1960s The 1965 and 1966 Mr. Olympia were won by
Larry Scott, a famous bodybuilder of the time. Scott retired after his 1966 victory and attempted to make a comeback in 1979, where he showed a physique that wasn’t at his peak. Following this performance, he retired from competitive bodybuilding in 1980.
Harold Poole holds two Mr. Olympia distinctions: one is that he is the youngest ever competitor to have participated in the Olympia—in 1965 he competed in the first Mr. Olympia at the age of 21; the other is that he was the only man to compete in all three of the initial Mr. Olympia contests. The 1967 Mr. Olympia, won by
Sergio Oliva, heralded a new era in bodybuilding competition. At 5 ft 10 ins and 240 lbs Oliva, nicknamed "The Myth", Oliva would go on to win the Mr. Olympia competition in 1967, 1968 (uncontested), With the emergence of a
performance enhancing drug called
Dianabol in 1958, bodybuilders began experimenting more with the idea of unnatural ways to improve their physiques as well as intensify their training regimens. Dianabol was affordable, and the 1960s became a free-for all in terms of experimentation with many kinds of performance enhancing drugs. These
anabolic steroids were not only used by bodybuilders, but also by
Olympic athletes and
NFL players. For example, Schwarzenegger and players on the
Pittsburgh Steelers used performance enhancing drugs in the 1960s to 70s to improve both their physiques and performances.
1970s Schwarzenegger defeated Oliva at the 1970 Mr. Olympia after finishing second the year before, and also won in 1971 (being the only competitor). He defeated Oliva again in 1972, and went on to win the next three Mr. Olympia competitions, including the 1975 edition, which was highlighted in the 1977
docudrama Pumping Iron and featured other notable bodybuilders such as
Lou Ferrigno,
Serge Nubret, and
Franco Columbu, who would go on to win the 1976 and 1981 competitions. From 1974 until 1979, a dual weight division system was used, splitting competitors into two categories: "Heavyweights" (over 200lbs) and "Lightweights" (under 200lbs). The winners of each division would then compete against each other to decide an overall champion. After winning the 1975 competition, Schwarzenegger announced his retirement from competitive bodybuilding; this was also depicted in
Pumping Iron.
Frank Zane won the 1977, 1978, and 1979 competitions.
1980s In 1980, Schwarzenegger came out of retirement to win the Olympia yet again, after a five-year hiatus. Schwarzenegger (who was supposedly training for the film
Conan the Barbarian) had been a late entry into the competition, and his competitors did not know of his intentions to compete. This seventh victory was especially controversial, as most fellow competitors and observers felt that he lacked both muscle mass and conditioning, and shouldn't have won over
Chris Dickerson or
Mike Mentzer. Several athletes vowed to boycott the contest the following year, and Mentzer retired for good. The following year, Franco Columbu was victorious for the second time.
Chris Dickerson won his only title in 1982, making him the first openly gay Mr. Olympia.
Samir Bannout won his only title in 1983, making the first Lebanese Mr. Olympia.
1990s From the late 1980s until the 2010s, bodybuilders began to compete with a level of muscle mass surpassing the limits with each edition, which was called the "Mass Monster" era. This era coincided with concerns about the overuse of
anabolic steroids in sports, which culminated in the
Anabolic Steroids Control Act of 1990. Haney retired from competitive bodybuilding after his last Mr. Olympia victory in 1991. Having placed second to Haney the previous year,
Dorian Yates won the competition six straight times from 1992 until 1997. Dorian is given credit for revolutionizing the sport during his reign as Mr. Olympia by combining larger mass than seen before with what was dubbed "granite hardness". Yates retired from competitive bodybuilding after his 1997 victory, having accumulated several injuries.
Ronnie Coleman, who placed 9th in 1997, surprised everyone with a much improved physique in 1998, winning the first of 8 consecutive titles.
2000s Ronnie Coleman won the Mr. Olympia competition eight consecutive times from 1998 to 2005, ending one of the biggest rivalries in the competition's history. In 2008,
Dexter Jackson defeated Jay Cutler and became Mr. Olympia.
2010s In 2010, Cutler returned to claim his fourth Mr. Olympia title, becoming the fifth competitor in Olympia history to win the title more than three times. and
Kai Greene at the
2012 Mr. Olympia In 2011,
Phil Heath defeated Cutler for the title, beginning a winning streak that lasted until 2018. Danny Hester was the inaugural champion in Classic Physique division. Heath won his seventh-consecutive Mr. Olympia in 2017, Starting in 2018, a new division called Wheelchair Olympia was added.
2020s In 2020 Phil Heath returned for an attempted record-tying eighth title, but Mamdouh Elssbiay won the Olympia for his first title. Elssbiay won for the second time in 2021. Hadi Choopan won in 2022, Derek Lunsford won in 2023 and Samson Dauda won in 2024. Derek Lunsford won in 2025. In the Classic Physique division,
Chris Bumstead won a record six consecutive titles from 2019 to 2024, eventually retiring after his sixth win in 2024. == Qualifying ==