Bob Gajda

[lax]

Bix
any photos of this guy?

I think he was given the A when sergio O should have one-racial stuff

and, anyone know how to pronounce his name?

is it: Guy-Duh?

[funk51]

bob g mr pha

[funk51]

bob and sergio trained together at the duncan ymca in chicago. sergio as well as harold poole were both screwed by hoffman out of mr a crowns.

[funk51]

sergio going for his athletic points.

[funk51]

the first mr a

[funk51]

66 a

[lax]

bob and sergio trained together at the duncan ymca in chicago. sergio as well as harold poole were both screwed by hoffman out of mr a crowns.

yeah

Gajda said bc Sergio could not speak english and you could not have a non-english speaking Mr. A


and Poole had a bad stutter thus would fail the oral interview portion of the A

[funk51]

yeah

Gajda said bc Sergio could not speak english and you could not have a non-english speaking Mr. A


and Poole had a bad stutter thus would fail the oral interview portion of the A

             yeah  that  was the excuse given but the real problem was there color hoffman was a known racist. poole was said to have heard hoffman say backstage on the other side of the curtain that no black or hispanic bodybuilder would win mr a while i have anything to say.  later poole lost it onstage and smashed his trophy.

[terrystrand]

Bob Gajda is still a pal of mine. First saw him compete here in Chicago in 1964 for the Mr. A with Bill Seno, Sergio, etc. He's sixty nine now, still fit and strong, and is a famout physiotherapist running Gajda Health Plus in Bannockburn, Illinois. Googl him for his website. Here is a photo from three five months ago out to dinner with me on the left next to Bob doing his best Clint Eastwood squint, and Sergio and Seno, who won the Most Muscular Mr. A title in 64.

[funk51]

Bob Gajda is still a pal of mine. First saw him compete here in Chicago in 1964 for the Mr. A with Bill Seno, Sergio, etc. He's sixty nine now, still fit and strong, and is a famout physiotherapist running Gajda Health Plus in Bannockburn, Illinois. Googl him for his website. Here is a photo from three five months ago out to dinner with me on the left next to Bob doing his best Clint Eastwood squint, and Sergio and Seno, who won the Most Muscular Mr. A title in 64.

                  why does his web site say he beat ah-nuld s for mr universe, when did this happen?

[funk51]

the only universe bob won was the fich world ubiverse arnold wasn't in this contest

[lax]

Bob Gajda is still a pal of mine. First saw him compete here in Chicago in 1964 for the Mr. A with Bill Seno, Sergio, etc. He's sixty nine now, still fit and strong, and is a famout physiotherapist running Gajda Health Plus in Bannockburn, Illinois. Googl him for his website. Here is a photo from three five months ago out to dinner with me on the left next to Bob doing his best Clint Eastwood squint, and Sergio and Seno, who won the Most Muscular Mr. A title in 64.

wow
very cool that you are freinds with all of those guys!

[lax]

                  why does his web site say he beat ah-nuld s for mr universe, when did this happen?

yeah, I read where he said that, too
I looked it up on Musclememory, could not find documantation telling he beat Arnold

Of course, Steve Michalik likes to go around telling people he bested Arnold, as well...saw him say that on some doc on tv...'arms exploded', I think was the one

[DCN]

Gajda wasn't lying but he was mistaken, understandably in my view. The contest was held in Berlin, probably conducted in French and German, and Bob and Arnold did pose together backstage.

The following paragraph describes Arnold’s involvement in the FIHC World Physique Championships held in East Berlin on 23rd October 1966. The report appeared in Kraftsport revue (issue 29, December 1966, p. 10-13) and was written by Gernulf Garbe. This is the only paragraph that mentions Arnold.

Nachdem die amerikanische Nationalhymne fur Gajda verklungen war, wurde vom Publikum nochmals ein Auftreten von Schwarzenegger gefordert. Unser junger Sportler hatte namlich nicht an den Vorentscheidungen teilnehmen konnen aus zeitlichen Grunden und konnte deshalb naturlich auch nicht an der Endausscheidung teilnehmen. Schwarzenegger beeindruckte sehr und ware in der Siegerliste sicher ganz vorne erschienen. Obgleich Schwarzenegger nicht an der Plazierung teilnehmen konnte, rieten wir ihm trotzdem zu einem Start ausser Konkurrenz, damit er internationale Erfahrungen sammeln konnte.

Translated by TK:

 "After the national anthem for Bob Gajda faded away, the audience demanded (called for) another appearance of Schwarzenegger. Our young sportsman could not participate in the preliminaries due to time issues (reasons) and therefore was not able to take part in the finals. Schwarzenegger was very impressive and would have been on top (in the top rankings). Although Schwarzenegger could not be part of the placings, we advised him to start beside (outside) competition to gain international experience."

