SAN ANTONIO – When telling yourself to lift nearly 1,000 pounds multiple times in one day, your focus and drive to compete at that level better be stronger than the weight itself.
For San Antonio native Austin Andrade, becoming the 7th Strongest Man in the World wouldn’t have been possible without his support system.
Andrade said the football scholarship offers he did not receive when he was younger remain a motivating factor.
“The ultimate goal I’ve ever had in the sport was to make a legacy for myself,” Andrade said. “I have always had a chip on my shoulder going to junior college, and not getting an invite or offers to the big schools. So, this sport really leveled the playing ground. So I was able to show my strength, and now, I’ve proven to everyone that I’m one of the best when it comes to the sport. And I think that’s really what I set out to do: just to show my family name as being one of the strongest in the world.”
Pride in his last name is another motivating force in Andrade’s life.
“I come from a great line of Andrades,” Andrade said. “My grandfather taught us how to be a man, and my dad also just what it means to be a man. Representing that name to the best of my ability is really not only one of my biggest goals, but that’s one of my main focuses.”
Competing in strongman competitions over the last few years has also given him and his family the ability to travel the world. Andrade placed first in the 2023 SCL World’s Strongest Latino in Matosinhos, Portugal last summer, which has added to his love for the sport.
“It’s awesome, and just coming from, you know, a middle-class family the thought of traveling to another country is not really a thing we have,” said Andrade. “You know, it’s always going down to Corpus (Christi) or Port Aransas, and the fact that we’re able to that I’m able to take my wife to these places — and I went to Europe twice last year — that’s crazy. I never thought I would ever do that. You know, we were in Myrtle Beach. I was able to take my wife to the beach, and she enjoyed it. That was everything for me, just to see her joy and see my family’s joy when I was competing and see their pride. That was everything.”
Andrade will compete in the 2024 USA Strong Man Championship in September at Las Vegas’ Orleans Arena.
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