Martins Licis
 Licis in March 2017 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Mārtiņš Līcis |
| Nickname(s) | The Dragon (Latvian: Pūķis) |
| Born | September 28, 1990 Riga, Latvia |
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.90 m) |
| Weight | 355 lb (161kg) |
| Sport | |
| Sport | Strongman Mas-wrestling |
| Competition record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  United States
| ||
| World's Strongest Man | ||
| 6th | 2016 World's Strongest Man | |
| 4th | 2017 World's Strongest Man | |
| 4th | 2018 World's Strongest Man | |
| 1st | 2019 World's Strongest Man | |
| Arnold Strongman Classic | ||
| 8th | 2017 | |
| 2nd | 2019 Arnold Strongman Classic | |
| 3rd | 2020 Arnold Strongman Classic | |
| Giants Live | ||
| 3rd | Wembley 2019 | |
| America's Strongest Man | ||
| 2nd | 2015 | |
| Rogue Invitational | ||
| 1st | 2021 | |
Representing  Latvia
| ||
| 1st | 2017 Ultimate Strongman Summermania | |
Martins Licis (Latvian: Mārtiņš Līcis[needs IPA]; born September 28, 1990) is a Latvian-American professional strongman, notable for winning the 2019 World's Strongest Man competition, placing second and third in the Arnold Strongman Classic, and winning the first Rogue Invitational Strongman competition.[1]
Early life[]
Licis was born in Riga on September 28, 1990.[2] He holds dual citizenship with Latvia and the United States, and speaks Latvian fluently. He represents the United States in competition, having moved there with his family at the age of four. He grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts. During summers, he visited his grandparents' farm in Latvia, where he was first introduced to stone lifting by his grandfather Imants Līcis, a sculptor who formerly competed in Olympic weightlifting.[3]
In 2010, Licis moved to California together with his friend Mikel Monleon. Licis eventually found a job as a personal trainer in West Hollywood, and later found out about the All-American Strength Classic. Through this, Haugen invited Licis to train at his gym, but only let him compete in the Strength Classic three years later in 2015.[3]
Career[]
In 2015, Licis placed first in the Odd Haugen All-American Strength Classic. In 2016, Licis reached the World's Strongest Man finals for the first time and placed sixth. He placed fourth in the World’s Strongest Man finals in 2017 and 2018.[3] Besides Strongman, Licis also competes in mas-wrestling, a variation of stick wrestling. He won gold in the 2016 MAS Wrestling Open World Championships in Columbus Ohio, beating out previous champion VIktor Kolibabchuk.[4] Licis' first pro triumph came in 2017 at the Ultimate Strongman Summermania, winning the competition representing his home country Latvia.
In 2019, Licis came in second during the Arnold Strongman Classic, placing behind current and 3x champion Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.[5] In June later that year, however, he won his first World’s Strongest Man title, beating out defending champion Björnsson, who finished in third after suffering a torn plantar fascia in his left foot during the heats that significantly hampered him in the final. Licis also placed ahead of Mateusz Kieliszkowski who placed second, and 4 times World's Strongest Man winner Brian Shaw who placed sixth, still recovering his hamstring injury sustained in the Arnold Strongman Classic earlier in March of the same year.[1] Licis dominated the final, finishing in the top three in all five disciplines, and winning two events outright.
On January 18 2020, Licis won the Arnold Strongman Santa Monica Qualifier, beating out Brian Shaw by 1 point. This earned him a spot to compete in the Arnold Strongman Classic in Columbus, Ohio on March 8.[6] At the Arnold Strongman Classic, Licis finished 3rd, behind the winner Björnsson and the second place Kieliszkowski.[7]
In May 2020, Licis appeared on Game On! as an obstacle, engaging contestants in a strength contest.[8][9][10]
In August 2020, Licis appeared on an episode of To Tell The Truth with two other people all of them claiming to be the reigning World’s Strongest Man.[11]
In March 2021, Licis appeared in a Geico commercial titled "Worlds Strongest Man Takes On The Recycling".[12]
Licis spent most of the 2020 and 2021 strongman season in recovery, with his ultimate comeback taking place in late October to the very first Rogue Invitational Strongman competition, which boasted the biggest prize purse in the history of strongman competition with four WSM champions competing.[13][14] Licis beat Tom Stoltman and Oleksii Novikov to win the competition and a top prize of $133,685.[15] The next day he set a new record in Thor's Hammer Lift by lifting a 136-kilogram (300-pound) hammer.[16]
References[]
- ^ a b "Martins Licis Wins 2019 World's Strongest Man". barbend.com. 2019-06-16.
- ^ http://theworldsstrongestman.com/athletes/martins-licis/
- ^ a b c Grabowski, Kyle (13 September 2019). "PUMPED: Martins Licis not stopping after becoming World's Strongest Man". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ "Invincible defeated: Martins Licis became an absolute world champion in mas-wrestling having prevailed over Viktor Kolybabchuk". International mas‑wrestling federation. Retrieved 2020-08-29.
- ^ "Arnold Strongman Classic 2019: Strongman Results And Prize Money". Fitness Volt. March 3, 2019.
- ^ "Arnold Strongman Classic: Arnold Sports Festival USA".
- ^ "Arnold Strongman Classic 2020 Results And Prize Money". Fitness Volt. March 8, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
- ^ "Martins Licis Competes Against Celebrities on CBS Show "Game On!"". BarBend. 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
- ^ "World's Strongest Man Martins Licis Competes Against Cast Of Popular Game Show". Fitness Volt. 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2020-08-18.
- ^ "Martins Licis on Instagram: "A one of a kind experience to be a part of @gameon ! Thank you for having me be on as an obstacle