The Mr. Olympia competition has taken some blows, leading up to this year’s event. However, Dennis James thinks that this could mean a more motivated group of competitors.
Leading into the 2019 Mr. Olympia, things have not been very smooth. Last year’s champ Shawn Rhoden was ruled ineligible to compete, following accusations of sexual assault. On top of that, former long-time champ Phil Heath does not appear to be competing. Moreover, Kai Greene will be filming a movie, and is also unavailable to participate.
However, despite the fact that things seem not as good as previous years, there is still hope. Dennis James was speaking to Muscular Development about the upcoming event. Here, he explained that while things are not the best, this could very well lead to a better overall competition.
“Let me put it this way, the Olympia used to be the best of the best. You qualified for the superbowl, that means the best competitors in the world.
Athletes from around the world will meet that weekend to decide who is the number one bodybuilder in the world. And at this point, it’s just not the best of the best on stage anymore.
I’m talking this year, because you know we still consider Shawn Rhoden the best, the reigning Mr. Olympia. Then Phil Heath number two, and we don’t have Kai Greene. So the best, well the most talked about bodybuilders on the planet are not in the show.”
James continued, explaining that this does not make for a bad show.
“It’s going to be different, because all these guys that are usually fighting for a top six are fighting for the title, guaranteed. I don’t want to say that Roelly, and Brandon, and William, that they can’t beat Phil Heath.
I’m not saying that. What I’m saying is that these guys are never so motivated. There’s a difference in the last couple of years, and going into this year.”
Watch the video below:
Dennis James went on to explain that he did not feel that athletes like Brandon Curry, or Roelly Winklaar were ever training to win the Olympia. Instead he felt they were training to place in the top 6. However, he feels that now the motivation for these athletes to win will be through the roof.
The 2019 Mr. Olympia takes place on September 12-15. You can keep up with all the action here, on FitnessVolt.
Hey Dennis , then I guess you fit right in because you never got better than fourth place yourself, so did you not train hard enough to become Number 1 since you only trained enough to place forth fifth or six place too? Hmmmm 🤔