Odd Haugen’s Tombstone

Odd Haugen’s Tombstone has featured at the Arnold Strongman Classic a number of times in the Stone to Shoulder event.

The stone weighs 186kg (410 lb). It is large, smooth, and irregularly shaped. Even for the strongest men on Earth, it is a massive feat of strength to pick up off the floor.

As the stone’s name suggests, Odd Haugen is the owner of the stone. Odd was given the stone as a gift on his 57th birthday¹ – it even has his name and birth date inscribed onto it. A second date will be added when he dies.

The engraving is on the concave face of the stone and reads:

Odd EH
DOB: 1 16 1950
H 6 4”
W 295lbs
S 410lbs

Odd’s Tombstone first appeared at the Arnold Strongman Classic in 2018 as the second of five events. Only three men were able to shoulder the stone that year out of the 10 athletes competing – Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, Mikhail Shivlyakov, and Mateusz Kieliszkowski. Mateusz won the event after shouldering the stone four times. Hafþór and Mikhail managed a single rep to the shoulder.

The stone returned the following year (2019) as the final event of the competition, and the second natural stone event at the competition. Rogue’s replica Húsafell Stone carry being the other.

Mateusz came out on top again beating his previous best with the stone at five reps to the shoulder. Martins Licis – who is known for being a great stonelifter – managed two full reps to the shoulder. Hafþór once again managed one rep, and Matjaž Belšak completed a single rep too.

The stone returned in the 2022 competition, again as the final event.

Martins Licis won the event with two reps. Bobby Thompson and Oleksii Novikov both achieved a single rep to the shoulder, adding themselves to the exclusive club of people to have shouldered the brutal stone.

Odd’s Tombstone returned to the Arnold Strongman Classic as the final event of day one of the 2026 competition.

Six athletes managed to shoulder the stone, marking the highest number to achieve the feat in a single event.

Both Martins Licis and Austin Andrade achieved 3 reps to the shoulder. Andrade ultimately won the event thanks to tie-break credit for bringing the stone to his lap once more than Licis.

Event rules

Athletes must attempt to lift the stone to their shoulder for as many reps as possible. Like most natural stone events, tacky is not permitted – only chalk, and for this event, a tacky towel. Once the stone is on the shoulder, the athlete must remove the opposing hand from the stone to show full control to the referee before they receive a down signal.

Odd’s Tombstone is so notoriously difficult for even the strongest men on the planet that athletes are credited for lapping the stone and lifting the stone to their chest.

The specific rules for the event at the Arnold Strongman Classic have changed multiple times throughout the years.

2018

The event was scored using a points system. Athletes received 2 minutes and 30 seconds to perform as many reps as possible.

In addition to lifting the stone to their lap and chest, athletes received points for putting wind beneath the stone.

2019

The rules for 2019 were almost identical to 2018 with the exception that athletes did not receive credit for putting wind beneath the stone.

2022

The scoring system changed again for the 2022 event. This time, athletes earned 1 point for bringing the stone to the lap, 10 points for each lift to the chest, and 100 points for successfully shouldering the stone.

The 100 points for shouldering the stone overrides any points earned in previous stages (1 rep to the shoulder would trump 11 lifts to the chest for instance). This point system effectively formalised the credit system for lap and chest lifts.

Additionally, athletes had to lap the stone within 30 seconds otherwise their attempt was terminated.

2026

For the 2026 event, the time limit was reduced to 2 minutes and the scoring system was simplified.

A single point was awarded for shouldering the stone, but athletes still received credit for successfully bringing the stone to their lap or chest.

Athletes were not required to lap the stone within 30 seconds like in the 2022 event.

Lifters

There are only a handful of athletes who have managed to lift the stone to their shoulder, even outside of the ASC.

1. Jesse Marunde²
2. Martins Licis
3. Mateusz Kieliszkowski
4. Mikhail Shivlyakov
5. Hafþór Björnsson
6. Matjaž Belšak
7. Bobby Thompson
8. Oleksii Novikov
9. Bryce Johnson
10. Tom Evans
11. Trey Mitchell
12. Austin Andrade
13. Mitchell Hooper

Record

Mateusz Kieliszkowski holds the record for the most reps to the shoulder in 2:30 at 5 reps, which he set at the Arnold Strongman Classic in 2019. He beat his own record of 4 reps set at the ASC in 2018.

At the 2:00 time limit, the current record is 3 reps to the shoulder, held by Martins Licis and Austin Andrade after the 2026 event.

Other appearances

Odd’s Tombstone was used in a Strongman Super Series Grand Prix at Venice Beach in 2007. Odd organised the events for this competition, and it seems that this was the stone’s debut in a pro strongman competition.

The event featuring the stone was a carry – like the Húsafell Stone – rather than as a stone-to-shoulder event.

References