Shaw Classic: A Thrilling Win for Trey Mitchell
2021-09-02 by Éloi Fournier
After 7 of 8 events at the second Shaw Classic, it was all to play for. Jean-François Caron, Trey Mitchell and Brian Shaw had to face one final challenge: 5 Atlas stones, ranging from 159 to 204 kg. In the end, Caron had nothing left, while Mitchell made it look ridiculously easy, finishing the set in just over 28 seconds to claim the biggest title of his career, 3 points ahead of legendary strongman Brian Shaw.
Mitchell had put himself in a great spot early on. The Texan led the overall standings after each of the first five events before his grip gave up on him in the Power Medley. Mitchell notably tied with Bobby Thompson for the win in the Max Log Lift with 455 lb / 206 kg. He then continued scoring big points in each discipline except the Power Medley, culminating with what seemed like an easy win in the Atlas Stones. Mitchell is well known for his prowess in stone lifting events. In 2019, he defeated future World’s Strongest Man champion Oleksii Novikov in a thrilling Last Man Standing battle.
The Title Leaves Colorado
The founder of the Shaw Classic, 4-time World’s Strongest Man title winner Brian Shaw, had taken a great win last year and he was the favourite going into this year’s edition. However, the big man from Colorado came just a bit short this time around. Shaw surprisingly failed the 420 lb log in the opening event – last year, he had managed 440 lb.
There is no doubt that all the work behind the scenes took its toll on Shaw, who finished 2nd in this year’s World’s Strongest Man contest behind Great Britain’s Tom Stoltman. Shaw was still very consistent throughout the show, accumulating 101.5 points despite not winning a single event over the weekend.
Close Call for Caron
9-time Canadian champion Jean-François Caron came into the contest after recovering from a serious hamstring tear sustained in this year’s World’s Strongest Man competition. Very few pundits were picking him to win the show, but Caron was able to put himself in the lead with only the Atlas Stones remaining.
Caron performed exceptionally well in multiple events. Although he did not break his world record of 1202 lb in the Hummer Tire Deadlift, the resident of Les Hauteurs did enough to tie for the event win with Adam Bishop. Caron, who managed to finish 3rd at the 2020 World’s Strongest Man contest, was one of only four men to complete the Power Medley before getting third place in the Dumbbell Press. Sadly for him, he was clearly in pain during the Atlas Stones and could not perform as well as he would have wanted, leaving him on 99 points.
A Brutal Show
Caron was not the only athlete to finish the weekend in pain. Evan Singleton, who had won the Giants Live World Open less than two weeks before the Shaw Classic, had to skip the Car Squat due to a hamstring issue. Singleton still won three individual events and finished 5th, just behind an impressive Kevin Faires.
Bobby Thompson, who finished 6th overall, suffered a proximal bicep tendon injury while going for his first repetition in the Dumbbell Press… but, being the warrior that he is, Thompson was still able to complete 3 reps in spite of the pain.
Konstantine Janashia also had a tough go after pinching a nerve in his lower back. Janashia had difficulty walking to the various implements, but he still finished the show.
This was sadly not the case for veterans Žydrūnas Savickas and Mikhail Shivlyakov, who both had to withdraw early. Meanwhile, Graham Hicks and Jerry Pritchett were unable to perform certain events due to past injuries flaring up.
The Shaw Classic was certainly a grueling show, and many participants will have to take some time to heal up. However, Adam Bishop and Graham Hicks are both competing at Europe’s Strongest Man on Saturday in Leeds, England – a very quick turnaround for these two British athletes!