Top 10 O-ments: as we count down the days till the 2009 rendition, we rank the top 10 moments in Olympia history

Flex, July, 2009 by Shawn Perine

When Joe Weider first conceived the Mr. Olympia contest (which, by the way, was named after a beer-see #2), he knew full well that he was creating history. What Weider may not have foreseen, though, was the four plus decades (and counting) worth of highlights that have since established the Olympia as an annual generator of Kodak moments.

Although there have been 43 Olympias since the 1965 event, each special in its own way, a handful stand out as particularly historic--each for a reason all its own.

Join us now in our trip down and up and back down memory lane as we take a look at the top 10 most memorable Mr. Olympia moments.

10

2003: ONE MAN IS AN ISLAND

By the time the 2003 Olympia had rolled around, chinks were beginning to show in the armor of defending champ Ronnie Coleman. Not wanting to leave 2003 to chance, Ronnie redoubled his efforts in the gym, hitting the rusty, crusty weights at Arlington's MetroFlex with renewed intensity. The result, as unveiled onstage at Mandalay Bay Arena in Las Vegas, was eye-popping-287 pounds of shrink-wrapped muscle with striations upon striations obscured only by a network of finger-thick veins. Never before, or since, has a human being displayed such an amazing conglomeration of bonedry sinew. Although he would somehow manage to pack on another 10 pounds the following year, it was in 2003 that Big Ron set the ultimate high-water mark for freakiness.

9

1970: CLASH OF THE TITANS

Going into 1970, one man and one man alone ruled the bodybuilding roost. Referred to only as The Myth, Sergio Oliva was so dominant that he competed in the 1968 Mr. Olympia uncontested. In 1969, however, an upstart Austrian kid named Arnold Schwarzenegger decided to take it to The Myth in his own backyard-the Olympia--and although he was soundly defeated, a rivalry had been forged.

A year later, 23-year-old Schwarzenegger had matured, both in physique and in confidence. Just days before the Mr. Olympia contest, he beat his formidable foe at the Mr. World competition in Columbus, Ohio. With his already brimming confidence sky-high, Schwarzenegger went to New York with thoughts of an Olympia win set in his laserlike sights. In a pitched battle that pitted raw brute size and shape against equal size and expert presentation, he would edge the great Oliva in what was to be the first of Arnold's seven Olympia wins.

8

1998: THE UNDERDOG

With defending champ Dorian Yates opting out of the competition, the '98 Olympia was up for grabs and the favorites were Shawn Ray, Kevin Levrone, Nasser El Sonbaty and front-runner Ken "Flex" Wheeler.

Although Wheeler came to New York City armed and ready for battle, neither he nor anyone else in the bodybuilding community could have predicted the transformation Ronnie Coleman would undergo between 1997 and 1998. To this day, there are those who say the '98 version of the Coleman physique represents the best bodybuilding has ever seen. From his shadow-inducing lat spread to his peaked biceps, sweeping quads and hanging pecs, all tied in to a wasp waist, Ronnie simply outclassed what is considered the deepest Olympia lineup in history.

7

1984: MYTH BUSTER

In 1983, a 23-year-old rookie named Lee Haney battled his way to third place in his first try at Olympia glory. Standing nearly 6' and weighing more than 230 pounds, Haney was a behemoth with room to grow. And grow he did over the course of the next year, adding 10 pounds or so to his frame and, as a result, dominating the field at the 1984 Mr. Olympia, held at Madison Square Garden's Felt Forum.

It was evident to everyone in attendance (including this author) that a bodybuilding star was born on that night; one who could go on winning the Sandow trophy so long as he saw fit to do so, which would end up being another seven times.

The 1984 rendition of the Mr. Olympia contest was also memorable for Sergio Oliva's return to an Olympia stage for the first time in 12 years. Although The Myth would only place eighth (to a resounding chorus of boos), his presence alone ignited a fiery New York crowd to a state of near pandemonium as he blasted through a jaw-dropping series of most-muscular shots capped off by his signature victory pose. Even Haney would later admit to being awed by Oliva's enduring greatness.

6

2006: SECOND NO MORE

By 2006, Jay Cutler was feeling frustrated. Despite having arguably been the best man onstage in only his third Olympia (2001), he could place no higher than second in the ensuing years. Nevertheless. Cutler was fully prepared to make history for himself at Orleans Arena in the 2006 Olympia.

With a Haney-tying eight Sandows already to his credit. Coleman was primed to make some history of his own. Although it was clear that the Coleman onstage that evening was no match for his 2003 self (see #10) and that Cutler was close to (if not quite at) his 2001 level of excellence, the tension in the arena was pudding thick as Bob Cicherillo savored his dramatic pause before announcing Cutler the new Mr. Olympia. It had been more than two decades since a defending Mr. Olympia had been defeated, and certainly never one with eight O wins under his belt.