Matt ‘Panda’ Smyth Crowned World’s Strongest Disabled Man, Reflects on Journey

Matt ‘Panda’ Smyth, recognized as the World’s Strongest Disabled Man, shared his perspective on the source of his resilience, stating, “I’ve lost my mum, I’ve lost family, I’ve lost friends – everything like that builds up over time to give you that extra bit of strength to fight.” Having recently returned from the competition held in Birmingham, he expressed feeling “great” following his title win. Mr. Smyth, a resident of Poole, had previously secured the title of England’s Strongest Disabled Man in 2023 and is already setting his sights on defending his current world title. Mr. Smyth revealed that the weekend leading up to his victory involved “a lot of tears” as he exerted himself to claim the championship. He elaborated, “Something like this you can’t put it down to one thing, I believe it’s mentality over everything else, I mean it’s been two years building up. “The dedication of my coach, who’s just been phenomenal giving me all the advice and pushing me harder in training. It’s just a combination of everything together.” From 1 to 3 November, Mr. Smyth competed in various events to earn the World’s Strongest Disabled Man title. These events featured an axel overhead shoulder press, sled drags—an area he claimed he hadn’t been defeated in “for years now”—and deadlifts, where he successfully completed up to six repetitions with 800kg (1,763lb). He described feeling “buzzing” after the initial day of the competition. Mr. Smyth, a wheelchair user, mentioned that professional-grade wheelchairs were provided for support during the competition. He humorously remarked, “We were at the very high end of their [the chair’s] capacity, so I’m not convinced they’ve survived completely.” According to Mr. Smyth, his trainer has issued “strict orders to eat a lot of takeout and play a lot of X Box” for a week-long recovery period. Following this break, he intends to resume his gym routine, stating he feels “absolutely brilliant.” Regarding his future plans, Mr. Smyth commented, “I’m a firm believer if you have no mountains, you create your own. “I’m having this week off, then I’m going to have a chat with my coach about what mountains to do next year – we’re looking at more world records, coming back and defending my title, making it easier than ever.”