 Another eye witness to the events backstage added that "Arnold wanted to compete but could not, as he was not sent officially whether by the German, nor the Austrian Weightlifting Federation".

 A list of the first seven place winners was also published in IronMan magazine (Jan 1967, vol. 26/2, p.18). Arnold wasn't one of them.

[funk51]

Gajda wasn't lying but he was mistaken, understandably in my view. The contest was held in Berlin, probably conducted in French and German, and Bob and Arnold did pose together backstage.

The following paragraph describes Arnold’s involvement in the FIHC World Physique Championships held in East Berlin on 23rd October 1966. The report appeared in Kraftsport revue (issue 29, December 1966, p. 10-13) and was written by Gernulf Garbe. This is the only paragraph that mentions Arnold.

Nachdem die amerikanische Nationalhymne fur Gajda verklungen war, wurde vom Publikum nochmals ein Auftreten von Schwarzenegger gefordert. Unser junger Sportler hatte namlich nicht an den Vorentscheidungen teilnehmen konnen aus zeitlichen Grunden und konnte deshalb naturlich auch nicht an der Endausscheidung teilnehmen. Schwarzenegger beeindruckte sehr und ware in der Siegerliste sicher ganz vorne erschienen. Obgleich Schwarzenegger nicht an der Plazierung teilnehmen konnte, rieten wir ihm trotzdem zu einem Start ausser Konkurrenz, damit er internationale Erfahrungen sammeln konnte.

Translated by TK:

 "After the national anthem for Bob Gajda faded away, the audience demanded (called for) another appearance of Schwarzenegger. Our young sportsman could not participate in the preliminaries due to time issues (reasons) and therefore was not able to take part in the finals. Schwarzenegger was very impressive and would have been on top (in the top rankings). Although Schwarzenegger could not be part of the placings, we advised him to start beside (outside) competition to gain international experience."

 Another eye witness to the events backstage added that "Arnold wanted to compete but could not, as he was not sent officially whether by the German, nor the Austrian Weightlifting Federation".

 A list of the first seven place winners was also published in IronMan magazine (Jan 1967, vol. 26/2, p.18). Arnold wasn't one of them.

                                nice find i always wondered about that.

[terrystrand]

Here's Bob Gajda and Oliva at our Golden Age of Chicago Muscle Reunion Banquet that I helped organize in 2004. We assembled 175 of Chicago's old-school lifters and a great time was had by all. The older we get the more we used to lift! Bob and Sergio were training partners at Duncan YMCA, and lifelong friends.

Here's another photo of Bob, Bill Seno, and I a couple years ago, too.

[terrystrand]

Bob and Sergio....

[johnny1]

the first mr a

wow....thats a rare one of a young Sergio...excellent find!!!

[terrystrand]

Notice the two photos of Gajda and Oliva competing in the Olympic lifting meets...which were the clean and press,  the snatch, and the clean and jerk. They had to do that back then in order to get athletic points which were figured in when they competed in the AAU [York, Hoffman] Mr. America contests. You needed to prove you could actually do something with your body at that time besides shave and tan it. If not, you'd never win the Mr. A on looks alone. Later, athletic points in the total were dropped. But more than this, we all competed in Olympic lifting here in Chicago, even as we competed in bodybuilding. It was just expected in the nineteen sixties that you had to lift a barbell over your head, and not just lay on a bench and push. This was before there really was any organized powerlifting on the scale it was to grow to a few years later. Gajda and Oliva were hellaciously strong, and both worked hard at Olympic lifting in between their bodybuilding workouts at Duncan Y where I would go to train. Arnold was asked in a magazine interview around the time of his Olympia comeback who the strongest bodybuilder he'd ever met was. He replied, "Sergio Oliva. No question."

Here's a photo of Bob Gajda and Sergio clowning around at the Reunion of Chicago Muscle banquet that I mc'd in 2004. Still good friends forty years later.

[lax]

Notice the two photos of Gajda and Oliva competing in the Olympic lifting meets...which were the clean and press,  the snatch, and the clean and jerk. They had to do that back then in order to get athletic points which were figured in when they competed in the AAU [York, Hoffman] Mr. America contests. You needed to prove you could actually do something with your body at that time besides shave and tan it. If not, you'd never win the Mr. A on looks alone. Later, athletic points in the total were dropped. But more than this, we all competed in Olympic lifting here in Chicago, even as we competed in bodybuilding. It was just expected in the nineteen sixties that you had to lift a barbell over your head, and not just lay on a bench and push. This was before there really was any organized powerlifting on the scale it was to grow to a few years later. Gajda and Oliva were hellaciously strong, and both worked hard at Olympic lifting in between their bodybuilding workouts at Duncan Y where I would go to train. Arnold was asked in a magazine interview around the time of his Olympia comeback who the strongest bodybuilder he'd ever met was. He replied, "Sergio Oliva. No question."Here's a photo of Bob Gajda and Sergio clowning around at the Reunion of Chicago Muscle banquet that I mc'd in 2004. Still good friends forty years later.

stronger than Franco?

