The 2023 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) — which goes down on April 19-23 in Myrtle Beach, SC — features a 30-athlete roster comprised of the top non-injured strongmen worldwide.
Among them are six Americans, including:
- Four-time WSM champion Brian Shaw
- American log lift record holder Bobby Thompson
- Two-time Shaw Classic champion Trey Mitchell
- Inaugural Arnold Strongman Classic UK champion Evan Singleton
- Dinnie Stones world record holder Kevin Faires
- 2022 Official Strongman Games champion Spenser Remick
Five of those six — all but Remick — trained together eight days before the 2023 WSM contest kicks off. The events schedule is known, but the groups for the Qualifying stage will not be announced until one day before the contest. Check out the American strongman training camp in the video below, courtesy of Shaw’s YouTube channel:
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For reference, here are the events for the 2023 WSM contest:
Qualifying Stage Day One
- Event One — Loading Race
- Event Two — Deadlift Machine
- Event Three — Log Ladder
Qualifying Stage Day Two
- Event Four — Conan’s Wheel
- Event Five — Kettlebell Toss
- Event Six — Stone Off
Final Day One
Ten athletes will advance from the Qualifying stage to the Final.
- Event One — Fingal’s Fingers
- Event Two — KNAACK Deadlift
- Event Three — Reign Shield Carry
Final Day Two
- Event Four — Max Dumbbell
- Event Five — Vehicle Pull
- Event Six — Atlas Stones
The strongmen started their training day with a loading medley involving sandbags and a keg loaded onto lifting blocks. The height of the platform for the 2023 WSM isn’t known, but it will occur on the Sand Stage, which means the lighter athletes will sink a bit into the sand — larger-footed athletes like Shaw will have their weight more dispersed than their smaller-footed counterparts. The athletes worked on a concrete floor, so they didn’t pay much heed in this training session to the altered terrain they’ll face in South Carolina.
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Without access to a deadlift machine in the gym, the group skipped it and trained the log ladder — a series of five logs of ascending weight. Shaw, Mitchell, and Thompson didn’t run into any issues, but Faires and Singleton failed to lift all five logs — worthwhile if they can solve the issues before battling in the event on Day One of competition.
The third event was the Heavy Dumbbell, which is not an event all five athletes are guaranteed to encounter in Myrtle Beach. Max Dumbbell is the first event of the last day of competition — only the 10 finalists will compete in it. Likewise, the group of five trained on a single Fingal’s Finger — another event only the finalists will attack.
The last event trained was Conan’s Wheel, which involves holding a weight in a Zercher position and walking in a circle for as much distance as possible. Excelling in this event will be critical for many athletes in the Qualifying stage since it kicks off Day Two of competition, which will conclude with a Stone Off between each respective group’s second- and third-place finisher.
As Shaw enters the final WSM contest of his competitive strongman career, he will seek a record-extending 15th straight Final appearance and a record-tying fifth WSM title. It would make him the second athlete ever to achieve the mark — Mariusz Pudzianowski won his fifth WSM title in 2008.
Featured image: @shawstrength on Instagram