While I have had no direct contact with pro Lee Priest or the IFBB pro div, I , like many others have been keeping up with this story.
Here in outline form is my take, based on what I know:
1. Basis of the controversy:
* Lee P. - As a pro bodybuilder he feels he has prefect right to earn money as a bodybuilder in any contest or forum. Unlike the NFL or NBA that provides a base salary for being on a team, the IFBB allows a pro to compete for prize $$$, similar to golf, bowling or tennis pros.
* IFBB pro div - As the top name pro bodybuilding organization they feel that they have a perfect right to protect their integrity and financial well being of the organization. Plus, they appear to have a rule in place that prevents any pro from getting into a rival organizations show.
Comment/ questions-
* I would be curious to know what other similar , individual pro / prize $$ based sports like tennis, bowling or golf have in regards to a pro in their sport, doing a meet/match in another organization.
For example, could Tiger Woods compete in a NON PGA sanctioned event?
I know that boxing has more one than one pro sanction as does Ultimate fighting.
* I know that the NPC lost a case over 20 years ago against the old AAU physique. The judge ruled that the NPC could not bar a bodybuilder from any of their NPC shows because they competed in another organization (like the AAU). This was an amateur situation however and may not apply to the pros.
My thoughts and conclusion:
* Unlike the NBA, NFL, major league baseball or the PGA (golf) , pro bodybuilding is a bit of fringe or cult sport. It rarely gets coverage in the sports page or on ESPN, etc. The sport has a wonderful, kinda crazy but fun culture , understood fully only by those of us that are involved in it.The sport rarely follows the actual established written rules. The IFBB pro division has a 47 page section on doping control and drug testing for all banned substances ,like steroids. It is a complete joke to even think that any of these drug testing rules have ever been seriously applied across the board. No, the "actual rule" that is known and accepted is to come in juiced to the gills.
Plus, bodybuilding is a JUDGED sport, even if Lee Priest wins a case here, how many IFBB pro shows do you think he will win in the future
Lee could stir some crap up however , and maybe that is what this thing is all about. Perhaps, Wayne Damillia ( head of PDI) saw this comming and wants to use this as a "test case".I honestly, don't know the actual hard facts, I just suspect
In the end, I see issues and controversy like this one, as bad overall for bodybuilding. BOTH, the IFBB pro div and bodybuilder Lee Priest have logical arguments and reasons for their view. The only problem is that the history and overall situation of pro bodybuilding is far from one of logic and reason.
Howard
