One of the world's strongest "human tow trucks," Vladivostok resident Ivan Savkin moved a 26.2-metric-ton T-34 tank over six meters on Tuesday, setting a new world record.
Savkin previously moved other vehicles, such as a 365-ton train, but said that the tank, which is treaded rather than on a railway, was his biggest challenge yet.
"On the first day I was able to only move it a couple of centimeters. The difficulty in moving it is that the tank is on a dirt road because due to the treads we would simply break the asphalt. The mechanism is 75 years old, and of things I have moved, this is the heaviest. Trains don't hold a candle to it," Savkin told Primorye24 news agency.
Savkin's previous records have included pulling a 1,150-ton ferry as well as trucks and other heavy equipment. Savkin previously told Russian lifestyle site Peoples.ru that he grew up a frail child, weighing only 57 kilograms (125 pounds) despite being 192 centimeters tall (6 feet 4 inches). Savkin then began exercising, taking on weightlifting, but it was powerlifting that changed his life.
