Every sport has its legends and Brian Shaw is without a doubt one of the greatest in Strongman. Having competed in the sport since 2007, Brian has dedicated almost two decades of his life to being as strong as possible. This required much sacrifice, but it paid off since he was the World’s Strongest Man four times. However, there won’t be any more titles for Shaw, as he has just made his final appearance at the 2023 World’s Strongest Man.
Brian Shaw was hoping to claim his fifth title at the 2023 WSM in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. This would make him equal with Mariusz Pudzianowski, who is the only man to win five times. However, Brian faced setbacks for the entire season, even at the competition itself.
Brian Shaw first suffered a leg infection in January, which tied him to the hospital bed for over a week and almost resulted in amputation. So, getting prepared for the WSM after that was almost impossible. However, Brian still got the best out of it and got into contention for the title.
Unfortunately for Brian Shaw, he had to go into a Stone Off against Rauno Heinla in the qualifying stage, since he did not win his group which would have earned him direct qualification. In addition, Brian and Rauno then both lifted 11 stones in the Stone-Off, which is the most anyone has ever done. This made Brian significantly more fatigued than other athletes in the finals, which was evident in all six events.
Brian Shaw’s 2023 World’s Strongest Man Performances
Qualifying
- Loading Race: 5 in 53.70 s (Third-Place)
- Deadlift Machine: 8 reps (Tied-First)
- Log Ladder: 4 in 33.99 s (First-Place
- Conan’s Wheel: 411 ° (Fifth-Place)
- Kettlebell Toss: 7 in 48.45 s (First-Place)
- Stone-Off: 11 stones (Won / Qualified)
Finals
- Reign Shield Carry: 39.1 m (Eight-Place)
- Knaack Deadlift: 7 reps (Tied-Second)
- Fingal’s Fingers: 4 in 26.61 s (Seventh-Place)
- Max Dumbbell: 125 kg (Tied-Seventh)
- Bus Pull: 32.65 s (Sixth-Place)
- Atlas Stones: 4 in 35.88 s (Sixth-Place)
Brian Shaw achieved so many mind-blowing achievements at the WSM that it is almost impossible to list them all. He has now appeared in 16 World’s Strongest Man competitions, only failing to make the finals in his 2008 debut. So, Brian has been in 15 consecutive finals in each of the past 15 years, more than anyone else. In addition, he has stood on the podium ten times, which is a record tied with Zydrunas Savickas, another icon of the sport.
Apart from the World’s Strongest Man, Brian Shaw has competed in 66 International and National competitions overall. He has won an impressive 28 of them, including the 3x Arnold Strongman Classic titles as well.
Brian Shaw will also completely retire from professional Strongman later this summer. His final appearance will be at the 2023 Shaw Classic, which is the fourth edition of his own competition. So, this truly marks the end of an era, since we are witnessing Brian’s final moments in the sport.
