Strongman Geoff Capes would eat cereal, lamb, steaks, pilchards, cheese, bread, a dozen eggs, a pound of butter, baked beans, honey, grapefruit and seven pints of milk every day in a stunning diet as he maintained his peak form.
Standing at 6ft 5′ and weighing 27 stone the ex-Olympian said there was ‘no fat on me’ despite his extraordinary intake, as he burnt up to 12,000 calories a day lifting a total of 120 tons a week in a brutal training regime.
The World’s Strongest man champion made his name as Britain’s greatest ever shot-putter, still holding the country’s record 44 years after he set it. He died aged 75 earlier this week with his family announcing his death yesterday.
Cooking for him was a full time job for his devoted wife Jill, who would cook ‘continually’ for more than 12 hours a day… after which the athlete would help himself to snacks, such as half a pound of grilled cheese.
She said in 1976: ‘You are continually cooking or preparing some meal all day.
‘We’ll start in the morning about 7.30 and carry on right through until eight o’clock at night, and after that he usually helps himself.’
The World’s Strongest man champion made his name as Britain’s greatest ever shot-putter, still holding the country’s record 44 years after he set it. He died aged 75 earlier this week with his family announcing his death yesterday
The two-time winner of World’s Strongest Man would rack up well over 13,000 calories a day with his incredible appetite. Pictured: Eating with wife Jill
Cooking for him was a full time job for his devoted wife Jill (pictured) who would cook ‘continually’ for more than 12 hours a day
The recommended average daily consumption for an adult man is 2,500 calories – meaning that Capes would eat more than five times as much as his fellows. Pictured: His huge portion next to his wife’s
The two-time winner of World’s Strongest Man would rack up well over 13,000 calories a day with his incredible appetite
Capes throws during the Shot Putt competition at the British International Games on 10th August 1974 at Crystal Palace
Europes strongest man, shot putter Geoff Capes saves fuel by establishing a new world record in truck pulling, at the Crystal Palace Sports Centre, London. It took him 54.3 seconds to haul the Mercedes Benz tractor and trailor unit to the finishing line
He represented Britain at three Olympics and Commonwealth Games during his career
Standing at 6ft 5′ and weighing 27 stone the ex-Olympian won the hearts of millions of fans and admirers throughout his life as a GB athlete. Pictured lifting six women on a gameshow
The two-time winner of World’s Strongest Man would rack up well over 13,000 calories a day with his incredible appetite.
The recommended average daily consumption for an adult man is 2,500 calories – meaning that Capes would eat more than five times as much as his fellows.
To support the feasting much of his food was sponsored – with a national chain of butchers funding his carnivorous supply, his pilchards being delivered in bulk and even his daily seven pints of milk being funneled in for free.
At his storming peak, Capes would much through a box of cereal, seven pints of milk, two tins of pilchards, three cartons of cottage cheese, two loaves of bread, a leg of lamb, two steaks, a dozen eggs, a pound of butter, a pint of orange juice, a tin of baked beans, a jar of honey, a grapefruit and two tins of tuna every day.
But despite his dedication, the 17-time British, Commonwealth and European champion never won the Olympic medal he so craved, finishing sixth in Montreal and eight in the Moscow games.
He was born in the village of Stoke Rochford, near Grantham, Lincolnshire, as the seventh of nine children and was still living there when he died.
A family statement read: ‘The family of Geoffrey Capes would like to announce his sad passing today, 23rd October. Britain’s finest shot-putter and twice world’s strongest man.’
His strength came from a vital early upbringing – leaving school at 14 to work as a coalman and agricultural labourer, loading 20 tons of potatoes in 20 minutes.
To support the feasting much of his food was sponsored – with a national butchers funding his carnivorous supply, his pilchards being delivered in bulk and even his daily seven pints of milk being funneled in for free. Pictured: Jill serves up Cape’s lunch
The Royal family share a joke with Geoff Capes as they attend the Braemar Highland Games in Scotland. Left to right are: The Queen Mother, Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Diana, Prince Charles and Geoff Capes. 4th September 1982
Geoff Capes, a two-time Commonwealth Games shot put champion, died aged 75. Pictured: In 1974
Geoff Capes and topless models Leilani (L) and Holly (R) launch his Save Our Takeaways campaign
Geoff Capes uses his incredible strength to life a car in 1981
Shot Putt Athlete Geoff Capes At Cadbury’s Mini Champions Competiton With Mini Athletes Ross Woodbridge (left) And Claire Wager (right)
Describing his childhood, he once said: ‘The family wasn’t just working class but was on the lowest rung of that very long ladder that is the English class system.’
His towering mother stood at 6ft tall and weighed 18 stone – and once punched his teacher after he twisted the young Capes’ ear until it bled. ‘She laid him out!’, the strongman jovially remembered.
Although he was clearly an athletic boy, he struggled in his youth to be particularly successful at sports.
