Argentinian Natty Bodybuilder Makes a Compelling Case for Bringing Bodybuilding to the Olympics

One of the most far-reaching and raging bodybuilding debates of all time is for sure–should the Olympics include bodybuilding? While the bodybuilding community might answer this question with a resounding yes, in reality, things are not that simple. There are many arguments pro and against the idea.

One time, through an elaborate post on Instagram, the natural bodybuilder from Argentina, Matias Scopinaro, gave many reasons why he thought bodybuilding should be a part of the Olympics.

All natural bodybuilding: “The Mother of All Sports”

The argument that Matias Scopinaro advanced was two-pronged and simple. The first part of his argument was- drug use in bodybuilding is not sustainable anymore, and many people actively recognize that fact.

In the caption, he wrote, “With all the information and advances in nutrition/training and what we now know about the terrible adverse effects of the use of drugs in our bodies and mind there is no reason to go through that route, there is vast evidence showing the harmful effects by using these prohibited substances.”

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His second argument was that natural bodybuilding, without any drug use, was pertinent to all sports and all athletes could benefit from the strength that comes from it. He added, “Any athlete of any sport would benefit by putting into practice the core principles of Natural bodybuilding… Natural bodybuilding should be in the Olympic Games, it is the mother of all sports and every human being would benefit from it.”

While he does have a point, many arguments have been raised by the Internation Olympic Committee against admitting bodybuilding into the Olympics family.

The barriers to becoming a part of the Olympics

During the 1970s, Ben Weider made a lot of efforts to bring bodybuilding under the purview of the Olympics. However, the same did not materialize due to a lot of issues and controversies surrounding the topic. The biggest one is, surely, that bodybuilders dope up to get bulky quickly. While Scopinro claims that doping is a thing of the past, is that really true?

True or not, if the International Olympic Committee only allows natural bodybuilders to participate, and keeps up the strict drug testing, the sport could have a legit place in the Olympics. But this is not the only issue. Another common contention is that judging this sport can be subjective. But that seems a far-fetched idea because there are many bodybuilding competitions that already have a set judgment criterion.

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Also, one might argue that there are other sports that could be subjectively judged, but still form a part of the Olympics, such as figure skating or gymnastics. While this is still an ongoing debate, it seems like the IOC might be running out of excuses. Should they include bodybuilding in the Olympics, according to you?