The incentive to win the Shaw Classic just got sharper.
The winner of the 2023 Shaw Classic (SC) is now officially entitled The World’s Strongest Man.
In an interview video posted to YouTube on July 17, 2023, Brian Shaw, four-time World’s Strongest Man (WSM) Champion (2011, 2013, 2015-2016) and organizer of the annual SC, announced that he was the ” Das Trademark “The Strongest Man in the World” by Paul Ohl. The title had previously been awarded to winners of the Fortissimus, a strongman competition Ohl organized from 2008-2009. During their chat, Shaw and Ohl discussed what the title transfer would mean for the SC’s future.
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After the 2008 fortissimus competition attempted to gain a foothold, a lack of sponsorship ultimately led to the 2009 fortissimo competition being indefinitely suspended. The competition did not take place again, but Ohl and the organizers still owned the “World’s Strongest Man” trademark. As the winner of the 2009 edition and a four-time WSM champion (2009-2010, 2012, 2014), Žydrūnas Savickas is technically the defending champion and final winner of the competition.
Shaw claimed he reached out to Ohl about this name change because he believes it lends legitimacy to the SC’s growth as a tentpole strongman competition, which as of this writing (2020–2022) has only had three iterations.
It’s certainly something that the current elite group of competitors will appreciate as another part of their potential prize. Here is an overview of the field of participants at SC 2023:
Shaw Classic roster 2023
Here’s an overview of what’s expected at SC 2023:
2023 Shaw Classic events
Note: The Atlas Stones does not appear to be the final event of SC 2023, as is often the case with other strongman competitions.
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Trey Mitchell is the two-time SC titleholder but must face a gauntlet of like-minded people waiting to claim his throne. The most notable contenders, alongside Shaw himself, are a trio of modern WSM champions – Mitchell Hooper (2023, reigning), Tom Stoltman (2021-2022) and Oleksii Novikov (2020). With the title of World’s Strongest Man now awaiting the latest winner, that should add even more appeal to a spirited battle for the strongmen in Loveland, Colorado on August 19-20, 2023.
Featured image: @shawstrength on Instagram
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