“I Am the Victim”: Mr. Olympia Legend Opens Up on ‘Cheating’ Dispute

Winning the 1983 Olympia, Lebanese bodybuilder Samir Bannout firmly engraved his name in bodybuilding history. However, despite this accolade, Bannout was later suspended from the IFBB, later retiring from bodybuilding in 1996. Bannout had also felt cheated by the IFBB in the past. In a recent interview, Bannout disclosed the real reason why he felt cheated by the IFBB earlier.

Bannout made these revelations in the Muscle Maturity podcast in March 2023. Describing a controversy over an ad he did for the IFBB which disappeared, Bannout later told how he blamed Joe Wieder for the vanished ad. Elaborating how his ad disappeared repeatedly, Bannout revealed how he lost control at a meeting, angry that the ad he did had vanished. So who was responsible for the fallout between Joe Weider and Bannout? Read on to find out.

Bodybuilding veteran makes shocking admissions

Bannout recalled that his feud with the IBBB took place in the year 1984. “I was working with Joe Wieder, and he decided to give me an ad….for the Carbo Energizer,” he narrated. Further, he recounted that for his compensation, he was told he could have one color page ad to advertise whatever they were selling, like shirts and courses.

Later, he realized that the ad he had done wasn’t running. Pointing this out to Joe Weider, Bannout described how even Weider couldn’t find the ad. Bannout then recounted, “the next month, the same thing happened”, elaborating how his ad on Page 81 vanished. Further, Bannout expressed that this incident once again happened in the third month. This made Bannout furious with Joe Wieder, who thought Wieder hadn’t kept his pact regarding the ads with him.

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Afterward, Bannout recalled how he was upset and decided to confront Wieder when he was in the middle of a meeting. “I barged in, opened the door, ruined the meeting, and said why did you do this.” Post this, Bannout stormed out of the meeting, and later, Wieder brought him back to the office, calming him down.

Bannout then revealed, “Ricky is the one behind my bad issue with the IFBB, which is really, I am the victim, and so they start cheating me ever since.”  It turned out that Mr. Rick Wayne, who had editorial power, used it against him. He apparently called the media and told them to remove a page.

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Bannout’s admissions indicate the real reason why there was bad blood between him and the IFBB after winning the 1983 Olympia. What do you think about Bannout’s revelation? Share your views in the comments section.