[terrystrand]

stronger than Franco?

Good question. I think Sergio would overpower him in every lift, and doubtless in the overhead Olympic lifts. Franco was my BB hero, and strong as hell, but he'd fall on his ass with the weights that Sergio snatched regularly. However, Franco had a freaky deadlift which might have bested Oliva's. Sergio also outweighed Franco by maybe thirty or forty pounds. Columbu competed at approx 180-85 in the Olympia at most, while Sergio was closter to 225.

Bottom line: All I'm reporting is what Arnold himself said in the old BB mag interview, though I've long since lost track of that magazine among my zillions of them.

But back to the original topic of this thread, Bob Gajda. Here's a photo I snapped of Bob and John Hansen last August at the excellent contest that John promoted in Illinois. Sergio, Seno, and Bob were honored onstage by John....which I think speaks of his love of the iron sport and its history.

[funk51]

wow....thats a rare one of a young Sergio...excellent find!!!

                what's odd about this pic is that val vlas.... won the mr a but only a short time before he came in second to john decola for the jr mr america contest, yet here decola came in only 8th with sergio o coming in 7th.

[wes]

Great thread and great pics!

[terrystrand]

66 a

Notice in the photo with six pictures how massive Oliva's spinal lumbar muscles are down at his lower back just above his trunks. There was no Christmas tree like Samir Banout, Platz, etc., had ten years later, but that was because of entirely different lower back genetics, and because Oliva had been doing heavy Olympic lifting besides merely bodybuilding for a decade before the photo.

Also great point about DeCola v. Val V.'s placing in the year before Val V. won. Don't see how Jerry Daniels beat Gajda and Oliva one year earlier to take the Mr. A. He was big, smooth and 'not ready for prime time'. IMHO. Gajda was ripped to the bone, strong, conditioned, a judo black belt self defense instructor recently out of the Air Force, and a very helpful guy to all us kids in the gym. Sergio could hardly speak English, and that, fair or unfair, was why he didn't win the Mr. A., and went to Weider. It would have been like a beautiful Cuban woman winning the Miss America....who couldn't speak English!

By the way, Sergio jokes that he still can't speak English...more like 'Spanglish'.

Here's a photo of Bob Gajda holding his '66 Mr. A. trophy and Most Muscular trophy and leaning on the trunk of Bill Seno's old Chevy in York, Pa.

Three years later Bill picked me up in this same old Chevy on the way to the 1969 Mr. A contest held at DePaul U. here in Chicago! It was, in my book, the end of the Chicago Golden Age of Muscle. Duncan Y weightroom closed, Gajda and Seno essentially retired from bodybuilding, and guys started to focus more on marriage, occupations, and raising their families.

Ah, memories.

[funk51]

Notice in the photo with six pictures how massive Oliva's spinal lumbar muscles are down at his lower back just above his trunks. There was no Christmas tree like Samir Banout, Platz, etc., had ten years later, but that was because of entirely different lower back genetics, and because Oliva had been doing heavy Olympic lifting besides merely bodybuilding for a decade before the photo.

Also great point about DeCola v. Val V.'s placing in the year before Val V. won. Don't see how Jerry Daniels beat Gajda and Oliva one year earlier to take the Mr. A. He was big, smooth and 'not ready for prime time'. IMHO. Gajda was ripped to the bone, strong, conditioned, a judo black belt self defense instructor recently out of the Air Force, and a very helpful guy to all us kids in the gym. Sergio could hardly speak English, and that, fair or unfair, was why he didn't win the Mr. A., and went to Weider. It would have been like a beautiful Cuban woman winning the Miss America....who couldn't speak English!

By the way, Sergio jokes that he still can't speak English...more like 'Spanglish'.

Here's a photo of Bob Gajda holding his '66 Mr. A. trophy and Most Muscular trophy and leaning on the trunk of Bill Seno's old Chevy in York, Pa.

Three years later Bill picked me up in this same old Chevy on the way to the 1969 Mr. A contest held at DePaul U. here in Chicago! It was, in my book, the end of the Chicago Golden Age of Muscle. Duncan Y weightroom closed, Gajda and Seno essentially retired from bodybuilding, and guys started to focus more on marriage, occupations, and raising their families.

Ah, memories.

                       thanks for sharing your memories....