The irony that Sergio Oliva was born on the fourth of July, 1941, is lost on no one who knows the man or his reputation. For throughout his six decades Sergio has shown nothing if not a burning desire for his own independence, the very kind the forefathers of America, his adoptive country, proclaimed their right to 165 years earlier. But when Fidel Castro’s opposition movement overthrew Cuba’s Batista government in 1959 Sergio suddenly found his homeland was no longer a place where personal freedoms could be savored.
A prodigiously gifted athlete from childhood, Sergio realized that his involvement in state sponsored sport could be his ticket to, if not freedom itself, then the opportunity to escape the stifling confines of the Cuban working class. Blessed with an almost preternatural combination of strength, speed and flexibility, Sergio wisely decided to channel his efforts into Olympic-style weightlifting.
Not surprisingly, he took to the sport immediately and, by the age of twenty, had already become Cuba’s top lifter and consequently its 198-pound class representative in the 1961 Pan American Games held in Kingston, Jamaica.
From Jamaica Sergio emigrated to the United States; first to Miami, where he performed odd jobs ranging from TV repair to unloading trucks. Then, in 1963, he made his way north to Chicago.
It was at Chicago’s Duncan YMCA that the weightlifter was introduced to the sport of bodybuilding by top local bodybuilder Bob Gajda. Gajda recognized the young man’s incredible physical potential and took him under his wing. As predicted, Sergio’s muscles ballooned immediately under the unique stresses of a bodybuilding regimen. He took to bodybuilding as an eagle to soaring and by the end of the year had won his first title, Mr. Young Chicagoland.
By 1966 Sergio Oliva had had enough of the vicissitudes of the AAU and decided to turn professional by joining the International Federation of Bodybuilders (IFBB). In short order he won the 1966 Mr. World and 1967 Mr. Universe titles and finally, with little resistance, the 1967 Mr. Olympia title. Only four years after getting his start in competitive bodybuilding Sergio Oliva was the undisputed king of the walk.
While Sergio handled his teutonic threat to win his third consecutive Olympia, the lessons learned in defeat served the young Schwarzenegger well the following year as he came back to edge out Sergio in one of the closest results in the sport’s history.
Sergio, disappointed but undaunted, redoubled his efforts and returned to the Olympia stage in 1972 bigger than ever, and ready to upset the applecart of the now two-time defending Mr. Olympia Schwarzenegger.
But it was not to be. Whether it was due to politics, as some assert, or Arnold’s uncanny ability to will himself to victory, Sergio, now known as The Myth, would take the runner-up spot that night in Essen, Germany, despite reaching his all-time best condition.
It was a huge blow to the man, one which would ultimately lead him out of the IFBB and into relative bodybuilding obscurity for the next 12 years.
* 1985 World Games, 7th (amateur)
* 1990 Night of Champions, 2nd
* 1991 Night of Champions, 1st
* 1991 Mr. Olympia, 2nd
* 1991 English Grand Prix, 1st
* 1992 Mr. Olympia, 1st
* 1992 English Grand Prix, 1st
* 1993 Mr. Olympia, 1st
* 1994 Mr. Olympia, 1st
* 1994 Spanish Grand Prix, 1st
* 1994 German Grand Prix, 1st
* 1994 English Grand Prix, 1st
* 1995 Mr. Olympia, 1st
* 1996 Mr. Olympia, 1st
* 1996 Spanish Grand Prix, 1st
* 1996 German Grand Prix, 1st
* 1996 English Grand Prix, 1st
* 1997 Mr. Olympia, 1st
Competitive stats
* Height: 5' 10" (1.78m)
* Peak competitive weight: 268 lbs(122kg)
* Peak off-season weight: 308 lbs(140kg)
* chest 57"(144.78cm)
* arms 21"(53.34cm)
* waist 34"(86.36cm)
* thigh 32"(81.28cm)
* calf 21"(53.34cm)
Dorian Andrew Mientjez Yates (born April 19, 1962 in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham, England), is an English professional bodybuilder, winning the Mr. Olympia title six consecutive times beginning in 1992.
