"Everybody seems to be an expert these days" - Bob Cicherillo on the fake 'experts' in the bodybuilding realm
Since retiring, Bob Cicherillo has taken to social media and streaming platforms to be a strongly consistent voice within the sport of bodybuilding. Cicherillo often finds himself defending judges and their decisions after major shows. Most recently, he had debates with the likes of Nick Trigili after the culmination of the 2023 Arnold Classic.
In a recent episode of Bob's show, Voice of Bodybuilding, he took the opportunity to call out many people who think they are experts in the sport.
"Everybody seems to be an expert these days ... Why is that? Who is an expert?"
Cicherillo then talked about eight-time Mr. Olympia Lee Haney who has seen it all and done it all as an athlete in the sport.
"Is Lee Haney an expert? Well, anybody would think an eight-time Olympia champ would certainly be an expert but not all the time. Now, Lee happens to be one because I’ve known Lee for many many years and he’s got a very good eye when it comes to bodybuilding and current champs."
However, according to Bob, Lee Haney is an expert because he closely follows the sport to this day and not because of his success in the Olympia.
"He does follow the sport and he’s at a lot of the shows. His track record is what makes him an expert,” Bob Cicherillo shared.
Cicherillo then dove into the topic of who could be considered an unbiased voice, seeing and saying things as they are, without any partisanship. He added that while coaches are well-versed in the technicalities of bodybuilding, their bias can clearly be seen when they voice their opinions.
"Everyone’s got a different perspective, we talked about it in the past, if you’re a fan, which is definitely going to be more on the biased side. How about a coach? Well, a coach could certainly be considered an expert except coaches are some of the worst experts because of their bias. Because they can’t separate themselves."
"The absolute worst" - Bob Cicherillo says coaches do not make good 'experts'
Continuing his monolog, Cicherillo reiterated his views on coaches being viewed as expert commentators in the sport. Their expertise lies in preparing an athlete for a competition.
"Coaches are the absolute worst when it comes to being a quote ‘expert,’ they may be an expert of how to prepare somebody for a competition, what supplements to take, what diet to use, what cardio, how much, when, where, drink this then, eat this then, dial you in, dry you out, get you ready — that’s their expertise."
Bob then went on to give his view on the opinions of fans, who usually watch major shows from afar or from the convenience of their homes. According to him, viewing the show on screen is not the same as being in the venue and hence, not all opinions are built the same.
"Whether you’re there 15 feet away or whether you’re home makes a huge difference. If you’re home… your ability to be a quote expert is already diminished 50% – it doesn’t mean you aren’t entitled to an opinion, don’t get me wrong, everyone is entitled to an opinion but not all opinions are valued the same. They don’t all hold the same weight."