When I heard that Australian Strongman Marc Wells was going to be competing at the World Strongman Cup in Abu Dhabi, it presented a great opportunity to catch up with him again, and find out about the competition and his plans for 2012.
Phil Burgess: You recently were invited to compete in the World Strongman Cup Event in Abu Dhabi, how did this invite come about, and how did you go?
Marc Wells: The invite came through at the last second, I only had one and a half weeks to go through and practice the events.
I was grateful that I was given the opportunity to compete against some of the strongest guys in the world.
Overall I finished 22nd, I knew I could have done a little better but was unprepared.
Phil Burgess: What were your best and worst events?
Marc Wells: I fumbled a few times on the tyre flip which cost me time and couldnt get the full 30m with the farmers walk (160kg with a turn).
My best event was the log press, 130kg for reps and I managed 6 reps in the time limit – I actually thought the judge had called time and I looked over and the other strongman competitor was still going. That may have cost me a rep too.
Phil Burgess: What other competitors did you spend alot of time with, and were there any language barriers?
Marc Wells: Most of us spent time together in a group, especially at meal time with Kevin Nee, Stefan Solvi Petursson, Mark Felix, Richard Van der Linen, Laurence Shahlaei, just to name a few.
The language barrier wasnt too much of a problem as there was always someone there to translate. Everyone was really friendly and easy to get along with.
Phil Burgess: How hot was it in Abu Dhabi when you were competing, and how did you go?
Marc Wells: It wasnt hot at all!
It was their winter and apparently their coldest in about 9 years, so the top temperature was only 24-26 degrees celsius, but as soon as the sun went down it got quite chilly!
Phil Burgess: Were there big crowds watching the World Strongman Cup event in Abu Dhabi?
Marc Wells: The strongman comp ran over 3 days, the first two days there wasnt too many people, but on the final day there was a good size crowd.
It seemed to generate a lot of interest with the public as everyone wanted to have their photo taken with you.
I’ve never had so many random photos taken in my life!
Phil Burgess: What was Abu Dhabi like as a place?
Marc Wells: Abu Dhabi is an amazing place.
Its the richest city in the world!
Very clean and everything is brand new and state of the art.
Very friendly people too!
Phil Burgess: What was the format of the competition, and was it run well?
Marc Wells: It was run over three days, starting with 25 athletes.
Then the field was cut to the top 15 for day two, then top 8 for the final day.
It was run pretty well, but just like any strongman comp there are a few hiccups.
Phil Burgess: What’s the next strongman competition you are looking at competing in?
Not really sure at this stage. I may do one in Sydney at the end of May as the events are quite good and should be a good challenge.
Phil Burgess: What are your competitive goals for 2012?
Marc Wells: Well Im hoping to have my diet and training down-pat for a big build up for Australia’s Strongest Man, which will be towards the end of the year.
I’ve placed on the podium twice in the two times I have competed in that strongman competition.
Hopefully this year I can take out the title.
I also will be looking at an Australian record attempt in October but I will keep that a secret of what it is until closer to the date!
