Olympian legend Geoff Capes dies: Goodbye to the world's strongest man

Geoff Capes, one of Britain's best-known and most acclaimed athletes, died on October 23 at the age of 75, The Guardian reports.

Capes was truly gifted with Herculean strength and a remarkable physique. Standing at 1.97 meters (6'4 ft) and 170 kg (374 lbs), his overwhelming sporting success made him one of the most renowned athletes during the 70s and 80s.

Capes was a British, European and Commonwealth shot put champion, competing in three Olympic Games.

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His national shot put record of 21.68 meters, dating back to 1980, still stands. He was a force of nature!

His first training sessions were anything but orthodox, as at the age of 14 he worked as a coal miner and farmer, carrying tons of fruit and vegetables.

Capes told The Telegraph that his family - he was the seventh of nine children - "was not only working class but on the lowest rung of that very long ladder that is the English class system."

His life changed when Stuart Storey discovered him for athletics and observed the overwhelming potential that Capes had.

After his sporting career, Capes leaped to television with the program 'Superstars', where his fame exploded.

At the height of his fame, he won the World's Strongest Man title in 1983 and 1985, two titles that "made me some money and took me to many places," he told The Telegraph.

One thing that truly fascinated Capes throughout his life were parakeets. He adored them, he told The Guardian in 2003, going back to 1969, when he was working as a policeman.

"I went to serve an arrest warrant and knocked on the door and saw a bunch of cages full of birds in an incredible variety of colors. I went in, had a cup of coffee with the owner and spent an hour talking to him about his hobby. It was a shame I had to arrest him," he said.

After paying bail, the detainee gave him three pairs of parakeets and that is where his passion for birds began, a passion that he maintained until his last days.

Capes also has a curious Guinness Record dating back to 1978: "He threw a standard building brick (2.27 kg/5 lbs) 44.54 meters (146 ft) at Braybrook School in Cambridgeshire, UK. This record has never been surpassed," according to Guinness Records itself.

Photo: X - WGR

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