October in England figures to be a heavyweight battle of British titans.
This fall, on Oct. 1, 2023, a few of the strongest athletes in England will gather in Doncaster to find out who stands tallest and strongest above their countrymen. They’ll use the 2023 England’s Strongest Man (ESM) competition to parse this competitive evaluation out amongst themselves.
On Mar. 17, 2023, the Official Strongman Games (OSG) and Giants Live organizations revealed the primary parts of the 2023 ESM roster. Paul Smith is the defending champion, but there’s no shortage of worthy contenders for the title, even on this initial reveal. The events for the competition haven’t been confirmed on the time of this writing, but they might be announced at a later date.
Here’s an outline of the present ESM roster:
2023 England’s Strongest Man Roster
- Paul Smith | Defending Champion
- Mark Felix
- Ryan Bennett
- Shane Flowers
- Kane Francis
The 2022 ESM roster featured 12 competitors. While the precise variety of athletes featured at this 12 months’s iteration isn’t out within the open yet, the expectation is that more shall be revealed in the approaching weeks and months. Note: Breaking Muscle will update this text accordingly as more strongmen are confirmed for the 2023 ESM.
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As for the competitors already announced for the 2023 ESM, some have their very own major claims to fame. For instance, along with his 2022 ESM title, Smith also captured the 2022 UK’s Strongest Man championship. The win may as well have cemented his relative dominance across the Atlantic Ocean.
Meanwhile, 56-year-old Grenadian strongman Mark Felix has been knowledgeable competitor for nearly twenty years, holding a prolific 17 berths within the annual World’s Strongest Man (WSM). A fixture within the British strongman scene during that point, Felix possesses the World Record on the Wrecking Ball Hold with a time of two minutes and 20.49 seconds on the 2022 WSM. The 2023 ESM will likely be one in all Felix’s first strongman competitions after the 2023 WSM, happening April 19-23, which shall be Felix’s final appearance at the game’s tentpole contest.
From an initial glance, Smith and Felix may likely be considered the favorites to contend for the newest ESM title. That’s especially the case considering the relative newcomers in Bennett, Flowers, and Francis have never won a strongman contest, per Strongman Archives. Nonetheless, within the case of a normally competitive strongman environment, anything can and possibly will occur. Not to say the potential of roster additions like 2023 Britain’s Strongest Man (BSM) Adam Bishop down the road.
At this point within the competition’s timeline, with a lot of the roster and events lineup still unclear, decisively ruling out an increase to the highest of the English strength scene for anyone would likely be a silly prospect.
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Loads can occur between now and October. Smith and Felix might stand because the headliners in the intervening time, but plenty may be thrown into this enticing mixture of English strongmen. The competitive drama is simply certain to construct.
Featured image: @officialstrongman_ on Instagram