MANATEE COUNTY – The 2019 Tachi Palace World’s Strongest Man Competition began in downtown Bradenton on Thursday, June 13, shifted to Coquina Beach in Bradenton Beach on Friday and concluded at Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach on Saturday and Sunday.
Twenty-eight-year-old Martins “The Dragon” Licis claimed the 2019 World’s Strongest Man title.
Licis is an American competitor who was born in the European country of Latvia.
Poland’s Mateusz Kieliszkowski finished second and defending champion and former “Game of Thrones” cast member Hafthor “Thor” Bjornsson, from Iceland, finished third.
Competitors and fans traveled from around the world and the United States for this year’s competition. Sponsored by the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in California and organized by the International Management Group (IMG), this year’s competition took place in Manatee County for the first time since the international event was conceived in 1977.
– Sun correspondent Monica Simpson contributed to this story