‘The Mona Lisa of Bodybuilding,’ Chinedu Andrew Obiekea, who once braved a 102-degree fever in his first Mr. Olympia, has dropped out of the Arnold Classic 2024 championship citing matters requiring his attention. Widely known by his stage name, Andrew Jacked, the bodybuilder revealed the news on social media, announcing his decision to withdraw from both the 2024 Arnold Classic (USA) and 2024 Arnold Classic UK contests.

The official Instagram account of Bis and Tris recently shared Andrew Jacked’s decision. The announcement from Jacked read, “I’m pulling out from both Arnold’s. I’m having to do many things happening at the same time. From different factors and all needs my attention which makes it difficult to concentrate for this prep. I don’t want to go there for anything short of 100%. I just don’t want to make up the numbers, nor get placings if not for the win.”

The 2024 Arnold Classic first contest is slated for the weekend of March 1-3, 2024, in Columbus, OH. The UK event is set for two weekends later, on March 15-17, 2024, in Birmingham, UK. Andrew Jacked secured a top-three position at last year’s Arnold Classic and could have been a top contender had he participated this year.

After turning pro in 2022, the Nigerian native won the Texas Pro and the Arnold Classic UK in the same year. He competed in Mr. Olympia 2022 despite running a 102-degree fever and finished in an impressive eighth spot. The 266 lb bodybuilder followed this with a fifth-place finish in 2023 Mr. Olympia while successfully defending his title at the 2023 Texas Pro.

Jacked hasn’t taken a break since turning pro but it looks like he finally decided to put an end to his competition streak. As this news reached the fitness and bodybuilding community voiced their opinions. Some questioned whether he would have to face consequences according to new IFFB rules and others supported his decision.

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Fine looming for Andrew Jacked?

A lot of the people were concerned about what was to happen after the withdrawal. One fan questioned, “Will he be penalized for this decision?” and another mentioned “Didn’t they recently put some rules into effect that prevent these people from pulling out once they are confirmed for shows unless they have medical proof that they cannot compete,” out of curiosity. The IFFB recently addressed the issues surrounding professional bodybuilders pulling out from invitational shows. 

They notified athletes through an email that going forward, athletes will be required to provide a doctor’s note or a legitimate reason before withdrawing from an invitational show. Failing to do so may result in a suspension and/or a fine being handed to them. A fan was simply not impressed and wrote, “Translation: he’s burned out, and the drugs are not working.” One fan thought Jacked may have reached his full potential already and wrote, “shame,, but he may have peaked anyway.” 

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Andrew Jacked has garnered a very loyal fanbase willing to take a stand for him. It was noticeable when one of them commented, “People hating for no reason literally… You’re not in his shoes…anything can pop up that will effect your prep.” One more fan supported his decision and wrote, “Good decision i think, he couldn’t be a factor at those shows because he’s making his body tired and he needs time to fix the issues he has!!”

Whatever the reason, it looks like Jacked wants to take some time off and perhaps make a bigger comeback. At this point, fans will have to wait and see when he makes it back to the bodybuilding stage.