Shaw will walk away after the latest edition of this Colorado competition.
The 2023 Shaw Classic (SC) is set for August 19-20, 2023 in Loveland, CO. While the competition is roughly half a year away, the name of the burgeoning competition has only recently partially revealed what it’s all about.
On February 27, 2023, strongman legend Brian Shaw published a YouTube video List of contestants for SC this year. In the process, Shah announced that the 2023 SC The final professional strongman competition of his illustrious career.
Shah revealed that there will be a 16th athlete in the competition. At the time of this writing, that athlete has not been named. Here is an overview of the roster for the 2023 SC this summer:
2023 Shaw Classic Roster
Given his career achievements – including four World’s Strongest Man (WSM) titles (2011, 2013, 2015-2016) and three Arnold Strongman Classic (ASC) victories (2011, 2015, 2017) – Shaw was emotional. Revealing that he will soon be putting a bow on his professional strongman endeavors is a bit of a challenge. Earlier in the year, Shaw said the 2023 WSM, which occurs in April, would be his last.
“It’s tough to say those words, ‘It’s my final time, but it’s going to happen,'” Shaw said. The time has come to close this chapter of my career.
According to this Strongman Archives, Shaw made his first major strongman appearance at the 2007 America’s Strongest Man (ASM) competition. He finished sixth. Before becoming one of the greatest strongmen in history, Shaw scored his first victory at the 2009 Venice Beach Grand Prix. After nearly 16 years of high-level competition, he will soon lift his final Atlas Stone on stage.
As for the 2023 SC, the roster has been confirmed, the competition events are yet to be announced. Shaw didn’t reveal when it will be revealed, but Shaw says the layout will take the event “to the next level.”
Among the confirmed athletes, Maxime Boudreault recently broke his shin bone. The injury forced the Canadian strongman to withdraw from the 2023 WSM and 2023 ASC. According to Shaw, Boudreault is healthy and ready to go for the 2023 SC. The top three from the 2022 edition of the Shaw Classic – Trey Mitchell (defending champion), Shaw and Mitchell Hooper – will return to the competition. Mitchell is vying for a “three-peat” in a new competition that will have just four iterations in August.
The latest SC could already be the tentpole competition in the 2023 strongman calendar. The announcement that an icon like Shaw will retire from the sport at its conclusion adds a powerful and emotional note.
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Featured Image: @theshawclassic on Instagram
