Jouko along with guys like Jon Pall, Ab Wolders and a modern guy like Kordiyaka are the strong men that I admire most . Small by strongman standards but with technique, fitness and heart
Might have been the best athlete to ever compete at a high level of strongman. He was only 6'0" 265lbs. Even Magnus, who would be considered small today, still was 6'3" 290lbs.
His second WSM victory was the first I ever watched. My Father and I enjoyed it together and he coached me to the physique I still maintain today. Most of it was his words as I sat bedside, he got very sick quite fast. Multiple system atrophy took his body by 2007. But I didn't break my body down the way he said I would and he was right. All that weight takes a toll and absolutely will wear you down if you don't know your limits, or how to taper down naturally as you age. My gym was a 12lb head splitting maul and a 95lb slab of railroad. I was 11 when I could finally push up with both arms straight and locked with the 95 overhead. That was the beginning of my weight training....
I was 12 going on 13 and every winter, I helped my uncle chop and stack wood with a 12 pound wood buster. The result, by the time I started high school, I had pretty developed arms compared to those that were in the gym all the time or played sports.
@chr970 I hated it because my unc was an alcoholic abusive asshole but I did like the attention it got me with some of the bigger guys. They were always pinching my arms wanting to checkout my guns because they couldn't believe I had them when I didn't lift much, if at all. I always told them, spend an entire winter busting and hauling wood and you'll get there.
@@TyVince-p6r sorry about your dad…..and in spite of your uncle, you persevered. Good job man. On a real plus note, that hard work you did paid off and resulted in fitness, strength, admiration of the guys, and wood for burning(?). I had some jobs working in the woods as a university student….couple of guys in their 60s never saw a gym in their lives….not kidding, would pick up 400 pound logs, transfer to right arm like they were carrying a couple of books, and walk over brush. You likely built some serious functional strength in those early days .
Jouko would likely be lost in today's version of strongmen competitions, but he was well suited for the format from 1983 - 2008-ish, in which superb athletic ability was an absolute must. If Ahola had the motivation to continue and there wasn't a split in strongmen federations, showdowns between him and Mariusz could have provided legendary moments in the sport.
Yeah, if Jouko competed today he wouldn't be at top because of his size alone. But same could be said otherway around, If those 200kg monsters were put to some of 90's competitions and weight were adjusted to todays standards, they would be in trouble in many events. It wasn't that much about max strength alone, you also needed good cardio to get through. Jouko always like to say that he ran 400m under 1 minute when he was 120kg...
@ 4:10 use the closed captions….not something Jouko would be proud of lol. This guy was and is still my favourite strongman of all time. Not the strongest but an absolute unit. I used to think can you imagine this guy as a defensive end in American football? Speed, supreme strength, agile, he had it all. Didn’t look like a 400pound behemoth, but like 280pound chiseled athlete. Nice upload, well done 👍
@@StrengthUniverse First, let me thank you for posting this. Great video with never seen before footage. I must agree with you. I did not see any report of injury. He participated in the sport as a referee in the early 2000's. I am wondering if money was the reason as he was raising a family during that time and prize money did not compensate much. He should have a Finn sponsor. I searched for the 1999 competition (beauty and the beast Grand Prix) where he lifted a 170 kg log, but I never found it. Nice that you included a clip of that in this video. The fact he improved his log lift by a good amount, tell us that there were a lot in the tank had stayed. Oh well, it is what it is.
In finnish interview he said that he stopped because he lost spark and it's very taxing to be at the top while having to work for sponsors around the year. Sponsors back then didn't give him money for putting a logo in a shirt, but instead he had to travel around the country for shows. He already had almost 10 years in the sport by that time and he achieved biggest title 2 times. And yes, he had injuries like everyone does, but he didn't talk about them much.
@@StrengthUniverse I somehow remember he said in finnish that he got several injuries (bicep tear, ligament tear/loose? some organ?) His main focus was to win 2 times wsm title! Magnus ver Magnusson said like this "if you win once, your a single champion. If you win twice, you will be remembered forever".
I've always said he was the strongest guy pound for pound. I remember watching these back in the day and they (and me) were amazed at him "only" being 265 and beating guys like Torrfi, (I think that's his name) who weighed over 400 lbs. Not to mention most of the guys outweighed him by 50+ pounds. One lift that made me just laugh in amazement was a horizontal dumbbell hold with 75lbs...they had to touch it to the bottom of a pad and hold it there directly out to the side...Juoko was trying to get it into place and it was swaying around, and without a strain or grimace or anything on his face he waved it around until he got it on the spot...75lb dumbbell...I just snickered and was like "damn...hes doing that like it's a 2 lb weight".
Mi admiracion y respeto a este señor un tipo fuerte en todo el sentido de la palabra. Saludos desde paraguay . Faltaria un video de illka nummisto de finlandia tambiem
Weird. I was literally just looking him up because I wanted to know his max bicep curl (it’s a monstrous 220 lbs.) Edit. Apparently it’s much more than 220 lbs. Sorry about that.
