“Took Them Under My Wing”: The Myth, Who Destroyed Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1969, Revealed an Unknown Story About Their Relationship

The world of bodybuilding is fascinating to the eye. There are big, muscular men who oil them up to showcase what they have worked on for years. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Frank Zane, Ronnie Coleman, and others stood on top of the podium to life the prestigious title. But to quinquagenarians, Sergio Oliva possessed a body like no one. He is one of the rare few to humble Schwarzenegger at the 1969 Mr. Olympia contest.

The three-time Mr. Olympia winner dominated the contest and showcased his muscle fibers to perfection. After that, the 1970 contest saw Arnold claim his first title. The event was a controversial one for the confusion it caused. During the pose-down, there are many debates on how Arnold tricked Oliva during the contest. But, they had a relationship to cherish between them.

Did Arnold Schwarzenegger trick him?

Despite being the finest competitors of all time, they were close friends. Oliva trained to perfection and destroyed Schwarzenegger in 1969. But, the tables turned the year after. At the time of the pose-down, Oliva and Arnold did their posing. After they posed for some time, Oliva took permission and walked away. Arnold told him to “go ahead” and kept posing while Oliva left the stage. Hearing the raucous cheers from the fans, he knew something went down. It was controversial, and people thought Arnold tricked Sergio with the help of Joe Weider. Regardless, Oliva knew deep down inside how close they were. 

 “No, what happened was Arnold and I were competitors but we were friends; he came to Chicago one time, him and Franco Columbo and I took them under my wing and they stayed with me. We had dinner at my house and we trained together,” said Oliva. One thing about Arnold is he trained with the best. His training partners understood the dedication he possessed while working out to get better.

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“My training was brutal. Everybody even to today’s date, 40 years later, feel that I have kept some kind of secret. It was no secret. It was hard work and being blessed by the Lord. There was no other way,” said Oliva. After that, the contest happened. 

Oliva received a ban!

Before the pose-down controversy, Sergio Oliva received a ban after the ’69 Olympia as he competed in a non-IFBB contest. Despite that, Oliva competed as there was a lack of communication. Hence, confusion arose, and they ruled him out for the 1971 Olympia contest. 

Despite all the problems, fans considered Oliva one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time. He is the Myth for a reason.

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