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The Rise and Destruction of Derek Poundstone

Strength Universe

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The Rise and Destruction of Derek Poundstone

Derek Poundstone was one of the most powerful and complete strongmen of his era — a 6'1" police officer who beat legends, set world records and came within touching distance of the World’s Strongest Man title.

This documentary follows his rise through powerlifting and strongman, his victories at the Arnold Strongman Classic and Fortissimus, his battles with Žydrūnas Savickas and Mariusz Pudzianowski, and the injuries that eventually brought his career to an end.

At his peak, Poundstone combined brutal strength, speed and athleticism in a way few strongmen ever have.

Credits:
Clip of quad injury: Basementbrandon: @basementbrandon
Competition footage from: The World's Strongest Man
and Giants Live

#derekpoundstone #strongman #worldsstrongestman
#strengthsports

20 Comments

@StrengthUniverse Creator 1 month ago Pinned

Where do you rank Derek Poundstone among the greatest strongmen never to win World’s Strongest Man — and what was his most impressive performance?

@SkepticalGerry 1 month ago

I hope he's not living in too much pain today, what an athlete

@piotrekf943 1 month ago

One of best strongman that never won WSM

@samarthur1847 1 month ago

Great video, and a truly great athlete. I still think his lifting of the Cyr stone is one of the greatest feats of strength in the modern age. More people have deadlifted over 500kg in living memory, than have lifted that stone.

@jcam4050 1 month ago

I met Derek in 2011 at the British Bodybuilding Grand Prix in London and got a picture with him. He was absolutely massive!

@g-man2507 1 month ago

One of the best physiques in strongman and best name.😂😂😂

@H.K.5 3 weeks ago

His physique was insane, especially for a strongman.

@amoo2007 4 weeks ago

He is the reason why I got into strength training and eventually powerlifting. One of my heroes, without a doubt. If you've ever had a poundstone shake, you know how much I love this guy.

@francisngannouhaircut2616 4 weeks ago

Even his last name sound strong

@Costa_del_Artlepool 5 days ago

6:17 He took that painfully close loss very well indeed, with the Hollywood smile and everything. It's the most memorable Stones finish for me and I give Derek enormous credit for it.

@JimmySilverFoot 1 month ago

His physique was so cool looking.

@PinnaclePete 1 month ago

I remember reading Vasily Alekseyev saying something like, 'The mind is no good for blocking out pain.' Derek forced himself through a lot of pain as he continued to compete despite his doctors recommendations to stop.
I wish Derek had won at least one WSM contest before he ultimately retired. He made the right decision though. Many strongmen you've covered lately didn't live very long, and Derek is still alive!

@jasengriffin485 1 month ago

My favorite strongman of all time. Too bad injuries took him out.

@EricBischoff-c4x 3 weeks ago

Met him at the 2010 Arnold, total class act

@u04pww2 4 weeks ago

One of the strongest physically and mentally of all time, a tough MF

@simon2161 3 weeks ago

Great athlete and really enjoyed watching him compete

@Gareths-Guilty-Pleasures 1 month ago

Warrior of a strongman. Greatest to never win the title. Sadly there was always a pretty severe injury he was competing through.

I remember his early giants lives and wsm when Marius was the boss. And poundstone was super quick and strong and he looked to be the new sheriff in town.

@tago69mago671 2 days ago

Absolute animal! Remember when he burst onto the strongman scene, seemingly out of nowhere. Such a shame that he dropped the 5th stone to become WSM. He deserved to win that one!