Strongman Robert Oberst is almost fully recovered from the shoulder injury that sidelined him for the majority of the 2022 strongman season. The “American Monster” took to his YouTube channel on April 16, 2022, to share his plans for the rest of the year, the 2023 season, and beyond. Most notably, Oberst said that the 2023 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) contest will be the final competitive strongman event of his career.
I will be back, competing in the 2023 World’s Strongest Man…then, after that, I’ll be done.
Oberst did note that he will have to compete at a Giants Live contest prior to the 2023 WSM contest and rank high enough to presumably re-earn qualification to the sport’s grandest contest after taking a year off to recover. Additionally, Oberst broke the news that the History channel’s “Strongest Man In History” will return at a time yet to be determined. Check out the entire video below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgGd5jtllcY&ab_channel=AmericanMonsterProductions
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Oberst’s Remaining Strongman Career
Oberst is currently scheduled to make his competitive strongman return as the captain of Team USA at the 2022 Giants Live World’s Strongest Nation (WSN) contest at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England, on Nov. 26, 2022. He will face off against 2017 WSM champion Eddie Hall, who will be at the helm of Team UK.
While he did not mention specifics, Oberst did suggest that he would compete in at least one other Giants Live show prior to the 2023 WSM contest, as he will likely need to requalify after sitting out of the 2022 season. In addition to the 2022 WSN contest, there are three other Giants Live shows that have been announced but have not yet confirmed their official rosters:
- The Giants Live Open — Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff | Aug. 6, 2022
- Arnold Strongman UK — Arnold Sports Festival UK, NEC, Birmingham | Sep. 24, 2022
- World Tour Finals — OVO Hydro, Glasgow | Oct. 8, 2022
There is also the 2022 Strongman Classic on July 9, 2022, at the Royal Albert Hall in London, but Oberst is not participating in that show.
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[Related: Grzegorz Szymanski to Compete at the 2022 World’s Strongest Man]
The Strongest Man In History
Oberst confirmed that the show “The Strongest Man in History,” which originally aired on July 10, 2019, will return for a new season. Although he did not state the specific date of the new season’s premiere, Oberst did say that “everyone is on board” — “everyone” being Nick Best and four-time WSM champion Brian Shaw, who were featured alongside Oberst in the show. Oberst has not yet spoken to Hall about the show but seemed confident Hall would also return.
There’s a lot of work that needs to be done, but it’s going to happen.
Oberst’s competitive strongman career may have an expiration date on it, but his career in the space is still in full swing. Between the return of “The Strongest Man in History,” his current YouTube channel that plays to 338,000 subscribers, and his plans to start another YouTube channel focused on his intent to build a ranch, Oberst will remain busy in the strongman space, just not on the competitive contest stage following the 2023 WSM.
Featured image: @shawstrength on Instagram
