I came across You-Tube videos of strongman Bruno Leal, lifting barrels, flipping tyres, and you could see that he had that entertainer quality.  He was putting on a show, not just lifting heavy stuff.  So the time had come to put

Portugal on the Viking Strength Strongman Map, and we thought that Bruno would be a great guy to speak to?

Phil Burgess: Bruno are you the strongest man in Portugal?

Bruno Leal: No, I am currently Portugal’s 3rd strongest man.

(Editors note: The first person who can tell me who the 1st and 2nd Strongest are, I will send them a weight-training belt – support@vikingstrength.com)

Phil Burgess: I have seen a You-Tube Video of you competing and it seems that there are alot of people watching, is strongman popular in Portugal?

Bruno Leal:  No, Strongman events generally are not that popular, all the people you see in this video are from my work and the work of Nuno Araujo.

We planned this event really well, and we did a spectacular job in promoting it with a press release that was received by all the Portuguese TV stations and all Newspapers.

We were also invited to a famous TV morning show in our coutry and had 15 minutes of exposure where we did a tire flip and the farmers walk live.

With the great exposure as well from the newspapers, with one talking about the event on the actual day, we had more than 5000 people, coming from everywhere, it couldn’t get any better.

Phil Burgess: What are your best one rep max lifts for deadlift, squat and bench press?

Bruno Leal:

• Bench Press 180kg raw
• Deadlift 260kg
• Squat 280kg

In two months I’m looking to get 310kg, which was the qualifying squat in last year strong man wourld tour.

Phil Burgess: How many years have you been competing in strongman competitions?

Bruno Leal: This was my first year. I always wanted to participate in a Strongman event since I saw my first one live.

But the 2003 competition was the last strongman event in Portugal

That’s why I challenged  Nuno the last organizer and we both got some sponsors and made it real.

Phil Burgess: So when you’re not living the Strongman Dream what’s your day job?

Bruno Leal:  There are no professional Strongman athletes  in Portugal, so we have to work. I am a bartender.

Phil Burgess: If I was to visit your town what 3 things would you recommend that I should do?

Bruno Leal: I live in Oporto and if you want to visit my town you should not miss a boat trip in rio douro at the end of the day, where you will see the most beautiful sunset in the world.

If you like sport than we have the beautiful F.C. Porto stadium which was made for the 2004 European Football Cup

Thirdly you must go for a walk through all down-town to see the beautiful architecture of the buildings and monuments.

Phil Burgess: What are your goals in strongman competitions in 2012?

Bruno Leal:In 2012 we will have a Portugal vs Spain in the Iberic Strongman,

Competition and I hope to win for my team.

Phil Burgess: Do you prefer static strongman events or dynamic (running/moving) events?

Bruno Leal: Personally I prefer dynamic strongman events.

Phil Burgess: What is your favourite strongman event? And your least favourite?

Bruno Leal:  The tire flip is my favourite, and my least favorite is the Squat.

Phil Burgess:  If you could train with any of the top strongman competitors (present day or former) who would it be?

Bruno Leal: For sure with the big Z… Zydrunas Savickas – The Strongest Man of all time.

Thanks Bruno and all the best for 2012, and your Iberic Challenge with Spain.

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