Hjalti Arnason
| Hjalti Árnason | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Hjalti Árnason 18 February 1963 Reykjavík, Iceland |
| Nationality |
 Icelandic
|
| Other names | Ursus The Great Ursus |
| Occupation | Strongman, Powerlifting |
| Years active | 1983-1996 |
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) |
| Weight | 140 kg (310 lb) |
| Children | 2 |
Hjalti Árnason (born 18 February 1963), nicknamed Hjalti Úrsus, is an Icelandic former strongman competitor and world champion powerlifter. Hjalti was known by the nickname "The Great Ursus". He first began in strength sports by competing as a junior powerlifter representing Iceland in 1983. Hjalti coached the great Jón Páll Sigmarsson and competed alongside Magnús Ver Magnússon in a team strength competition called Pure Strength in 1989 & 1990.
Hjalti Árnason was born in Reykjavík in 1963 He grew up in the same neighbourhood as Jón Páll Sigmarsson and they were at the same school, although Jón Páll was three years older. His sports career began with training in karate and he participated in many others such as soccer, handball, and track and field. He had a talent for Powerlifting and shot to fame when he began competing internationally from 1983. In that year he came first in the Junior European Championships and made the senior national team. Quickly though he began to compete in strongman events to make a living as a semi-professional. He found at an early stage that powerlifting had little money or publicity associated with it and also his fellow Icelander and school friend, Jón Páll Sigmarsson, was beginning to make waves in the higher profile world of the World's Strongest Man and its associated circuit. His forays into strength athletics consisted of a mixture of Highland Games and strongman events. It was noted that he relied on his "tremendous strength" but sacrificed technique and suffered from a lack of proper, regular coaching.
In 1985, Hjalti competed in the very first Iceland's Strongest Man contest. Hjalti Árnason was second to Jón Páll that year whilst Magnús Ver Magnússon came third. Hjalti would repeat podium finishes in this contest on more than one occasion whilst in the company of two men who between them won the World's Strongest Man title eight times. In one such contest his "animalistic approach" was demonstrated when he broke his opponents arm in an arm wrestling bout. Upon being asked to do "something spectacular for the TV cameras" by a sponsor he was reported to have picked the sponsor up by an arm and a leg and hurled him some distance to the astonishment of bystanders.
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