UPDATED: Evan Singleton Withdraws From 2022 World’s Strongest Man Due to Injury

UPDATE: Since this article was first published, Singleton and WSM have both confirmed that Singleton is back in the competition after being cleared by medical professionals.

According to Singleton, he went into anaphylactic shock. His throat closed and he couldn’t breathe. After undergoing stress tests, EKGs, and CAT scans at the hospital, he was allowed to return to competition. 

American strongman Evan Singleton is officially out of the 2022 World’s Strongest Man contest. On the opening day of the competition in Sacramento, Singleton suffered an injury in the first event, which was the Loading Race. "T-Rex" was competing in Group 5, which also included Luke Stoltman, Kelvin de Ruiter, Eythor Ingolffson Melsted, and Jean-Stephen Coraboeuf, who finished in that order ahead of Singleton, who came in fifth. Kim Ujarek finished in the final position.

As of this writing, there is no word on what sort of injury Singleton suffered, but WSM officials have confirmed to BarBend that he is unable to continue. They later made the announcement in an Instagram post, as seen below.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by SBD World’s Strongest Man (@theworldsstrongestman)

Singleton himself has yet to make a public statement on any of his social media platforms. Now that the competition is officially underway, it’s unlikely that he’ll be replaced. Singleton considered a favorite to be one of the two men to come out of Group 5 and advance to the final. This year was considered a breakout season for him — he won the 2021 Arnold Strongman UK contest and the 2021 Giants Live Strongman World Open.

Before the competition, Singleton told BarBend that he felt great mentally and physically. He had high expectations going into the contest in California, including his performance within his own group.

"I totally expect myself to win the heat," he said. "Anything less than that, even if I qualify for the final by coming in second, it will still be, it won’t be as well as I want it to be."

This was Singleton’s third career WSM appearance. Now that he is out, there will be a lot of eyes on Group 5 to see who moves on to the Final. As of this writing, Stoltman was in the lead with six points with De Ruiter in second place with five points. The Deadlift Ladder event is scheduled to take place at 1 p.m. PST/4 pm EST on May 24, 2022.

 

 
 
 
 
 
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A post shared by Evan "T-Rex" Singleton (@evan_trex_strongman)

As for Singleton, he told BarBend that his next scheduled competition was going to be the Giants Live Strongman Classic in London, England on July 9, 2022. Clearly, that is now subject to change depending on the severity of his injury and his ability to recover. This injury notwithstanding, Singleton expressed that he sees himself standing atop the podium at some point before his career is over.

"I can say this wholeheartedly knowing what I am capable of, and how desperately I want to win this title," he says. "I am 100% confident that before I retire, I will win this title."

Featured Image: @theworldsstrongestman