Everyone who is in one way or another involved in bodybuilding knows how difficult it is to get the title "Mr. Olympia" and how much effort you need to invest to repeat this success. However, among bodybuilders there are some athletes who have been to the top of the podiums of these competitions several times.
One of them is the representative of the so-called "upper class of bodybuilders" Lee Haney. He was Mr. Olympia eight times in his career. He is one of the five most titled bodybuilders in the world, who is able to compete with Ronnie Coleman and Arnold Schwarzenegger - celebrities in this sport.
Childhood
The future bodybuilder was born in the city of Spartanburg in 1959. The family of the future athlete was very religious, so Lee absorbed faith in God from a very early age. As he said later, this is what helped him to win in the most difficult conditions and with huge competition.
As soon as Haney started playing football, he saw that faith helped him to behave more confidently on the field, because he knew there was someone strong who supported him. Then he got carried away with strength training and wanted to become the same as the most famous bodybuilders of those years.
And again he turned to God with a request to help him in the competition and, if I may say so, “made a contract with the Creator” that if he helps him to win, then he will also serve him.
And, according to Haney himself, since then he has almost always been lucky. When Lee turned nineteen, he became the winner of the "Mr. America" tournament, then he won the junior competition, and then the success became even more significant: he became "Mr. Universe". Since then, the athlete became a zealous guardian of the faith and tried to talk about God everywhere.
Sports career
In 1983, Lee Haney became a professional athlete, and by the time of his retirement he was on the list of the most titled bodybuilders in the world. And this happened for a very simple reason: in none of his twenty-two important tournaments he never took below third place and many times rose to the highest step of the podium.
The very first important victory for an athlete was the amateur championship title in 1982 in the Heavyweight competition. In the same year he won the Nacionals competition - he became the leader of the heavyweights, as well as the absolute champion.
Lee recalled in an interview that 1983 was the most productive year for him in terms of the number of participation in various competitions. He took first place at the Grand Prix Las Vegas, second place was waiting for him at the Grand Prix of England, then he took third place at the World Championship among professional athletes, became "Mr. Olympia" with third place, then there were second places at " World Cup Grand Prix "and" Swedish Grand Prix ", and also took third place in competitions in Switzerland.
One of the most coveted titles among bodybuilders is the title of "Mr. Olympia". Since 1984, Lee has received this title as many as eight times, which in itself already speaks of his high skill.
There is an interesting fact in his sports biography: he wanted to complete his performances in competitions in 1990 so as not to outdo Schwarzenegger, as he respected him very much. However, in 1991 he easily won this title again.
Haney achieved all this thanks to a specially developed training method. Moreover, he reached everything himself, listening to his body and observing the growth of muscle mass. In the end, he realized that training with an increased number of approaches was suitable for him.
He gave up work until he was very tired, because he was sure that this approach only burns muscle mass. Lee mainly worked on simulators and block devices, which allowed him to work with a separate muscle group.
Perhaps this is the most rational approach to strength training, because in his entire career, Haney has never suffered a single injury. He also always warm up thoroughly and made a smooth transition from less weight to more.
Personal life
There are few people who are as consistent with women as Haney. He met his future wife Shirley when he was six years old. Later, children's sympathy grew into school friendship, then into love. Lee and Shirley got married and had a daughter, Olympia, and a son, Joshua.
When an athlete was preparing to end his career as an athlete, he thought about his future life. He got the idea of opening a fitness center. Starting with one hall, later Haney opened a small network of his halls and began to make good money on this. Of course, people went to his "star" name, and he helped them get the forms they wanted.
Then he opened a lecture hall for believers and athletes, where he told them about how he understands the structure of the world and what role God played in his life.
The charismatic athlete with an infectious smile attracted the attention of television people, and after leaving the sport, he also became a TV presenter, he was also often invited to the radio.
Haney allocates a lot of funds received from various activities for a special children's village. There are guys who, for various reasons, do not have parents. In this village, they have good living conditions and the opportunity to engage in various sports.
Hayley currently runs workshops for athletes, writes books, and hosts religious shows and fitness programs on Trinity Channel.
He is a supporter of a healthy lifestyle and proper nutrition. This is probably why he still looks amazing.
