After eight years of being asked to compete in a strong-man competition, Andrew Langelaar finally gave in, and the outcome was more than he could have imagined. 

With just four months of training, Langelaar took part in the Manitoba Strongest Man competition and won. 

"It was pretty overwhelming," said Langelaar. "I'd only done three shows leading up to this in preparation for Western Canada's Strongest Man. To walk into Manitoba's strongest Man, and win, was pretty surreal."

During the competition, Andrew participated in five events, including max circus dumbbell, 800 lb yoke walk, car bench press, arm-over-arm pull of a vehicle and an atlas stone run. The win came down to the last event, where Andrew won by a single point.  

"It came down right to the very last second. It was exciting!" said Langelaar. "It was a pretty cool day."

At the end of the day, Andrew says there are too many people to thank. 

"It's just a representation of how welcoming the sport is. Everyone has been so supportive.," said Andrew. "It's the first sport I've played where you can beat someone and they're going to be giving you hugs and congratulations right away. It's affirming. It's very overwhelming. It means a lot to me."

This weekend, Andrew will head to Duncan, B.C. to participate in Western Canada's Strongest Man competition