Marc Iliffe (27 June 1972 – 11 February 2003) was a British strongman famous for being the winner of Britain's Strongest Man contest in 2002.

Career

Iliffe was acknowledged as being extremely dedicated to the sport of

strength athletics Strength athletics, also known as Strongman competitions, is a sport which tests competitors' strength in a variety of non-traditional ways. Some of the disciplines are similar to those in powerlifting and some powerlifters have also successfully ...

. His training partner of ten years, Bill Pittuck, talked of Marc's particular love of the Atlas stones event which helped him win the title of Britain's Strongest Man in 2002. Iliffe was also invited to compete at the

World's Strongest Man The World's Strongest Man is an international Strongman competition held every year. Organized by American event management company IMG, a subsidiary of Endeavor, it is broadcast in the US during summers and in the UK around the end of Decem ...

finals in consecutive years. Iliffe's career was affected in 2002 by a split disc in his back that had caused weakness in his legs. However, surgery to correct the injury looked very positive. On his personal website he said: "I have now had an MRI scan and the bottom disk in my back is split, so I go into the woodlands private Hospital in Kettering on the 22nd of October to surgery to fix the problem, so I will be back fighting fit very soon and will be at BSM 2003 to hopefully win title for a second time. Can't wait to get it sorted as it has caused problems the last few months, and will be back in training very soon the surgeon . It should not cause me any more problems and is near enough an instant fix, and leg pain and weakness will be gone instantly.""Marc's Back Injury"
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Television and film

As well as televised strongman competitions, Marc appeared in a

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...

advertisement Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

for rock group Pulp’s ''Hits'' album before Christmas 2002 and had been cast in a film called ''Transfer'' by GMV Entertainment along with the boxer

Richie Woodhall Richie Woodhall (born 17 April 1968) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1990 to 2000. He held the WBC super-middleweight title from 1998 to 1999, as well as the Commonwealth middleweight title from 1992 to 1995, and the ...

, in which he was due to play a gangster.

Death

On 11 February 2003, Marc Iliffe was discovered hanged from gym equipment at his

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

home in Vivian Road. The Northamptonshire coroner recorded an open verdict on the death of Mr Iliffe, of

Wellingborough Wellingborough ( ) is a large market and commuter town in the unitary authority area of North Northamptonshire in the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, 65 miles from London and from Northampton on the north side of the River ...

. No suicide note was left but he was believed to be having some marital and work problems. Additionally, he was disappointed the strongman competition sponsors were not using him in publicity campaigns. His mother, Kathleen Carmichael of Rushden, stated that: "My son wasn't depressed. Frustrated, in turmoil, but not depressed". His wife, June Iliffe, also cast doubt on whether the suicide was deliberate. She did not think he meant to kill himself and she stated "He knew I was going to be home in the next 20 minutes and he wouldn't have wanted his son to find him."Strongest man's 'cry for help' from bbc news
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Personal life

Outside of strongman competition, Marc worked at Ilmor Engineering,

Brixworth Brixworth is a large village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 5,162, increasing to 5,228 at the 2011 census. The village's All Saints' Church is of Anglo-Saxon origin. Loca ...

. He was married to June Iliffe, had two stepsons, aged 15 and 19, as well as a six-year-old son, Marc Junior. At the time of his death he lived in Wellingborough in Northamptonshire.

References

External links

www.rawmuscle.com - Marc Iliffe's personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iliffe, Marc 1972 births English strength athletes People from Wellingborough 2003 deaths