Getbig Interview with Shawn Ray April 6, 2005
http://www.bodybuildingpro.com/ray050406.html"What was your worst moment in bodybuilding?
The worst moment was in 1994, when I lost the Mr. Olympia contest. That was even harder to deal with than failing the drug test at the Arnold Classic in 1990 because I won that show. I felt like a winner there, everybody who saw it felt that. At the Mr. Olympia contest, in 1992 I was 4th, in 1993 I was 3rd. In 1994, to wind up second in a contest that I felt I had won, when Dorian had torn his bicep, came in with a bloated stomach, his color was off, and it was clear he was visibly not at his best from 1993. A lot of people came to my room, and told me I looked the best, that I was going to win. The photographers were setting up photo shoot for me. Joe Weider gave me his blessing - he thought that I nailed it. Everybody who knew me knew that I had nailed this show. I used the routine that I turned pro with in 1987, and I nailed that too. I felt that this was going to be the night.
And when they announced Dorian in first, I felt that at that point and time, there was nothing that I could have changed, nothing I would have done differently, and nothing more that I could do. This was the best that I had with my physique, and I was dazed and confused because I didn't know what else I could do with my body? I didn't want to change anything - I was happy. And when I placed second, it was the worst thing. I would have been happier if I had placed 6th or 7th. One person stopped me from my destiny. One person away from realizing a dream since I had in high school. I was 10 years removed from high school, it was two weeks after my 10 years reunion, and when that happened, it took a lot out of me. I retired that night.
Did you ever analyze the 1994 Mr. Olympia scorecard?
I never looked at the scorecard, I never asked a judge what I could have done better, I never asked why. I knew I should have won just by looking in the mirror. Flex Wheeler had come to my house a week before, and remember that Flex was 2nd at the Olympia a year before that (in 1993, Flex was in a car wreck). He came over, and he said that he had never seen anything that looked like that in person. It is very hard to impress somebody like Flex. Flex rarely gives compliments that I acknowledged to that degree. Afterwards, I had many people come to tell me the same thing. I studied the video, looked at pictures. I found a few things wrong with Dorian and nothing with myself then. After about two weeks, I found peace, because I felt there was nothing I could do to prevent that loss. The judges had it in their mind and it was reaffirmed in 1997 when Dorian tore his triceps, and the judges were verbally telling the athletes before the show that they were going to be marking down for distended stomachs, yet they allowed him to win his 6th Olympia and retire."
