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About Weider

In the beginning ...

Joe Weider – the creator of Mr Olympia

Back in 1936: Joe Weider, the “Master Blaster” and “Trainer of the Champions”, is the first person to bring bodybuilding popular appeal. In 1940, he writes about vitamins and bodybuilding in his magazine “Your Physique”. “Your Physique” later gave rise to the other magazines “Muscle Builder”, “Flex”, “Muscle & Fitness” and, also available in English, “Shape”.

1965: Mr Olympia is born

1965 is the year in which Joe launches the “Superbowl of bodybuilding”. Only the crème de la crème can take part in the Mr Olympia contest. There are already competitions such as Mr America, Mr World and Mr Universe but the competition rules state that any athlete who has already won a title is not permitted to enter. In his magazine “Muscle Builder” in April 1965, Joe compares this state of affairs with Alexander the Great, who believed aged 33 that there was nothing else on the planet left for him to conquer.

According to Joe, the same applies to Larry Scott. At this point, he is only 24 and has already won everything there is to win. The rules prevent him from defending his title. However, Larry Scott still has enormous potential and is longing to be able to pit himself against the big names in the business. Joe says: “The world should see how many muscles it is possible for a person to be able to build.” Other legends such as Harald Poole, Bill Pearl, Reg Park, Chuck Sipes and others are also at a huge disadvantage.

With the Mr Olympia competition, Joe sets the stage for Larry Scott and co., and becomes the founder of the most prestigious bodybuilding contest in the world. Only the Mr Olympia contest truly gives champions the chance to present their progress to a large audience.

The early days ...

18 September 1965: The full house at the Brooklyn Academy of Music can hardly wait. After both IFBB competitions, Mr America and Mr Universe, the new champions are pitted against winners from previous years. The audience is clapping, stamping and cheering as loud as they can. They are all clamouring to see the superstar: Larry Scott, the Californian with the biggest arms in history, voted Mr America 1962 and Mr Universe 1964. Joe’s new contest finally returns him to the stage in order to prove his title to the world. Larry doesn’t disappoint his fans and goes on to win the “Mr O” in 1965 and 1966.

Mr Olympia has been crowning the champion of champions for over 40 years. To date, Larry Scott has been succeeded by nine further winners. Here’s the Hall of Fame:

Souce: Photos - IFBB and Udo Mölzer

Mr Olympia, Ms Olympia - the Superbowl

Joe Weider is not a man to do things by halves. In 1980, he creates the Ms Olympia competition to complement Mr Olympia. In 1995, Fitness Olympia is created, followed by Figure Olympia in 2003. Joe’s dream of creating a bodybuilding Superbowl has become reality.

The prize money has also become more attractive over the years. Although back in 1965, Larry Scott received peanuts by comparison, in 1966 the prize fund had already jumped to $1000. Almost 30 years later, during Olympia Weekend 2005, the winners of Mr and Ms Olympia and Fitness and Figure Olympia received a total of $771,000 in prize money. With $550,000 prize money, the winner of Mr Olympia gets the lion’s share of this.

Weider is bodybuilding

Joe Weider, originally from Montreal, is a pioneer of fitness training who has continued to use his expertise in order to help people around the world to lead a healthy and happy life.

The name Weider represents an impressive success story: right from the early days in 1936, athletes, trainers and sports scientists around the globe have made use of Joe Weider’s knowledge about training, nutrition and recuperation. The world of medicine has also been convinced of the benefits of weight training, despite its initial scepticism: working out in accordance with Weider principles has long been accepted as an effective weapon in the fight against ageing and also in order to stabilise the mood.

Joe Weider has always been a passionate supporter of bodybuilding. Bodybuilders and other sportspeople around the world use his nutritional supplements to support their training programme in order to ensure a healthy way of life.

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