1975 - IFBB Professional (Pro) Committee / IFBB Pro Division
35-498: The IFBB Pro Arnold Sports Festival , also known as the Arnold Schwarzenegger Sports Festival , is an annual multi-sport event consisting of professional bodybuilding ( Arnold Classic ), strongman ( Arnold Strongman Classic ), armlifting, fitness , figure , bikini and several others as a weekend expo. It was established in 1989 and is named after Arnold Schwarzenegger . The main event
70-547: A Mr. Olympia competition. With the emergence of a performance enhancing drug called Dianabol in 1958, bodybuilders began experimenting more with the idea of unnatural ways to improve their physiques as well as intensify their training regimens. Dianabol was affordable, and the 1960's became a free-for all in terms of experimentation with many kinds of performance enhancing drugs. These anabolic steroids were not only used by bodybuilders, but also by Olympic athletes and NFL players . For example, Schwarzenegger and players on
105-510: A five-year hiatus. Schwarzenegger (who was supposedly training for the film Conan the Barbarian ) had been a late entry into the competition, and his competitors did not know of his intentions to compete. This seventh victory was especially controversial, as most fellow competitors and observers felt that he lacked both muscle mass and conditioning, and shouldn't have won over Chris Dickerson or Mike Mentzer . Several athletes vowed to boycott
140-645: A new division called Classic Physique was introduced, a division that emphasizes symmetry, proportion, pleasing lines, and a small waist, over size and mass. Danny Hester was the inaugural champion in Classic Physique division. Heath won his seventh-consecutive Mr. Olympia in 2017, with Mamdouh Elssbiay taking second. With his 2017 win, Heath tied Arnold Schwarzenegger for second most Olympia victories, behind Lee Haney and Ronnie Coleman who won eight. Shawn Rhoden defeated Phil Heath in 2018, snapping Heath's streak of seven victories. The 2019 Mr. Olympia
175-539: A separate Masters Olympia competition for professional bodybuilders was created, to compete at the highest levels in their later years. Ronnie Coleman won the Mr. Olympia competition eight consecutive times from 1998 to 2005, tying the record set by Lee Haney. Coleman, nicknamed "The King", is widely regarded as the greatest bodybuilder in Olympia history and began the mass monster era. Coleman returned in 2006 to try to beat
210-577: Is held annually around late February or early March in Columbus , Ohio , by the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness Professional League ( IFBB Pro League ). It is considered the second-most-prestigious event in professional men's bodybuilding , physique, figure and bikini after Joe Weider's Olympia . When the Ms. International competition was hosted, until 2013, it was
245-464: The Ms. Olympia title, female titles include Fitness Olympia and Figure Olympia for fitness and figure competitors. All four contests occur during the same weekend. From 1994 to 2003, and again in 2012, a Masters Olympia was also crowned. Globally, a version with amateur competitors is also presented, the Mr. Olympia Amateur . The 1965 and 1966 Mr. Olympia were won by Larry Scott , a famous bodybuilder of
280-474: The Pittsburgh Steelers used performance enhancing drugs in the 1960's to 70's to improve both their physiques and performances. Schwarzenegger defeated Oliva at the 1970 Mr. Olympia after finishing second the year before, and also won in 1971 (being the only competitor). He defeated Oliva again in 1972, and went on to win the next three Mr. Olympia competitions, including the 1975 edition, which
315-493: The amateur Mr. Universe winners to continue competing and to earn money. The first Mr. Olympia was held on September 18, 1965, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music , New York City , with Larry Scott winning his first of two straight titles. The equivalent female title is Ms. Olympia . The record number of wins is eight each by Lee Haney (1984–1991) and Ronnie Coleman (1998–2005). Samson Dauda currently holds
350-484: The 1975 competition, Schwarzenegger announced his retirement from competitive bodybuilding; this was also depicted in Pumping Iron . Frank Zane won the 1977, 1978, and 1979 competitions. The Sandow Trophy was awarded for the first time in 1976, a homage to the widely-recognized "father of modern bodybuilding", Eugen Sandow . In 1980, Schwarzenegger came out of retirement to win the Olympia yet again, after
385-409: The 1990s, the use of growth hormones by bodybuilders was reported, and they started to appear in competitions with an increasing physical size. Yates retired from competitive bodybuilding after his 1997 victory, having accumulated several injuries. Ronnie Coleman , who placed 9th in 1997, surprised everyone with a much improved physique in 1998, winning the first of 8 consecutive titles. In 1994,
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#1732772570559420-509: The ASF's event promoter, Jim Lorimer, announced that from 2014 on, the ASF's "212" (a professional, men's bodybuilding division) would permanently replace the Ms. International women's bodybuilding competition. Lorimer, in a statement, said "The Arnold Sports Festival was proud to support women's bodybuilding through the Ms. International for the past quarter century, but in keeping with demands of our fans,
