Just how rare is it, among fellow members of the human race, to be considered among the best in the world in physique sports? Compared to all other sports, the iterations of bodybuilding reward the merest of a handful of participants. The most storied division is the progenitor of it all—men’s open bodybuilding—which gave us just 19 champions in SIXTY years. No other sport is as lonely at the top. The other 10 divisions that sprung up off the back of Mr. O boast even fewer champs.
Just how severe is the dedication, sacrifice, solitude required to step on the Olympia stage? To be judged against the best in the world, how much suffering are these athletes willing to endure? Leading up to the Olympia, our goal here is to have the athletes themselves explain, the details behind the scene— the stuff fans don’t have access to—that separates a champion from an also-ran.
So, when you consider viewing the 2025 Olympia, still six months away, it’s easy to not consider just how rare a portrayal of human achievement is corralled within the confines of this spectral. Out of eight billion-plus humans roaming this planet, 61 are currently qualified for any one of 11 divisions in the Olympia. In other words, 0.00013% of the world’s population.
This makes the Olympia lineup of qualified participants probably the rarest of any sporting endeavor on the planet. Now, this number is sure to rise as the contest season progresses. Up to 20 more athletes could possibly qualify in the remaining contests of the season, bringing the total to 81. which brings your chances up to 0.00098% of the world.
Here’s why the stat matters. Assuming we max out at 81 competitors this year, the path forward to the Olympia stage is going to not be a matter of splitting hairs, it’s going to be more like splitting atoms. Those 81 people are the best in the world and enjoy freak status. They are the elite of an already elite group, and any one of them could lose that status in the blink of an eye over something perhaps as trite as a few drops of water.
There are just three areas where these athletes can win or lose: muscularity/physique, condition and presentation. All of these competitors have been advised by coaches, pundits, judges and the like on what the expectation is going to be come contest day—based on what they brought last year, or to the show that qualified them—and they are, as you read this, in the throws of splitting hairs at the atomic level to get to that end.
Will it be 100 grams of carbs or 110? Or maybe 105 on Tuesday and Wednesday? Three IU’s of GH, or 4? Or maybe a spike to 6 a couple days a week?
Should it be 40 minutes of cardio or 50? Five days a week or six? There’s a million either/or scenarios that are being tried right now, all geared to finding even the tiniest of advantages. It could be anything from ¼-percent drier, ½-percent tighter, 1% wider. To the casual observer, the difference between 1st and 5th in any division is going to be a head scratcher. In other words, barely perceptible.
Ultimately, the 2025 Olympia is going to, as it always does, outdo the year prior. This year will be no different and exponentially more exciting! The 2025 Mr. Olympia contest is set to take place from October 9-12, 2025, at Resorts World Las Vegas, marking a return to this premier venue. This year’s event promises to be a landmark in the bodybuilding world, featuring an expanded lineup of divisions and a record-breaking prize pool.
The 2025 Olympia Weekend’s IFBB Pro League Divisions:
- Men’s Open Bodybuilding (Mr. Olympia)
- 212 Olympia (Men’s Bodybuilding up to 212 lbs)
- Ms. Olympia (Women’s Bodybuilding)
- Women’s Physique Olympia
The 2025 Olympia Weekend Competitors
Note: just because an athlete is qualified doesn’t necessarily mean they will compete.
The 2025 Men’s Open Bodybuilding (Mr. Olympia) Competitors:
- Samson Dauda (UK): Reigning Mr. Olympia Champion
- Derek Lunsford (USA): 2023 Mr. Olympia, 2021 212 Olympia
- Hadi Choopan (Iran): 2022 Mr. Olympia
- Brandon Curry (USA): 2019 Mr. Olympia
- William Bonac (Netherlands)
- Vitalii Ugolnikov (Brazil)
The 2025 212 Olympia Competitors:
- Keone Pearson (USA): 2023 and reigning champion
- Shaun Clarida (USA): 2020 and 2022 champion
- Angel Calderon Frias (Spain)
- Giuseppe Zagarella (Italy)
- Sung Yeop Jang (South Korea)
- Ching Chieh Lin (Taiwan) .
The 2025 Classic Physique Olympia Competitors:
- Chris Bumstead (Canada) – six-time and reigning champion
- Ramon Rocha Queiroz (Brazil)
- Mike Sommerfeld (Germany)
The 2025 Men’s Physique Olympia Competitors:
- Ryan Terry (UK) – reigning and 2023 champion
- Erin Banks (USA) – 2022 champion
- Felipe Goncalves (Brazil)
The 2025 Ms. Olympia (Women’s Bodybuilding) Competitors:
- Andrea Shaw (USA) – five time and reigning champion
- Ashley Lynnette Jones (USA)
- Anastasia Korableva (Romania)
The 2025 Fitness Olympia Competitors:
- Missy Truscott (USA) – reigning champion
The 2025 Figure Olympia:
- Cydney Gillon (USA) – Reigning champion
- Jennifer Zienert (Germany)
- Nadine Claudio Huber (Germany)
- Adela Ondrejovicova (Slovakia)
The 2025 Bikini Olympia Competitors:
- Ashley Kaltwasser (USA) – Three-time champion
- Lauralie Chapados (Canada)
