Tom Butts Retains His World Natural Strongman Title

Vegan strongman Tom Butts is world champion again. The British strength coach has retained his under-90kg title at the World Natural Strongman Championships, which began on Saturday in Galway, Ireland (contest record), a year after winning it for the first time (Great Vegan Athletes profile).

The championships are strictly for athletes who don't use steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs, and the start was far from easy. Butts finished seventh in the opening overhead log ladder, where he lifted a 120kg log, and sixth in the 280kg frame carry, an event he doesn't like.

Then he took over. He carried a 140kg Husafell shield 74 meters to win an event he has never lost, and he won the Power Stairs on his first attempt at it, hauling 170, 190 and 210kg up three large steps in 30 seconds, eight seconds clear of second place.

He was joint second in the deadlift with four reps of 275kg, won the bag toss, and won the 300kg yoke into a 115kg axle overhead, an event he hadn't expected to win. Second place in the final keg loading, with kegs from 100 to 130kg, sealed the title, even though he had never trained with a keg above 110kg (Great Vegan Athletes).

I didn't doubt I could win after the first two events. If anything I had more faith that I could. I was able to see how strong my opposition was, after not knowing a lot about the international athletes. I knew they were beatable after the first two events, and I had good ones coming up that day and a better second day for me.

Butts has been vegan since 2020, a decision he says was about "animal ethics and not wanting to contribute to animal agriculture." He went from not being veggie at all to fully vegan, and still got stronger. His breakfast before training is an oat shake with soya milk, peanut butter, oats and a bit of protein powder, and his current favorite meal is a red lentil balti with spinach, basmati rice and "chicken style" soya strips.

Butts won his first World Natural Strongman title last year. Vegan strength is everywhere right now: the Vegan Strong PlantBuilt team won 41 medals, 32 of them gold, at Mr. America, and last month Anna Henderson won Olympic silver in Paris. Patrik Baboumian was saying it years ago.

No meat, no problem.