Is Arnold Schwarzenegger youngest Mr. Olympia champion?

Modified Mar 13, 2024 12:33 GMT

American bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger is unarguably one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time. He has built a tall legacy for himself through a decades-long career in film, politics and business, but he started out in bodybuilding.

Mr. Olympia is one of the most prestigious titles in bodybuilding. Arnold Schwarzenegger took part in his first Mr. Olympia competition in 1969. However, he lost to three-time winner Sergio Oliva.

He returned in 1970 and won the title at the young age of 23, becoming the youngest Mr. Olympia champion ever. He continued his winning run for a whopping five more years till 1975. After a gap of five years, he bagged the title once again in 1980.

For his final appearance at the Mr. Olympia contest, Arnold Schwarzenegger came out of retirement to take part in the coveted tournament. That victory took his tally to seven.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's controversial 1980 Mr. Olympia win

Arnold Schwarzenegger (Image via Amazon)

Arnold Schwarzenegger was shooting for Conan the Barbarian and got into good shape because of the running, horseback riding and sword fighting. His physique made him think of getting out of retirement and participating in the 1980 Mr. Olympia.

Initially he was to give color commentary of the event but announced at the last minute that he was going to compete. Schwarzenegger had trained for only eight weeks for the tournament.

When asked about his decision, he had said:

"We're going to start shooting the first few scenes (of Conan the Barbarian) in October, and so I really wanted to be muscular because the idea was that Conan was a very muscular, heroic looking guy, and that I should be in top shape."

Arnold Schwarzenegger said that he started speculating about the idea of participating in Mr. Olympia the closer the date got.

He said:

"The closer I came to this competition more people started speculating on the idea that I would be competing and the more I started thinking about the possibility. And so around three weeks or two weeks ago I decided, well, I think it would be a kind of an interesting challenge to do something in eight weeks that most of the guys do, preparing a year or two years in advance."

Schwarzenegger traveled to Australia to do commentary for CBS. However, a day before the event, he announced his participation. His announcement was frowned upon, as it was shocking as well as enraging for the contenstants.

He was heavily criticized for snatching the spotlight from emerging bodybuilders as Arnold Schwarzenegger had already established himself as a film star by that point.

Robert Nailon, a former bodybuilder and photographer, commented that although Schwarzenegger wasn't in top shape, he looked great.

He said:

"Nobody knew that Arnold was competing in 1980 until the last minute. He was supposed to be MC at the show and then at the last minute said he was going to compete which caused an outrage with all of the other contestants.

"I was backstage while all of the contestants were pumping up at the pre judging – it was obvious Arnold wasn’t in top shape but still looked great anyway."

People did not expect Schwarzenegger to even reach the top 5, so when he was announced as the winner, many fans were left confused and angry. The audience booed him, with many alleging that the competition was rigged.

Chris Dickerson and Frank Zane came in first and second runner-up, respectively. Zane, who had won the competition consecutively from 1977 to 1979, was one of the top contenders for the 1980 Mr. Olympia title. Sadly, he did not have enough time to get back on track because his urethra was injured a few weeks prior to the tournament.

Zane went backstage after being named the second-runner up and reportedly hurled his trophy against the wall, shattering it. After the contest, he and Boyer Coe withdrew from lesser contests, while Mike Mentzer declared his retirement from bodybuilding.