He was banned from playing for a local football team for a year after hitting a referee during a match. And his first attempt at competitive shot-putting ended in him gaining second-last place at the finals of the 1964 All England Schools Athletics Championships.
However, he persevered and was soon spotted by international hurdler, Stuart Storey while training at the Holbeach Athletic Club, who helped coach him early on.
He later went on the join the police to subsidise his unpaid international career and remained in the Cambridgeshire force for 10 years.
It was here in 1969, that Capes developed his life-long love of birds, caring for hundreds of them right up until his death.
He had been sent out to arrest a man for non-payment of a fine.
It was here in 1969, that Capes developed his life-long love of birds, caring for hundreds of them right up until his death
Policeman Geoff Capes On Duty. His professional career as an athlete was littered with successes, despite his tumultuous start from the self-proclaimed ‘fighter’
Professional Highland Games competitor Geoff Capes lifting a car, UK, 19th April 1979
Linda Lusardi who stars in the pantomime ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ at the Theatre Royal Newcastle, poses with Geoff Capes who plays Odd Job, 17th December 1991
British shotputter Sophie Mckinna and her coach Geoff Capes in 2013
Capes holding gymnast Amanda Gibbons at the launch of the SportsAid Trust in London, UK, 13th July 1984
‘I knocked on his front door and he didn’t answer, so I looked through the window and the front room was full of the most beautiful birds – I’d always loved birds. When he eventually opened the door, I asked if I could come in and have a look.
‘So we sat down and had a cup of tea and had a lovely chat about budgerigars. I did eventually remember to arrest him,’ he told the Mail in 2009.
‘But he was very good about it and started me off with my first three pairs of budgerigars. I’ve never looked back.’
He even took on the role of president of the British Budgerigar Society in 2008.
His professional career as an athlete was littered with successes, despite his tumultuous start from the self-proclaimed ‘fighter’.
Capes, who would hitchhike to his athletics competitions, was twice the Commonwealth Games champion in the shot put and claimed two European indoor titles.
Just before the Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980, Capes was forced to resign from his job in the police force over increasing political pressure to boycott the event.
He told the Telegraph: ‘Russia invaded Afghanistan, and Margaret Thatcher banned all the services from going – army and police – because they paid their wages. So I resigned from the police just before the Olympics. I lost my career, lost my pension, lost my income. They had total control over you.’
Policeman Geoff Capes (right), Commonwealth shot putt champion, and Al Feuerbach, American holder of the world record at Crystal Palace, London
Geoff Capes throws during the Shot Putt competition at the A.A.A. National Championships on 5th September 1980 at Crystal Palace
Capes was also crowned as the world’s strongest man on two occasions in 1983 and 1985
Worlds Strongest man and budgerigar breeder Geoff Capes from Great Britain with one of his budgerigars on 1st September 1978
As well as winning the World’s Strongest Man title twice, Capes finished in the top three of the event a further four occasions.
He remained involved in athletics by becoming a coach of several national level shot putters.
He was sent home in disgrace from the European Championships in Prague in 1978 after punching a referee and two guards touting machine guns when they complained he wasn’t wearing the right competition number.
‘When I’m getting ready for a competition, you don’t talk to me – end of story,’ he explained afterwards.
Following his retirement from competition Capes took up coaching and helped many aspiring athletes, as well as appearing on two reality television shows.
Taking his professional career to the next level, he also took part in the more lucrative strongman circuit, where he was crowned world’s strongest man in 1983 and 1985.
This in part helped his rise to becoming a household name – as the event was watched by around 15 million people each year.
The assortment of strength tests – bending steel bars, lifting a platform of bunny girls, rolling over cars, pulling lorries, loading sacks of sand onto the back of a truck, arm wrestles and tug of war – gave the show cult status.
Capes holding up Big Ben in London
Portrait of Shot Put champion, Worlds Strongest man and budgerigar breeder Geoff Capes from Great Britain training with straw bales on 1st September 1978 in Spalding, United Kingdom
Gudrun Ure as Supergran and Geoff Capes in the 1980s children’s show
And Capes was quickly a TV star with 17 pantomime appearances and children’s TV to performances at the Palladium with Bobby Davro.
During his athletics career, Capes was crowned as UK shot put champion on three occasions.
He claimed gold at the 1984 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, achieving a event record throw of 20.74 metres.
Capes defended the title four years later in Edmonton, Canada.
Further success was achieved at continental level, winning gold at the European Indoor Championships in Gothenburg and Munich in 1984 and 1986, respectively.
He also claimed bronze in the European Championships in 1984 in Rome.
Capes represented Britain at three Olympic Games, finishing sixth at Montreal 1976 and fifth at Moscow 1980.
He achieved his personal best throw of 21.68m in 1980, which stood as a British record until 2003.
Capes became a professional strongman following the Olympics in Moscow, enjoying success at the Highland Games.
A father-of-two, after retiring from competition he went on to be a coach and mentor as well as running a sports shop and being a magistrate.