He have better cardio than average and great isometry strenght ability. He is better in pure power, even if he cannot defeat a modern Eddie H or Brian S ...big Z or Biby in pure maxima ... he stay te Pré PUDZIANOWSKI ATHLETE in Strongman. Now since Joukho, we considere all different morphology like able to win !! 6 or 7 ft... 300 oŕ 500 lbs. Why not ?
Happy New year! Thanks for watching 👍.
As a smaller framed man, Jouko Ahola almost instantly became my favorite strongman. What an absolute beast!
Strongman saying: "Weight Moves Weight", which makes Ahola all the more amazing.
Jouko along with guys like Jon Pall, Ab Wolders and a modern guy like Kordiyaka are the strong men that I admire most . Small by strongman standards but with technique, fitness and heart
Pound for pound, one of the strongest Strongman ever. His best deadlift 406 kg, means that Halfthor should pull 608 kg to match his strenght.
Bah he should be lucky if he managed 470 in a competition.
Such a 🤡
Might have been the best athlete to ever compete at a high level of strongman. He was only 6'0" 265lbs. Even Magnus, who would be considered small today, still was 6'3" 290lbs.
Pudzianowski was also "only" 6'1" and under 300lbs most of the time
He was one my favorites to watch in the classic strongman. He reminded me of a young Schwarzenegger so much. I always cheered the smaller guys.
My favorite strongman. Humble unbelievable physique and a machine 💪
He was the Mitch Hooper before there was a Mitch Hooper.
His second WSM victory was the first I ever watched. My Father and I enjoyed it together and he coached me to the physique I still maintain today. Most of it was his words as I sat bedside, he got very sick quite fast. Multiple system atrophy took his body by 2007. But I didn't break my body down the way he said I would and he was right. All that weight takes a toll and absolutely will wear you down if you don't know your limits, or how to taper down naturally as you age. My gym was a 12lb head splitting maul and a 95lb slab of railroad. I was 11 when I could finally push up with both arms straight and locked with the 95 overhead. That was the beginning of my weight training....
You used part of a railroad tie?……or a chunk of railroad rail?
I was 12 going on 13 and every winter, I helped my uncle chop and stack wood with a 12 pound wood buster. The result, by the time I started high school, I had pretty developed arms compared to those that were in the gym all the time or played sports.
@@TyVince-p6r hah cool story, that’s what I call old school. Well done 👍
@chr970 I hated it because my unc was an alcoholic abusive asshole but I did like the attention it got me with some of the bigger guys. They were always pinching my arms wanting to checkout my guns because they couldn't believe I had them when I didn't lift much, if at all. I always told them, spend an entire winter busting and hauling wood and you'll get there.
@@TyVince-p6r sorry about your dad…..and in spite of your uncle, you persevered. Good job man. On a real plus note, that hard work you did paid off and resulted in fitness, strength, admiration of the guys, and wood for burning(?). I had some jobs working in the woods as a university student….couple of guys in their 60s never saw a gym in their lives….not kidding, would pick up 400 pound logs, transfer to right arm like they were carrying a couple of books, and walk over brush. You likely built some serious functional strength in those early days
.
He was literally the best part of the movie Kingdom of Heaven. Short part.........but amazing.
Also Werner Herzog's film 'Invincible' where he plays a Strongman. He has a powerful presence on screen
Great update, you know this guy's effort was nothing less than gut wrenching........
Jouko would likely be lost in today's version of strongmen competitions, but he was well suited for the format from 1983 - 2008-ish, in which superb athletic ability was an absolute must. If Ahola had the motivation to continue and there wasn't a split in strongmen federations, showdowns between him and Mariusz could have provided legendary moments in the sport.
Yeah, if Jouko competed today he wouldn't be at top because of his size alone. But same could be said otherway around, If those 200kg monsters were put to some of 90's competitions and weight were adjusted to todays standards, they would be in trouble in many events. It wasn't that much about max strength alone, you also needed good cardio to get through. Jouko always like to say that he ran 400m under 1 minute when he was 120kg...
pretty impressive numbers and also neat that his son has followed in dad's footsteps
hard as stone.
A absolute legend.
Hearing about him for the first time ever
Happy new year, mate
Happy new year
@ 4:10 use the closed captions….not something Jouko would be proud of lol. This guy was and is still my favourite strongman of all time. Not the strongest but an absolute unit. I used to think can you imagine this guy as a defensive end in American football? Speed, supreme strength, agile, he had it all. Didn’t look like a 400pound behemoth, but like 280pound chiseled athlete. Nice upload, well done 👍
One of the G.O.A.T. !
Loved his acting performance in Kingdom of Heaven
One of the best death scenes ever!!