455-434: The ASF, a rivalry in prestige and popularity has sprung up. The ASF is always hotly contested, often with one or two competition points separating the winners. All-star cheerleading competitions span a two-day period (usually all day Saturday, and to midday Sunday). More than 4,000 competitors entered the cheerleading event in 2014. Each team (of 15–30 cheerleaders) prepares to perform a two and one-half minute routine. After
490-493: The Classic Physique division, Chris Bumstead won a record six consecutive titles from 2019 to 2024, eventually retiring after his sixth win in 2024. The IFBB selects Olympia contestants from among the highest-placed competitors at various qualifying competitions, collectively referred to as the Olympia Qualifying Season. The qualifying season for each Olympia runs for a year, and ends a few months before
525-675: The IFBB Pro League. The IFBB have their own version of professional status known as IFBB Elite Pro. However, even if a competitor holds this distinction, they will still have to come via the route of an NPC show or NPC affiliated show to gain IFBB Pro League status if they one day wish to compete on the Mr Olympia stage. 2 (Men's physique and bikini) 8 – 9 5 – 7 less than 5 2 1 0 Note: Any former Olympia winner has lifetime eligibility, but after more than 5 years since their last Olympia win, approval of
560-559: The IFBB Professional League is required. Mr. Olympia Mr. Olympia is the title awarded to the winner of the professional men's bodybuilding contest in the open division at Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend —an international bodybuilding competition that is held annually and is sanctioned by the IFBB Professional League . Joe Weider created the contest to enable
595-697: The International Federation of Bodybuilders (IFBB) was created. At the 1975 Mr. Universe and IFBB Congress, the IFBB established the IFBB Professional Committee ( IFBB Pro Committee ; later called the IFBB Professional Division (IFBB Pro Division) ) to handle the professional bodybuilding division of the IFBB. In November 2004, International Federation of Bodybuilders Professional Division was renamed
630-502: The International Federation of Bodybuilding & Fitness Professional Division. In November 2005, the IFBB Pro Division was split from the IFBB and became the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness Professional League, which was its own legal entity, with its own rules and regulations. The IFBB Constitution became an amateur only sport governing document. To become an IFBB Pro bodybuilder, one has to come via
665-460: The competition. Under updated qualifying rules announced by the IFBB in 2019, to qualify for most divisions at the Olympia an IFBB athlete must meet one of the following criteria: For certain divisions with more than 25 qualifying competitions, slightly different rules are used: The previous Olympia winner is automatically qualified, plus the winner of each qualifying competition and the top five in total points. The IFBB Professional League also has
700-408: The contest the following year, and Mentzer retired for good. The following year, Franco Columbu was victorious for the second time. Chris Dickerson won his only title in 1982, making him the first openly gay Mr. Olympia. Samir Bannout won his only title in 1983, making the first Lebanese Mr. Olympia. From 1984 to 1991, Lee Haney won eight consecutive Mr. Olympia titles, setting a record that
735-434: The discretion to extend special invitations to other competitors. [REDACTED] Arnold Schwarzenegger A total of 274 bodybuilders have represented 47 nations across 59 competitions as of 2023. Mr. Olympia Amateur is a competition that globally awards the best amateur competitors with an IFBB Pro Card, bringing them closer to competing in the main Mr. Olympia. According to the official website as of March 2022,
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#1732772570559770-559: The initial Mr. Olympia contests. The 1967 Mr. Olympia, won by Sergio Oliva , heralded a new era in bodybuilding competition. At 5 ft 10 ins and 240 lbs Oliva, nicknamed "The Myth", displayed an unforeseen level of muscle mass and definition, including a "V" shape of a large and a well-formed upper-body that tapered down to a narrow waist. Oliva would go on to win the Mr. Olympia competition in 1967, 1968 (uncontested), and 1969—where he would defeat Arnold Schwarzenegger four to three, marking Schwarzenegger's only loss in
805-696: The most prestigious competitions in bodybuilding at the Mr Olympia and Ms. Olympia , and the second most prestigious competitions in bodybuilding at the Arnold Sports Festival and Rising Phoenix World Championships . The natural bodybuilding equivalent to the IFBB is the INBA/PNBA Global as the IFBB, excluding the IFBB Pro League Ben Weider Natural Pro, does not test athletes for steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs. In 1946,
840-498: The record for Olympia wins but was unable even to defend his title, instead placed second to Jay Cutler , who won his first title after four consecutive years of finishing second to Coleman. Cutler successfully defended his title in 2007. Coleman came in fourth place and announced his retirement from competition, ending one of the biggest rivalries in the competition's history. In 2008, Dexter Jackson defeated Jay Cutler and became Mr. Olympia. In 2009, Jay Cutler returned and regained
