The guy who played Gregor 'The Mountain' Clegane broke the deadlift world record this weekend


The last time we saw Gregor Clegane — better known as "The Mountain" — he was falling to his death from the Red Keep, pushed through a crumbling wall in an act of suicide by his brother, Sandor "The Hound" Clegane. But Hafthor Bjornsson, the actor who played the elder Clegane in five seasons of HBO's Game of Thrones, made a thrilling return this weekend that would have made even The Mountain quake in his armor, ESPN reports. On Saturday, Bjornsson managed to deadlift 501 kilograms, or about 1104.5 pounds, on his third attempt, breaking the world record. For comparison, that's about the equivalent of lifting a large polar bear, or a small moose.
The 31-year-old Icelander — who has his own nickname, "Thor" — stands an intimidating 6 foot 9 inches and weighs 425 pounds, and won the World's Strongest Man competition back in 2018. The previous deadlift world record, of 500 kilograms or 1,102.31 pounds, was set in 2016 by Eddie Hall.
Watch Bjornsson's lift, below. Jeva Lange
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wife
speed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play