Manitoba's Strongest Man is moving up the ladder.
After competing in the nationals and taking first place and then second place at Western Canada's Strongest Man, Andrew Langelaar has now punched his ticket to Canada's Strongest Man.
"This will make me the sixth Manitoban to ever go. So, it's pretty cool," said Langelaar. "It was a two- or three-year timeline goal, not a rookie year timeline goal. So, a little bit overwhelming."
Langelaar says the goal has always been to compete at the highest level possible.
"It's just moving a little more rapidly than I had initially expected it to."
The events for Canada's Strongest Man have not been formally announced. However, Langelaar says whatever they are, they will be challenging.
"I think with Strongman, a lot of people forget that as much as it is now a formalized sport, it very much was developed next to the bearded lady at the circus. We are a freak show, and that is what people want to see," said Langelaar. "I know that I'm looking forward to it with a healthy amount of trepidation, but my anticipation is we'll probably have to pull a vehicle of some sort and do some things that most people are going to look at and think we're crazy."
Langelaar says he will need to lock into training for this event.
"Just out of pure volume of things going on, there's only so much that a human body can go through," Langelaar explained."I will say that I'm feeling healthier and better than I have all year. It'll be pushing to the next level there, you know, really prioritizing getting those 8-9 hours of sleep and trying to juggle the rest of adult life responsibilities. I'm going to bring my best package and don't disappoint."
At the end of the day, Langelaar says they are all friends.
"As much as we want to compete with each other, you never want to win because someone got injured," said Langelaar. "We all want the best for each other. Even when there are things like a Canada's Strongest Man invite on the line, the guys are still encouraging each other because to us there's kind of an honour code where there's no honour in beating a guy based on an injury or a mistake."
He says he loves the sport and has no intentions of stopping anytime soon.
"My mom found this drawing from when I was in kindergarten, and it's like a crude muscle man. It just says 'I like being strong,' and it still stands true to this day," said Langelaar. "At the end of the day, I'm having fun and making good friends, making good memories. So if I stop having fun, I'll maybe change my mind, but for now I'm just really enjoying the ride."
Canada's Strongest Man competition will take place on August 1 in Quebec.