A STRONGMAN from Basingstoke is looking to make it big at an upcoming competition.

Colin Hawkins, from Chineham, will be competing in the England’s Strongest Man final in June, after coming second out of 22 competitors in a qualifying round.

If he can perform well in the upcoming final, then he will be secure a place at the UK’s Strongest Man competition the month after.

Colin has been involved with the sport for nine years, and has qualified for England’s Strongest Man for the past five years.

He said: “One of my friends that I would meet at the gym gave me the idea for it as he was competing in a competition and he said I should join and give it a go.

“Even though it was definitely like being thrown in at the deep end, I really took to it and began competing more.”

Colin began entering competitions later in life than a lot of his opponents, starting as he entered his 30s nine years ago, and now he trains at Bailey’s Gym, in Grafton Way, almost every day, while keeping his day job as a scaffolder. The gym also sponsors him.

The 38-year-old added: “I joined the gym when I was entering my 30s and thought that I was a bit out of shape. Now, I have a niché.

“Even though it isn’t ideal that I started later in life, I’ve been saved from injuries that some of the younger competitors have been suffering from.

“Having a more mature head also helps as well.

“But as time goes on, the competition gets better and better and the it gets harder to compete.”

The competition contains Colin’s favourite event, the log press, which he has numerous achievements in, and he has successfully lifted 190 kilograms in training for the event, with 180kilos being his competition record. In the competition, the weight of the log is slowly increased by 10 kilos each time.

Despite qualifying for England’s Strongest Man for the past five years, Colin is aiming to reach the UK’s Strongest Man contest for the first time.