World's strongest boy nicknamed 'Little Hercules' has a very different life nowadays
Child bodybuilder Richard Sandrak, who was once dubbed 'Little Hercules', is living a very different life nowadays.
Richard rose to fame 22 years ago when he was just eight-years-old thanks to his extraordinary physique.
He managed to earn the title of 'World's Strongest Boy' after turning 11 and could lift up to three times his bodyweight.
So what's he up to nowadays? Well, Richard has packed in competitive training altogether because he finds it boring.
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"No, I don't lift weights. If anything it just got boring. I’m very proud of my past," he admitted in a 2015 interview with Inside Edition.
"People try to make me out as some freak of nature, plenty of kids have very similar physiques.
"It’s not something I don’t want people to know, it’s just that I’m not going to be stuck living in it."
Rather than lift weights, Richard now stays fit with chin-ups and riding his skateboard around Los Angeles.
As of 2015, he was working as a stuntman at Universal Studios' Hollywood Waterworld, setting himself on fire and diving into water... which still requires incredible conditioning.
Richard gets set on fire at least five times a day before diving 50 feet to the water below. He also gets shot at with blanks.
That grin he gives in the video above too, priceless.
His story does have a tragic side to it though. His father, Pavel, was in charge of his nutrition as a youngster and criticised for pushing his son too much.
Allegations of steroid use were also levelled at the family but they denied the claims.
Pavel was jailed a few years later on charges of domestic abuse against his wife, Richard's mum.
That incident is what saw Richard turn away from bodybuilding and change career.
Now 30, Richard's dream job is to work for NASA as a quantum scientist and doesn't see why it can't happen. Fair play.
Topics: Athletics
Daniel Marland