2019 Britain’s Strongest Man (BSM) Graham Hicks has withdrawn from the 2022 BSM contest scheduled to take place on Feb. 26, 2022, at the Utilita Arena in Sheffield, England. On Feb. 2, 2022, Hicks shared the reason for his withdrawal from the Giants Live contest on his YouTube channel: a groin injury.
This is the same injury that kept Hicks out of the 2021 World’s Strongest Man contest. He spoke about the pain caused the injury caused at the 42-second mark in the video below, filmed while he was on the way to see a doctor:
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While en route to an appointment to check on the severity of the injury, Hicks expressed difficulty trying to perform any strongman movement:
At the moment, I’m not able to train in any of the events without significant discomfort.
Hicks has been dealing with this injury for a year but found ways to train around in order to compete. He showed portions of the doctor appointment throughout the video, which documented that his injury has not completely healed.
I’m going to do everything that Stuart [the doctor] said, I’m going to really try to train smart and be patient, and hopefully it will pay off.
Hicks was unable to defend his BSM title in 2020 due to an injury that wasn’t disclosed. He placed third in the 2021 BSM contest behind reigning champion Tom Stoltman and 2020 BSM champion Adam Bishop.
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With Hicks’ absence from the contest, that leaves ten men in the field to compete for this year’s championship. The list of remaining athletes is in alphabetical order below:
2022 Britain’s Strongest Man Roster
- Gavin Bilton
- Adam Bishop
- Andy Black
- Mark Felix
- Shane Flowers
- Desmond Gahan
- Pa O’Dwyer
- Paul Smith
- Luke Stoltman
- Tom Stoltman
On To Sheffield, England
At the time of this article’s publication, there is no word on if or when Hicks plans to compete again. With his absence from the 2022 BSM lineup, there is an opportunity for a new contender to claim a spot on podium.
Featured Image: @grahamhicksuk on Instagram
