SERGIO OLIVA
The Life, Times and Training of a Bodybuilding’s Myth: Sergio Oliva!
Sergio was the only bodybuilder to beat Arnold Schwarzenegger at the Mr. Olympia and for a certain generation of lifters, The Myth was the epitome of bodybuilding perfection. In today’s article, we examine Sergio’s eventful life from the Cuban military to the Olympia stage. Along the way, we’ll explore the foods and workouts which made The Myth’s body a thing of wonder.
Sergio’s first experience of an IFBB competition came in 1966 when he finished first in the Mr. World competition. He then entered that year’s Mr. Olympia contest where he came fourth, a long way behind Larry Scott who picked up his second Olympia title. In the space of a year, Oliva went from a distant fourth to undisputed champion when he shocked the bodybuilding world in 1967. Easily winning the 1967 Mr. Olympia, Oliva’s size, muscularity, and definition was almost inconceivable to fans and judges alike.
It was at the 1969 Mr. Olympia that Sergio solidified his legendary status by defeating Arnold Schwarzenegger in competition. In the months leading up to the Olympia, Joe Weider had excited bodybuilding fans about a young upstart named Arnold who would defeat ‘The Myth’ in competition. Reality proved different. Returning to Sergio’s writing, he remembered walking backstage in a butcher’s coat to hide his body from Arnold. Right before he went on stage, he threw the coat to one side, flexed his lats and completely demoralized Arnold. For the third year in a row, Sergio was the undisputed bodybuilding champion.
Just as it looked as if Sergio would dominate bodybuilding for the foreseeable future, fortune turned against him. At the 1970 Mr. Olympia Sergio was defeated by Arnold Schwarzenegger. While few disputed Arnold’s victory, Sergio was incensed. Storming backstage, he claimed that Weider had fixed the competition so that Arnold, Weider’s favorite bodybuilder, would win. As happened with the AAU some years earlier, Sergio also claimed that Joe’s contest was racist towards a black bodybuilder. Sergio later claimed that ‘I was beaten by the judges and the Joe Weider IFBB organization. Not by Arnold.’
Regardless of whether or not he was correct, Sergio’s behavior marked a downward spiral in his bodybuilding career. The next year, at the 1971 Mr. Universe competition, Sergio finished second to Bill Pearl. Once more, Sergio cited institutional racism and criticized the competition organizers. This time Sergio found a supporter in Arthur Jones. Jones, who came to fame owing to his Nautilus machines and ‘High-Intensity Training’ theory, was then one of the most influential voices in bodybuilding. Surveying Sergio’s second-place finish, Jones claimed that an ‘outright screwing’ had kept Sergio from winning. Looking at competition footage of the ‘71 Universe, it is easy to see why Jones and Sergio were so animated.
If it’s not clear by now, Sergio had become something of a pariah in the bodybuilding world. His outspoken nature and refusal to accept the murkier sides of bodybuilding began to tarnish his standing in the sport. In 1971, Sergio was a guest poser at the Mr. Olympia competition having been temporarily banned for competing in the Mr. Universe contest. At that time, Joe Weider banned anyone who competed in non-IFBB competitions. Sergio demanded to pose at that year’s Olympia and Joe, rather reluctantly agreed. Sergio quickly won the crowd over and embarrassed Joe Weider in front of his public. (16)
The next year, Sergio exited the IFBB having finished second in the 1972 Mr. Olympia. Soon after, Sergio began competing with the newly created World Bodybuilding Guild (WBBG) and spent the next several years winning every WBBG show he entered. In the early 1980s, Sergio competed with the World Amateur Body Building Association (WABBA) and once more, dominated their shows. Although he was winning, Sergio was very much the forgotten man of bodybuilding. Not competing in the Mr. Olympia shows meant that Sergio was excluded from the sport’s most important contest.
In 1984, Sergio returned to the Mr. Olympia, a full twelve years after his last show. Having been promised by Joe Weider that the judges would be fair, Sergio was convinced to enter. Having disappeared, at least in the eyes of many fans, Sergio’s return was downright sensational. He still had the muscularity, definition, and size that shocked the sport in the mid-1960s. An eighth-place finish could not disguise the fact that Sergio had stolen the show. It was at this Olympia that Sergio earned himself the title of ‘The Eighth Wonder of The World.’
Sergio would return to the Olympia stage in 1985 where again, he finished in eighth. Any chances of Olympia glory in 1986 were denied when Sergio was shot five times by his wife in a domestic dispute. From 1986 to his death in 2012 from kidney problems, Sergio continued to train, write to fans and act as an informal ambassador of the sport. Although his bodybuilding record was marred by Sergio’s fractious relationship with contest organizers, few could dispute his greatness.
