History of the tournament Mr. Olympia. Briefly about the tournament.

What should a bodybuilder who has achieved very impressive results in his sport do? Where can he go if he has already won all the highest awards? Can you leave the sport? Or maybe try to engage in coaching and educate the future “Mister World”? Many athletes who were referred to as “Mr. America” ​​or “Mr. Universe” asked themselves such questions. They had no choice but to stop their training, because the source of motivation for them was lost – to win the tournament, proving to everyone once again that you are the best bodybuilder in the world. After all, there was a strict framework of rules established by the federations IFBB, AAU and NABBA, that an athlete is prohibited from taking part in a tournament in which he once won. For the champion, it was a real disaster, in contrast to the newbie, who, following the dream of becoming the best, worked hard.

But in 1965, everything changed radically – it was decided to make such a competition in which only the best bodybuilders could take part. The door to the athlete who did not have the main title of the competition “Mr. World”, “Mr. America” ​​and “Mr. Universe” was tightly closed. Initially, it was decided to call the winner of the new tournament “Mr. Olympic” (this decision was based on the results of the survey), but in June 1965 the final name was approved – “Mr. Olympia”.

The father of the prestigious competition is Joe Weider, a renowned trainer and founder of the International Federation of Bodybuilders.

The first competition for the title “Mr. Olympia” took place on September 18, 1965. An unconditional victory was won by the American Larry Scott. The next year, he also had no equal and he was able to stay at the top, confirming his champion status. It would seem that the winner of 1967 has already been determined, but “Mr. Olympia” Larry Scott announced that he will no longer take part in this tournament. What can you do, this is his decision.

And in his place was the renowned bodybuilder, Cuban Sergio Oliva. He “firmly grabbed” his title of undisputed champion and was able to keep it until 1969 inclusive. It should be noted that 1969 turned out to be quite tense for all bodybuilders who took part in “Mr. Olympia”, Sergio was especially difficult, who had to enter into a serious fight with the young contender for the main title, Austrian Arnold Schwarzneiger.

And 1970 turned out to be not entirely successful for “Mr. Olympia” – his main competitor Schwarzneiger bypassed all rivals, taking the main prize. After his victory, Arnold made a rather loud statement: he will be the champion until he stops participating in the tournament, and no one can beat him! Maybe someone laughed at this, but “Mr. Olympia” kept his word and until 1975, inclusively, no one could get around it. After which Schwarzenegger announced his resignation.

In 1976, Franco Colombo won the victory.

Then the period of American Frank Zane began – he was “Mr. Olympia” for 3 years in a row. In 1980, Zane’s plans were again to defeat everyone and prove his superiority, but everything changed dramatically with the return of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Everyone was surprised – no one expected that the famous Austrian would again decide to take part in the tournament.

In 1981, the famous athlete Franco Colombo became “Mr. Olympia”.

The following year, the competition was held in London. Here the victory was won by Chris Dickerson. By the way, he was the main competitor of Franco Colombo in the previous year.

The next year was marked by the victory of the American Samir Bannut, who was nicknamed the “Lion of Lebanon”.

In 1984, Lee Haney became the main winner. His body was so embossed that no one doubted his victory. As it turned out, Lee Haney had to become “Mr. Olympia” 7 more times!

In 1992, the absolute champion of the tournament announces his retirement from the competition. Therefore, the main struggle broke out between two powerful athletes – Kevin Levron and Dorian Yates. The latter turned out to be the best, he took the main prize, which he was able to “convey” to 1997 inclusive.

From 1998 to 2005 inclusive, the title “Mr. Olympia” is held by Ronnie Coleman.

The next year was significant in the life of Jay Cutler. In 2007, he also took the top, but there was considerable controversy over his victory.

In 2008, Dexter Jackson won the victory over Jay Cutler by 7 points.

In 2009, the title “Mr. Olympia” again went to Jay Cutler.