Dave’s pulling power
STRONGMAN Dave Walsh smashed a world record by pulling a 10-tonne truck in his wheelchair.
The feat was five times heavier than the previous benchmark.
Dave was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2014 but continued to work on his strength and fitness.
The 36-year-old said: “I was competing in ablebodied strongman competitions from 2012, and I competed at a high level up and down the country.
“When I was diagnosed with MS and forced out of the competitions – as my body wasn’t playing games any more – I fell into depression and didn’t know what to do.
“I knew I needed to snap out of the depression and that’s when I saw the disabled side of the sport in 2017. I’ve never looked back.”
Dave said: “One of my Strongman friends that was training with me said he thought I couldn’t pull a truck and I wanted to prove him wrong, so I found someone who was doing a truck-pull session and went along.
He managed to pull 10 tonnes and break the Guinness World Record, adding: “The record before was two tonnes so I definitely broke it! “I wanted to pull 17 but was limited on the day because of the size.”
Dave’s friends and family turned out in force to cheer him on as he pulled the truck and successfully smashed the record.
He said he was a little sore the day after but threw himself back into training again the following Monday.
Dave, from Chippenham, Wilts, added: “Next up for me is to retain my title as the World’s Strongest Disabled Man 2023.
“And then train for a 20-tonne truck pull... and then do a 25-tonne.”