Reuben Jansen van Rensburg, a natural Strongman athlete from Noordhoek, has qualified to compete in the prestigious Natural Strongman world championships in Galway, Ireland, in August. This remarkable achievement places him on the global stage among the best natural athletes in the world
Over the past 18 months, Jansen van Rensburg stuck to a strict training programme without using anabolic steroids or growth enhancers to finish in first place at the Western Cape Strongest Man competition and second behind Markus Jansen van Vuuren at the South Africa Strongest Man championships. Not bad for his debut appearance at the SA’s, considering Jansen van Vuuren has won this competition for seven consecutive years.
The Kommetjie strongman also won the Southern Cape Strongest Man competition and finished third at the Arnold Classic multi-sports festival in Roodepoort.
“Strongman is always geared towards events that test strength. Say a truck pull or a sandbag medley. They might also test your endurance, but its endurance in the context of a hell of a lot of weight,” said Jansen van Rensburg when the Echo first spoke to him following his third-place finish at the Arnold Classic.
The sport, he said, combines all the elements of traditional weight and powerlifting seen at the Olympics with those of muscle men in days gone by.
“There are different tests of strength, from deadlifting, to pressing logs overhead, pulling cars and lifting big stones or sandbags,” he said.
“Compared to other weightlifting sports, it’s the best at testing who’s the strongest because some events test just pure strength and others will test your endurance or explosiveness,” he said.
Although proud of his achievements, he says competing on the international stage comes with significant expenses and he is appealing to the community to assist him in his endeavours.
He said his aim is to become the world’s 100% natural strongest man in his division but he needs a bit of help getting there.
If you can assist, visit his BackaBuddypage or call 071 475 1167.
