Two getting pumped for Olympia
Published on: 12/24/08.
by MIKE KING
NationNews.com
TWO OF THE BRIGHTEST stars in professional bodybuilding, Phil "The Gift" Heath and Dennis Wolf, are skipping next year's Arnold Classic.
Both are missing the second-biggest contest in bodybuilding to focus on winning the sport's ultimate title, the Mr Olympia.
"After the Olympia, I definitely feel I could not only place high at the Arnold, I could win it," Heath said.
"But my goal is to be Mr Olympia. I just feel that to continue to improve and satisfy everyone – including myself – I would need another ten months. I think I can be 240 on stage – dry and hard. But we can't do it in March. I just need that time in the gym."
The 29-year-old American won this year's Ironman Invitational, was second in the Arnold Classic and was an impressive third on his Olympia debut. Wolf, the imposing 5-foot 11-inch German, was fifth in last year's Mr Olympia and fourth this year.
Heath played basketball for the University of Denver before turning to bodybuilding in 2002. His hard work quickly paid off when he won the overall title at the 2005 NPC (National Physique Committee) USA Championships and earned the right to compete as an IFBB Pro. "The Gift" immediately made a splash in the IFBB, winning his first two pro events in 2006, which were The Colorado Pro and The New York Pro Championships.
Those decisions leave 2007 Arnold Classic champ Victor Martinez and fifth-place Olympia finisher Toney Freeman as the early favourites in Columbus, come March.
Meanwhile, the 2009 Ironman Pro is moving its date, from two weeks before, to six weeks before the Arnold Classic, on January 24 and 25, at the Los Angeles Convention Centre.