Deadlifting With The Finnish Masters

Scott Birdby Scott Bird | September 24, 2006
Filed in Articles , Favourites

Thanks Jon. South Carolina Barbell’s Marc Bartley has published the result (part 2) of an email exchange with superb Finnish deadlifter Sakari Selkainaho - a very interesting looking 16 week routine.

There are some great lifters mentioned in that article; here’s a bit of a rundown.

Sakari Selkäinaho
Sakari SelkäinahoIf you’ve ever read the article Finnish Deadlift Secrets (and if you haven’t, now’s your chance) then you’ll be all-too-aware of just how well this guy knows his stuff. If you need further convincing, anyone who’s pulled 275/606 in the 75/165 class has been training pretty hard.


Marc Bartley
Marc BartleyMarc ‘Spud’ Bartley doesn’t exactly have the perfect build for a great puller, but a combination of training wisdom and tenacity has certainly served him well. 387/850+ rack pulls are not exactly things to sneeze at.


Jarmo Virtanen
Jarmo VirtanenAn incredible nine time IPF world champion, Jarmo Virtanen dominated powerlifting throughout the ’80s. As Marty Gallagher points out [1] ‘Jarmo Virtanen, the fearsome Finn who took second place, would stay a light heavyweight [181 pounds] and rule the international roost for the next decade’. He did indeed.

Not to be outdone, Ari, Jarmo’s brother, was also an exceptional deadlifter. According to Sakari [1] he had ‘one of the best technique I have ever seen.’. Runs in the family.


Veli Kumpuniemi
Otherwise known simply as ‘Mr Deadlift’ [2]. Although he never fully recovered from a hamstring tear in 1981, he still pulled an incredible 880 at a bodyweight of only 220. The ‘Mr Deadlift’ moniker is well deserved.


Sami Nieminen
Sami NieminenFormer World Junior Champion and all-round dynamo. Having pulled 305/671 at a bodyweight of only around 75/165 [3] is certainly a great qualification.


References
1. COAN: The Man, The Myth, The Method (1999)
Marty Gallagher

2. Finnish Deadlift Secrets
Sakari Selkäinaho

3. Results table from 2005 World Powerlifting Championships, Florida
East Midlands Weight Lifters’ Association
Ultimate Strength newsletter Dec 2005 [.pdf, 356kb]


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