1980 was 40 years ago and we still talk about who should have won the Olympia in Sydney that year.
I was there but saw the contest through my camera lenses. I did take 360 photos at the judging then some slides at the
evening show. They called out 7 men for the pose down. Roger Walker had tied for 6th so he was included as the home-town favourite.
Somehow the judges scored the pose down which really was silly. Guys were doing all manner of poses and moved around. No way
anyone was really compared.
Well, imagine the excitement before the places were announced. We knew something was brewing because Mike Mentzer placed 5th.
That was a surprise. Then Boyer Coe 4th. The shock was three time Mr Olympia placing 3rd...Frank Zane. Then the Concert Hall became
silent....in second place...Chris Dickerson. That meant that Arnold won. The audience booed long and loud. Finally they accepted Arnold's
victory and gave him what he deserved.
I wasn't surprised that Arnold won but the placings were all over the place. There were 200 people from our gym there and everyone
had an opinion. I was surprised that some of the bodybuilders from my gym favoured Chris Dickerson.
I formed my opinions later when developing my black and white photos. Several of the guys could have won. The judges thought so, too,
and many of the competitors got a 20 score in at least one round. That was the trouble with this contest. Too many judges awarded 20 scores.
When many judges fail to separate the competitors that leaves the scores of those who did to count more.
There was also a mystery how Brendan Ryan, a junior, was chosen to judge over several times Mr Australia, Peter McCarthy. I was standing
with Peter and Frank Burwash before the judging and someone told Peter the judges' meeting had started. Peter swore and raced off but
was told he missed part of the meeting so couldn't judge. Apparently Peter was told the wrong time for the meeting! It turned out that
had Peter judged and not Brendan the result might have favoured Chris.
Well, those of us who are cynical and have been around contests for a long time suspect that many contests are 'fixed'. What happens
most of the time is that a certain competitor isn't allowed to win. I cite Bev Francis as one such person in the IFBB. No way they were
going to let her win the Ms Olympia. Sergio also placed 8th when he competed in 1984 but he was past his prime.
Dennis was the hardest competitor and had the best abs. His posing let him down. Boyer Coe had the best routine and that is probably
why he placed ahead of Mike. Chris Dickerson gave a superb presentation. What more could anyone say? Just a beautiful physique that night.
Arnold wasn't great at the judging until the posing and comparison rounds. All of a sudden there was the old Arnold looking great in his
posing from front to back. His arms and calves were huge and they helped him look better than he was.
Mike Mentzer looked good by himself but he, Frank and Chris looked small when compared to Arnold. Mike looked the winner in some of his
poses. 5th place was a bitter pill to swallow and he never competed again which was a shame. Frank Zane looked a bit red. Classic physique
and he posed for what seemed like an eternity. He was appreciated but the audience didn't go nuts or anything. 3 times Mr Olympia and
now 3rd place. He somehow 'dropped' his trophy back stage. He didn't want any company at the Hilton, either, and was heard to be crying
in his room!
Paul Graham organised a harbour cruise after the contest. Almost all the competitors and judges were there including Joe Weider.
After viewing my photos and slides I came to accept that Arnold won the contest. His arms and chest dwarfed the others. His thighs
were down but he was really cut up. The competitor who was totally overlooked was Danny Padilla. He wasn't called out for any comparison
among the winners. If you put his photo on a grid then he had the best physique there. His height let him down which was a real shame.
Just some thoughts after 40 years.
