A High School Injury Ended His Dream of Emulating the NFL Legend Jim Brown, so He Became the 8-Time Mr. Olympia Instead

The greatest bodybuilder the sport has ever seen, perhaps would not have chosen to pursue it if an unfortunate injury hadn’t occurred in high school. The 8-time Mr. Olympia winner, Lee Haney, once spoke in an interview about how his favorite sport used to be football. It was because of this the champion was introduced to bodybuilding.

Lee Haney always performed with respect onstage and behaved professionally during competitions. Upon being asked if he had a similar demeanor in other sports as well during his interview with Muscle Insider in 2013, Haney discussed how he used to look up to professional footballers.

Lee Haney and his childhood dream of becoming a footballer

Haney was not always the bodybuilder that he was during his heyday in the sport. Once he was a regular high school kid, with ambitious dreams. One of his dreams was to follow in the footsteps of the legendary footballer Jim Brown. Upon being asked if he had an interest in other sports as a child, the athlete stated, “Oh yes, in football. My dream was to become Jim Brown.”

Furthermore, the bodybuilder stated how he continued to pursue his passion for football throughout high school. But fate was not too kind for Haney. He said, “I ended up getting injured in junior high school and again in my senior year.” 

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But Haney did not give up just yet. He was persistent enough to want to get better. So he started bulking up. This turned out to be his first steps in the world of bodybuilding. “For the next event, I got bigger and larger, and that’s when I decided to get involved in bodybuilding competitions,” he said.

Most memorable moments of Haney’s career

During the same interview, Lee Haney gave us a sneak peek at the most memorable moments of his career. 

Discussing his time as a bodybuilder, he recalled having competed with the greats such as Gunnar Rosbo and Ralf Moeller. Lee stated, “The IFBB World Championships was very different. I didn’t win anything like money, you know. I was just standing there, a hero. That was very special to come from where I came from… Of course, my first Olympia was very special as well! “

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Today, the retired bodybuilder, who is 68 years old, has become a spokesperson for health and well-being.