Reuben de Jong is a New Zealand heavyweight kickboxer, mixed martial artist, strongman and professional wrestler of Dutch descent. He is a two-time professional strongman champion of New Zealand and competed in the K-1 Kings of Oceania in 2006 and 2007. De Jong is the holder of two national records in the farmer's walk and stone lifting, and the Guinness World Record for running through the most panes of glass in under one minute. He was signed with WWE under the name of Russell Walker in 2011, but was released the same year. A television actor and stuntman, De Jong has had small roles in Maddigan's Quest, Legend of the Seeker, and as Theokoles in Spartacus: Blood and Sand. In 2010, he entered professional wrestling and became one of the stars of Impact Pro Wrestling, capturing the IPW New Zealand Heavyweight Championship within two months of his debut. On 7 December 2019 he won the Hughes Academy Championship, pinning Spencer Kyle. Biography Early career Born in West Auckland, New Zealand, Reuben de Jong began working out while attending Waitakere College. In one of his first strongman performances, he won notice at the 134th Waipu Highland Games and "put pressure on the two lead contenders" Pat Hellier and Australian Craig Reid. Brian O'Brien, committee secretary for the Highland Games, told the New Zealand Press Association that de Jong had "competed well in a number of the strongman events and would be one to watch in the future". He would eventually win the "New Zealand's Strongest Man" competition two years in a row, in 2004 and 2005, and was able to "pull 17-tonne trucks without breaking a sweat". On 1 April 2006, he was among the strongmen invited to compete in Freddy Hooker's "Strongest Man in the World Ever — Aotearoa 2006" at Mount Maunganui. The competition was judged by Levi Vaoga. In July 2006, de Jong was featured in the Western Leader following his appearance as a Viking in a popular television advertisement. After Sarah Valentine talent spotted him he joined Background Talent, a New Zealand-based talent agency, where he landed roles in a number of feature films and television series including Maddigan's Quest, Narnia, Legend of the Seeker, and Spartacus: Blood and Sand. He was then in training as a Mixed Martial Arts fighter and studied under Karl Webber and Ray Sefo. K-1 and Mixed martial arts Reuben de Jong