Canadian-born Mitchell Hooper quickly rose to fame for earning his title of 2023 World’s Strongest Man and becoming the first Canadian to have won the award. After the resounding triumph, the skilled strongman and kinesiologist beat former champions Brian Shaw and 2-time WSM, Tom Stoltman to bag the 2023 Arnold Strongman Classic.
The competitive WSM, however, is not stopping there. He is actively preparing for his Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) debut match against the 2017 World Strongest Man, Eddie Hall, to be held in Qatar in 2024. Eddie Hall is an English strongman who is famous for setting his world record of 500kg deadlift in 2016. Upon retirement, Eddie took up boxing and has years of experience under his belt, putting him at a slight advantage.
However, the Canadian Strongman remains unfazed as he has successfully overcome several odds in his career. In preparation for the grand debut, Hooper has approached and sought expert advice from the renowned Silvana Shamoun for the epic fight. Shamoun, famous for her various kicking techniques and induction into the Black Belts Hall of Fame, has practised martial arts for almost two decades. Shamoun also set two records in the Guinness Book of World Records. Hooper under the tutelage of the famed Silvana Shamoun, has given the world a behind-the-scenes look at his rigorous training in preparation for the brawl in a recently updated YouTube video.
Shamoun demonstrates her various kicking techniques and talks about possible injuries in the video, which now has over 97,000 views. The very first kicking technique to be displayed is the Round House Kick. Shamoun demonstrates to Hooper the importance of foot placement to perform the Round House kick. The side of the hip should ideally be facing the bag, while the back foot needs to be pre-pivoted, meaning facing away from it. The kicking leg then moves to a chamber position and makes an impact before returning to the chamber position and back on the ground. For this move to occur swiftly, groin mobility is crucial.
Shamoun’s wisdom seeped through while teaching the sidekick. She implored Hooper to constantly keep his guard up and ribs protected. Then, while kicking, she advised Hooper to go from the chamber position and plant a devastating blow with the heel on the opponent’s floating ribs. The powerful attack leaves the opponent in excruciating pain. The Push Kick requires less flexibility, is relatively easier and requires impact from the ball of the foot or the bottom heel. She advised that the smaller the impact spot, the more damage it would inflict. Hooper, being a fast learner, quickly learnt the Side Kick and Push Kicks and was more comfortable with these kicking styles than the Round House.
We are anticipating a very intense match, keeping in mind the determined Hooper who is embracing and adapting to all the fighting styles taught to him by his mentors. Let’s see who dominates, ’the Beast’ Eddie Hall or ‘the Hulk’ Mitchell Hooper.