If you wanna see another very strong finn, I would suggest doing a video about Väinö Mylleriene. 🇫🇮
Hey man i love your videos you think you could make a video about joseph pena and a video of Joseph pena vs jesus Oliveira please
I never understood why he quit at 28, we did not see that best of him. One of favorite strong man of all times.
Despite searching I couldn't find a reason other then maybe the lack of money in the sport at that time
@@StrengthUniverse First, let me thank you for posting this. Great video with never seen before footage. I must agree with you. I did not see any report of injury. He participated in the sport as a referee in the early 2000's. I am wondering if money was the reason as he was raising a family during that time and prize money did not compensate much. He should have a Finn sponsor. I searched for the 1999 competition (beauty and the beast Grand Prix) where he lifted a 170 kg log, but I never found it. Nice that you included a clip of that in this video. The fact he improved his log lift by a good amount, tell us that there were a lot in the tank had stayed. Oh well, it is what it is.
In finnish interview he said that he stopped because he lost spark and it's very taxing to be at the top while having to work for sponsors around the year. Sponsors back then didn't give him money for putting a logo in a shirt, but instead he had to travel around the country for shows. He already had almost 10 years in the sport by that time and he achieved biggest title 2 times. And yes, he had injuries like everyone does, but he didn't talk about them much.
@ thank you
@@StrengthUniverse I somehow remember he said in finnish that he got several injuries (bicep tear, ligament tear/loose? some organ?) His main focus was to win 2 times wsm title! Magnus ver Magnusson said like this "if you win once, your a single champion. If you win twice, you will be remembered forever".
Very nice
I've always said he was the strongest guy pound for pound. I remember watching these back in the day and they (and me) were amazed at him "only" being 265 and beating guys like Torrfi, (I think that's his name) who weighed over 400 lbs. Not to mention most of the guys outweighed him by 50+ pounds. One lift that made me just laugh in amazement was a horizontal dumbbell hold with 75lbs...they had to touch it to the bottom of a pad and hold it there directly out to the side...Juoko was trying to get it into place and it was swaying around, and without a strain or grimace or anything on his face he waved it around until he got it on the spot...75lb dumbbell...I just snickered and was like "damn...hes doing that like it's a 2 lb weight".
Finland's Finest 🏋️♂️🤝💪
Cool video
My favorite strogman aye
The Farmers Walk he is doing at 2 min 31 secs looks really easy. Even i could do that.
😂.
Even I could do that as a suitcase carry or should I say sports bag carry!
Jouko’s son is a few inches taller than his dad? Strongman awaits!
I will never forget his training video where he drank a massive protein shake just before three rounds of Atlas Stone lifting in his Wearhouse gym. 😂
Definitely impressive strength especially for his size..
Aholat ovat voimakkaita 💪
Mi admiracion y respeto a este señor un tipo fuerte en todo el sentido de la palabra. Saludos desde paraguay .
Faltaria un video de illka nummisto de finlandia tambiem
Ótimo vídeo parabéns faz um do mike o'hearn
Thank you
How about Colin Bryce??
My favourite WSM ever. Potentially could have won WSM in 1998 but too many people pulled out for him to catch up with Magnus Samuelson
A Jouko vs Mariusz breakdown would be interesting. I'm not sure if they ever competed directly?
I actually started working on it yesterday.
@@StrengthUniverse Great Stuff. I'm intrigued to see how they stack up?
Weird. I was literally just looking him up because I wanted to know his max bicep curl (it’s a monstrous 220 lbs.)
Edit. Apparently it’s much more than 220 lbs. Sorry about that.
Pleased you found the video. Note his bicep curl is mentioned in the video and is considerably more then 220
@@StrengthUniversehuh, sorry about that. But I immediately commented just because of the strange coincidence. I subbed btw, this is a cool channel
For my known he was natural too because finnish athletes dont use stuff, but I dont know his story complitely I might be very wrong
Happy New Year 2025 🎉
All the best for 2025
lb for lb one of the best.
Robbed in 1998. Magnus got early lead. Due to pull outs, there was no way of getting the points back.
Pounds per square inch still the best strongman ever
Pound for pound strongest ever...jon paul next...
When Just a normal six feeter win against trues monstsrs.....
He have better cardio than average and great isometry strenght ability. He is better in pure power, even if he cannot defeat a modern Eddie H or Brian S ...big Z or Biby in pure maxima ... he stay te Pré PUDZIANOWSKI ATHLETE in Strongman. Now since Joukho, we considere all different morphology like able to win !! 6 or 7 ft... 300 oŕ 500 lbs. Why not ?
I was meet him he was natty
P E R K E LE ! ;D
The of the best? I think you're missing a word in the graphic.
Not missing a word, Should have said "One of the best", A stupid error on my part
Just a typo. Still great content and that's all that matters. Keep up the great work!
💪🏻🇫🇮💪🏻
Back in the day, strongman competitors were quite lean 💉💉 & 💊💊
Awlee
Jouko beaast