875-588: The route of the NPC . In the USA the NPC is the only route to IFBB Pro status. Internationally, one has to compete in an NPC Worldwide sanctioned show, of which there are various federations internationally with NPC affiliation. Note there is no longer any affiliation between the IFBB amateur ( IFBB ) and the IFBB Pro League/ NPC . Thus any competitor competing in an IFBB affiliated show have no route to
910-402: The second-most-prestigious event in professional female bodybuilding (after Ms. Olympia ). [REDACTED] A lucrative sports competition, the ASF offers a number of large prizes . Most notably, first prize in bodybuilding consists of a $ 130,000 check, a Hummer vehicle, and an Audemars Piguet watch. Since the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding title pre-dates and offers higher prize money than
945-572: The teams' routines are complete, they are scored by a panel of judges, each judge being an expert on one area of cheerleading (jumps, tumbling, stunting, etc.). Once scoring is complete, every team entered in the competition is called to the mat for awards, during which each team has a chance of winning multiple times. The ASF's awards consist of the following: National Champion jackets, trophies for every team, custom medals, limited edition patches and Grand Champion banners, and possible partial or full paid bid to Cheerleading World contests. On June 7, 2013,
980-624: The time has come to introduce the Arnold Classic 212 beginning in 2014. We are excited to create a professional competitive platform for some of the IFBB Pro League's most popular competitors." On March 3, 2020 Ohio governor Mike DeWine cancelled most of the Arnold Sports Festival due to the oncoming COVID-19 pandemic in Ohio , before any cases or deaths had been reported. The cancellation was widely regarded as 'radical' at
1015-472: The time. Arnold Classic branding is also used for: International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness Professional League Carnegie , Pennsylvania 15106 The International Federation of Bodybuilding & Fitness Professional League (IFBB Pro League) is the largest international professional sports governing body in the world for professional bodybuilding , physique, fitness, figure, bikini and wellness. A federal organisation, it sanctions
1050-463: The time. Scott retired after his 1966 victory, and to date is the only Mr. Olympia champion to have never lost a Mr. Olympia competition. Harold Poole holds two Mr. Olympia distinctions : one is that he is the youngest ever competitor to have participated in the Olympia—in 1965 he competed in the first Mr. Olympia at the age of 21; the other is that he was the only man to compete in all three of
1085-441: The title. In 2010, Cutler returned to claim his fourth Mr. Olympia title, becoming the fifth competitor in Olympia history to win the title more than three times. In 2011, Phil Heath defeated Cutler for the title, beginning a winning streak that lasted until 2018. From 2012 to 2014, the Olympia was dominated by the rivalry between Kai Greene and Heath, with Heath winning all three and Greene placing second. Starting in 2016,
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1120-595: The title. In addition to the Mr. Olympia title in the Open division, other male divisions include the 212 division since 2012, the Men's Physique division since 2013, and the Classic Physique division since 2016. The film Pumping Iron (1977) featured the buildup to the 1975 Mr. Olympia in Pretoria, South Africa, and helped launch the acting careers of Arnold Schwarzenegger , Lou Ferrigno , and Franco Columbu . As well as
1155-499: Was highlighted in the 1977 docudrama Pumping Iron and featured other notable bodybuilders such as Lou Ferrigno , Serge Nubret , and Franco Columbu , who would go on to win the 1976 and 1981 competitions. From 1974 until 1979, a dual weight division system was used, splitting competitors into two categories: "Heavyweights" (over 200lbs) and "Lightweights" (under 200lbs). The winners of each division would then compete against each other to decide an overall champion. After winning
1190-424: Was later tied by Ronnie Coleman. Haney retired from competitive bodybuilding after his last Mr. Olympia victory in 1991. Having placed second to Haney the previous year, Dorian Yates won the competition six straight times from 1992 until 1997. Dorian is given credit for revolutionizing the sport during his reign as Mr. Olympia by combining larger mass than seen before with what was dubbed "granite hardness". In
1225-466: Was won by Brandon Curry. In the 212 Division, James "Flex" Lewis won a record 7 consecutive victories from 2012 to 2018. Starting in 2018, a new division called Wheelchair Olympia was added. In 2020 Phil Heath returned for an attempted record-tying eighth title, but Mamdouh Elssbiay won the Olympia for his first title. Elssbiay won for the second time in 2021. Hadi Choopan won in 2022, Derek Lunsford won in 2023 and Samson Dauda won in 2024. In
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