer’s walk structure where equally weighted handles are carried, the competitors had to carry two differently weighted implements (137 kilograms/302 pounds and 142 kilograms/313 pounds) in each hand for the farthest distance. Finland’s Mika Törrö took his respective weights 35.88 meters for the win.
- Mika Törrö — 35.88 meters
- Rongo Keene — 34.77 meters
- Stefán Karel Torfason — 29.4 meters
- Maxime Boudreault — 27.95 meters
- Vilius Jokužys — 25.44 meters
- Colton Sloan — 18.6 meters
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — 15.42 meters
- Ervin Toots — 15.3 meters
- Jacob Finerty — 13.78 meters
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — 10.1 meters
- Pierre Motal — 8.21 meters
- James Jeffers — 5.53 meters
- Ryan England — 4.55 meters
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — 1.13 meters
Event Seven — Axle Deadlift for Reps
To kick off festivities on the final day of the 2022 MVMSC, the athletes had to complete as many reps of a 325-kilogram (716.5-pound) axle deadlift as possible within a 75-second time limit. Melsted paced ahead of the field by pulling seven reps.
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — Seven reps
- Rongo Keene — Five reps | Tied-second
- Colton Sloan — Five reps | Tied-second
- Pierre Motal — Five reps | Tied-second)
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — Five reps | Tied-second
- Jacob Finerty — Four reps | Tied-third
- James Jeffers — Four reps | Tied-third
- Mika Törrö — Three reps | Tied-fourth
- Stefán Karel Torfason — Three reps | Tied-fourth
- Maxime Boudreault — Two reps | Tied-fifth
- Ervin Toots — Two reps | Tied-fifth
- Vilius Jokužys — One rep | Tied-sixth
- Ryan England — One rep | Tied-sixth
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — N/A
Event Eight — Log Press Medley
The final event of the competition featured the log press medley, where everyone had to successfully press four logs with weights ranging from 110 and 165 kilograms (242.5 and 363.7 pounds) in the fastest time. Famed for his shoulder press strength, Boudreault was able to coast to the event victory and cement his overall second-place finish.
- Maxime Boudreault — Four logs in 30.63 seconds
- Eythór Ingólfsson Melsted — Four logs in 38.28 seconds
- Rongo Keene — Three logs in 24.09 seconds
- Colton Sloan — Three logs in 30.63 seconds
- Ervin Toots — Three logs in 31.97 seconds
- Ryan England — Three logs in 32.36 seconds
- Kim Ujarak Lorentzen — Three logs in 36.37 seconds
- Jacob Finerty — Three logs in 1:00.86 seconds
- Vilius Jokužys — Two logs in 14.72 seconds
- Mika Törrö — Two logs in 17.54 seconds
- Stefán Karel Torfason — Two logs in 19.46 seconds
- Pierre Motal — Two logs in 19.8 seconds
- James Jeffers — Two logs in 20.86 seconds
- Kristján Jón Haraldsson — Two logs in 29.58 seconds
The 2022 calendar year has been productive for Keene. With this victory in the 2022 MVMSC, the Australian athlete has now notched three podium finishes in five 2022 contests. Capturing a victory in one of the bigger strongman competitions might be the perfect cherry on top.
Featured image: magnus_classic on Instagram