His reign ended with his retirement, prompted in large part by an accumulating list of chronic and career-threatening acute injuries; Yates had suffered both a torn biceps and triceps, the latter just three weeks prior to his final contest, his successful defense of the Mr. Olympia title in 1997. His professional record on retirement consisted of 15 wins and two second-place finishes.
Yates is considered to have revolutionized training in the sport of bodybuilding.[citation needed] He is a noted proponent of Mike Mentzer's espoused style of training, known as HIT or "High Intensity Training". Though as his interviews and published workouts show, in practice Yates himself sometimes modified his application of Mentzer's theories considerably. HIT advocates several different exercises and very few sets for a bodypart allowing it to be hit from all angles for optimum development. He believed that muscle stimulation could be caused in a shorter period of time with the proper intensity rather than working out for extended periods of time. Yates recommended only one working set for compound exercises and Yates' less-is-more philosophy wasn't shared by many of his contemporaries.[citation needed]
In 1994 Dorian incorporated with Mike Mentzer and Ray Mentzer the California corporation, "Heavy Duty Inc."
* Height: 5'6" * Off Season Weight : 245 lbs. * Competition Weight:(2008 arnold) 233 lbs. * Competition Weight:(2008 olympia)233 lbs * chest (in-season) 45" to 46" * arms (in-season) 21 1/2" * waist (in-season) 27 1/2" * Bench Press 600 lbs * Barbell Curl 205 lbs x 4 to 6 reps * Squat 600 lbs x 6 to 8 reps * Motto : Never Say Never
Contest history ::
* 1992 NPC Southern States, Lightweight, 3rd * 1995 NPC USA Championships, Light-Heavyweight, 1st * 1996 NPC Nationals, Light-Heavyweight, 6th * 1998 North American Championships, Light-HeavyWeight, 1st and Overall * 1999 Arnold Classic, 7th * 1999 Grand Prix England, 4th * 1999 Night of Champions, 3rd * 1999 Mr. Olympia, 9th * 1999 World Pro Championships, 4th * 2000 Arnold Classic, 5th * 2000 Grand Prix Hungary, 2nd * 2000 Ironman Pro Invitational, 3rd * 2000 Night of Champions, 8th * 2000 Mr. Olympia, 9th * 2000 Toronto Pro Invitational, 2nd * 2001 Arnold Classic, 5th * 2001 Grand Prix Australia, 3rd * 2001 Grand Prix England, 4th * 2001 Grand Prix Hungary, 3rd * 2001 Night of Champions, 2nd * 2001 Mr. Olympia, last * 2001 Toronto Pro Invitational, 2nd * 2002 Arnold Classic, 3rd * 2002 Grand Prix Australia, 2nd * 2002 Grand Prix Austria, 2nd * 2002 Grand Prix England, 1st * 2002 Grand Prix Holland, 3rd * 2002 Mr. Olympia, 4th * 2002 San Francisco Pro Invitational, 3rd * 2002 Show of Strength Pro Championship, 6th * 2003 Arnold Classic, 4th * 2003 Maximum Pro Invitational, 3rd * 2003 Mr. Olympia, 3rd * 2003 San Francisco Pro Invitational, 3rd * 2003 Show of Strength Pro Championship, 1st * 2004 Arnold Classic, 3rd * 2004 Grand Prix Australia, 1st * 2004 Ironman Pro Invitational, 1st * 2004 Mr. Olympia, 4th * 2004 San Francisco Pro Invitational, 1st * 2005 Arnold Classic, 1st * 2005 San Francisco Pro Invitational, 2nd * 2006 Arnold Classic, 1st * 2006 Mr. Olympia, 4th * 2007 Arnold Classic, 2nd * 2007 Mr. Olympia, 3rd * 2008 Arnold Classic, 1st * 2008 IFBB Australian Pro Grand Prix VIII, 1st * 2008 IFBB New Zealand Grand Prix, 1st * 2008 IFBB Russian Grand Prix, 1st * 2008 Mr. Olympia, 1st * 2009 Mr. Olympia, 3rd * 2010 Arnold Classic, 4th * 2010 IFBB Australian Pro Grand Prix, 2ndstill counting........................................
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