Samir Bannout on The Menace

Dennis James talks with Samir Bannout, the 1983 Mr. Olympia winner. To this day, Samir Bannout feels as if it he should have been the athlete hoisting the Sandow trophy in 1982, instead of winner Chris Dickerson. The runner-up finish, however, only fueled “the Lebanese Lion” to push even harder over the following 12 months. In 1983, Bannout, who moved from Lebanon to Southern California in order to become one of bodybuilding’s best, finally took the title the Mr. Olympia and solidified his legacy as one of the sport’s all-time best. He tells Dennis James on this week’s “Menace Podcast” all the work it took to become the ninth athlete to be crowned Mr. Olympia. And with the arrival of bodybuilding’s biggest weekend, it makes sense to talk to one of bodybuilding’s legends. That is why Dennis James had 1983 Mr. Olympia Samir Bannout on this week’s episode of The Menace Podcast. For those of us that will never know what it’s like to be on the biggest stage in the sport with thousands of people watching live, Bannout explained how it felt to win the title. Timestamps 0:21 – Intro 3:05 – Bodybuilding Beginnings 6:12 – Coming and Competing in the U.S. 8:51 – First Meeting with DJ 10:59 – Camaraderie in His Era 13:47 – Winning the Olympia and Learning from Greats 17:53 – Prize Money Then vs. Now 22:22 – Contest Prep Strategies 33:17 – What New Guys Do Wrong 41:19 – Samir’s Thoughts About the Guys Today 46:11 – 2020 Olympia 50:23 – Big Ramy 55:55 – Wrap-Up