Inside Magnus Samuelsson’s epic body transformation as 6ft7inch Swede goes from 324lb strongman to chiseled movie star
MAGNUS Samuelsson has gone from World’s Strongest Man Champion to a chiseled movie star.
The 53-year-old Swede’s career has seen him dip his toes into numerous sports before becoming both a Strongman staple and an experienced actor.
Starting out in life as a farmer, Samuelsson said in 2020 on the Big Loz YouTube channel that he “fell in love with weight training but it didn’t really have a purpose – I [was] just training for the joy of it.”
Competitive arm wrestling followed before being forced to take a break from the sport due to injury.
During this time he gave bench press meets a try – a carer change that would unintentionally lead him into Strongman.
With a Strongman competition the day after a bench press meet in 1995, his wife Kristin – a former Europe’s Strongest Woman competitor – signed him up “to make sure that the whole gang can get in for free.
“So it was more a gag than anything else.”
But despite his inexperience, Samuelsson won his first Strongman competition, crediting his inherent athleticism.
He explained: “When I was young I was quite athletic.
“My first sport was track and field so I was kind of used to moving my body.
“And then as a farmer as well, I was kind of used to having my body as a working tool more than just being like a gym guy.”
Following his first title, it took just a few weeks for World’s Strongest Man to come calling, inviting him to that year’s competition in the Bahamas.
A legendary career followed, reaching the WSM podium five times in thirteen attempts, winning the competition in 1998.
He also won Sweden’s Strongest Man nine times in as many attempts, during which time his brother Torbjörn won it twice during the two years Magnus didn’t compete.
He also won the Strongman Super Series four times and podiumed at Europe’s Strongest Man in both of his appearances.
Magnus’ final competition came in 2008, by which time he had already made his acting debut in the Swedish series Hem till Midgård.
Since retiring, he has appeared in 20 episodes of Arne Dahl adaptations, while also appearing in The Last Kingdom, The Witcher, and Medieval among other works.