It might be called the SBD Official Strongman Games, but Gen Segger showed the world what a woman can do in a competition of strength.
At 50 years old, Gen Segger from St. Albert represented Canada at the Strongman Games.
The Strongman Games is a three-day event that brings together nearly 400 of the top Strongman and Strongwoman athletes from over 35 countries.
The athletes go toe-to-toe on the world stage, competing in six strength tests.
The 2023 Strongman Games occurred in West Virginia, United States, in December.
The six events at the 2023 Strongman Games included Stand or Submit Press Medley, Stix and Stone Carry, Deadlift Ladder, GORUCK Survival Challenge, Sandbag Toss, and Atlas Stone Series.
Since Segger started competing as a strongwoman six years ago, she has won many competitions. She is Alberta’s reigning masters provincial champion for three years.
Segger also finished in the top three at nationals in the past two years.
Low Expectations, But High Determination
Believe it or not, Segger wasn’t always interested in becoming a strongwoman athlete.
Before being a strongwoman, Segger was a long-distance runner training for a 50-mile ultramarathon.
She applied her willingness to go the distance to the strongman sport and hasn’t looked back.
Segger arrived in West Virginia with low expectations, stating, “All I thought was, ‘I’ll probably come in last. It’s my first Worlds, right?’”
To her surprise, she finished in the top 10 and qualified to compete in the Strongman Games finals, where she placed seventh in the world in the Women’s 50+ category.
One of Segger’s most impressive feats was deadlifting 400 pounds, something she had never done before.
To put things into perspective, 400 pounds is roughly the same weight as an adult gorilla.
In other words, Segger could lift a gorilla if she wanted to.
“I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s moving!’ And it went up, and I went, ‘Woah. I lifted something that was 400 pounds.’ I hope I can do that again one day,” said Segger.
Fifty and Getting Better!
Segger’s performance at the Strongman Games and her training regime show that she is improving, something she didn’t expect at her age.
“I’m still blown away because I’m 50. Eventually, I’m not going to be able to get stronger anymore; I’m getting old. But I’m still getting stronger. I am just shocked,” said Segger.
Being a strength athlete isn’t just physically taxing. The sport also takes incredible mental strength, according to Segger.
On deadlift training day, she lifts as much as 24,000 pounds in a session and still finds the motivation to go to work afterward.
“With every event, every workout and training, no matter how I feel, I have to get my brain thinking, ‘You got this.’ And that is mentally exhausting. It’s like you have to put all your doubts aside,” Segger explained.
Her motivation has helped her accomplish incredible feats of strength, like pulling a school bus with people inside.
Gym vs Real-World Training
Segger spends a lot of time training in the gym but finds the equipment too perfect.
Segger enjoys lifting awkward objects you would move in your everyday life, stating, “…in your day-to-day life, nothing’s perfect, and nothing’s even.”
Segger believes that lifting real things gives better balance and strength than using gym equipment.
Female athletes like Segger are changing the face of the strongman sport, which has been male-dominated since its start in 1977.
Segger loves seeing more female teenagers participating in the sport.
At 50 years old, Segger doesn’t plan to retire as a strongwoman until she can’t lift a sandbag anymore.
She is busy preparing for the 2024 Worlds and training to lift a beer keg over her head.
When she finally does, we hope she celebrates with a beer from that keg!
