Four-time World’s Strongest Man (WSM) champion Brian Shaw shared a Q&A on his YouTube channel in which he answers a range of questions, from the process of how he recovered from his plantar fasciitis tear (that’s tissue that connects the heel to the toes) in 2018 to whether or not he would attempt a world record 505kg/1,113lb deadlift before his career is over — spoiler alert, he has no plans to do so currently.
He also discusses his stance on the ongoing feud between Eddie Hall and Hafthor Bjornsson that culminated in a boxing match between the two being scheduled for September 2021. A point of confusion that Shaw helped clear up was with regard to Bjornsson saying he will not compete in the 2020 WSM competition *which was postponed until November 11th) because he had not yet received an invite.
WSM shared a response in a Facebook post saying:
“…no athlete invitations have been sent out. It is currently WSM’s official policy that all active previous champions receive an automatic invitation for as long as they are able to compete.”
Shaw speaks on WSM invites at 10:55 in his Q&A. See it below via his YouTube channel:
Does the fact that Thor won’t be at WSM this year change your mindset for the contest?
Note: bolding done by BarBend editorial team for emphasis.
“None of the athletes have received an invite for WSM this year. Nobody has. WSM… announced the date earlier than they ever had to both the athletes and the fans, which I thought was a huge step in the right direction. But on top of that, I know as a WSM champion that it’s been WSM policy to invite the former champions back to the competition. I don’t know where Hafthor is coming up with that, but I wasn’t very happy to hear that because he should know very well that he’s invited to compete at WSM. He absolutely has an invite, and if he wants to compete, I guarantee that he can compete.”
Regardless of whether Bjornsson will be competing at the 2020 WSM or not, Shaw is planning to bring his best to claim a record-tying 5th WSM title.
Feature image from Brian Shaw’s Instagram page: @shawstrength