Hadi Choopan deserved to be crowned 2022 Mr. Olympia.
Hadi Choopan deserved to win the 2022 Mr. Olympia title, Evolutionofbodybuilding.net looks back at Hadi Choopan’s successful, but challenging rise to the top.
Hadi Choopan is the new Mr. Olympia, only the 17th winner in the Mr. Olympia’s 58 year history. Hadi had to defeat one of the deepest lineups in the history of this event. Hadi was the rightful winner and the judges seemed to prefer condition and balance over size.
Choopan made his way to the top, thanks to the international events organized by the IFBB. Between 2012 and 2015, Hadi Choopan, dominated the Asian and World Championships organized by the IFBB.
Competing as a middleweight and light-heavyweight, Hadi dominated his weight category and eventually turned pro to compete in the Pro League. It must be noted that this was before the split in 2017, between Jim Manion and IFBB President Dr. Rafael Santonja.
Managing to gain some substantial size on a yearly basis, Hadi Choopan managed to keep the right balance between size and condition.
Always dangerous on the competitive stage, Hadi is a threat to defeat any of the worlds top bodybuilders, even those who are twice his size.
Competing on the Mr. Olympia stage is never a easy task for Choopan. Not only does he have to worry about his training and diet, but convincing the US immigration to give him a VISA to travel to the USA is another big challenge.
Having to miss the Olympia Weekend in 2018 due to Visa issues, Hadi managed to get into the USA in 2019 and the following years.
From the minute that Hadi stepped on the Olympia stage, he was immediately considered a threat to the defending champion.
In 2019, Hadi placed third, behind William Bonac and Brandon Curry. Hadi could have easly moved up to second or even first with his condition, but the judges preferred the bigger Brandon Curry to take the title.
At the 2020 Mr. Olympia, 7X Mr. Olympia Phil Heath and Big Ramy returned to the stage, meaning Hadi had two more giants to compete against.
Hadi managed to finish in fourth, with the judges preferring to award the bigger bodybuilder. That year, Big Ramy was crowned the new champion, with Brandon Curry and Phil Heath finishing in second and third place respectfully.
In 2021, Hadi Choopan moved back up to third, with many believing that he should at least finished in second ahead of Brandon Curry. Big Ramy would win his second consecutive title, with Brandon Curry having to settle for second place.
It must be noted that in 2019 and 2021, Hadi Choopan was voted as the “People’s Champion” by all the spectators.
2022 would be the year Hadi Choopan takes the title home. Defending champion Big Ramy was clearly not at his best, and nobody could match the condition that Hadi presented on the big day.
It was not a easy victory for Choopan, as he had to deal with the new rising stars, such as Derek Lunsford, Nick Walker and Samson Dauda.
The top six were switched around constantly by head judge Steve Weinberger. making sure they make the right decision.
Big Ramy was put to the side, shocking the bodybuilding world. Many believed Ramy was too good and was the instant winner, but contrary to what people and some of the media thought, Big Ramy was not in contention of placing in the top three.
The top size was made up of Hadi Choopan, Derek Lunsford, Nick Walker, Brandon Curry, Big Ramy and Samson Dauda.
If the judges preferred size over condition, Samson Dauda and Brandon Curry would have easily placed higher. When it comes to mass, Samson was very balanced, and he could have easily placed in the top three. Standing next to his competition, Samuel looked better than Big Ramy and even Brandon Curry and Nick Walker in some poses, which is why it was debated heavily that he should have at least placed third.
Judges pushing bodybuilding in a new direction
Since the Dorian Yates era, the Mr. Olympia has been dominated by the biggest athletes. Lee Haney, Dorian Yates, Phil Heath and Big Ramy. In 2018, the late Shawn Rhoden defeated Phil Heath, and many believed that the mass monsters dominating the sport had come to an end. Unfortunately, due to personal problems outside of the sport, Rhoden was banned, and not allowed to step on the competitive stage again.
From 2019 to 2021, the Mr. Olympia was dominated by the bigger competitors, but at the same time, the “Giant Killers” were making their way up and challenging for the top prize.
William Bonac, Hadi Choopan, Hunter Labrada, Nick Walker, and Hadi Choopan, were all a threat and the judges started to notice the sharp condition they were in. THe trend started to change with the smaller, conditioned athletes placing higher than the mass monsters.
Looking at the scorecards, Hadi Choopan was the most consistent top three finisher since 2019. If the mass monsters, such as Big Ramy and Brandon Curry, missed their peak, they new Hadi Choopan would take advantage and expose their mistakes.
The 2022 Mr. Olympia was proof that the judges turned their focus to condition and balance, pushing the athletes who were only focused on mass to the side.
Just looking at the top three, Hadi Choopan and Derek Lunsford, placed first and second, while the mass monster, Nick Walker finished in third.
Another interesting results was Rafael Brandao‘s tenth place finish.
If the judges wanted to focus on mass, Nick Walker, Samson Dauda and Brandon Curry would have been their top picks, with Big Ramy possibly finishing in third or fourth.
Rafael’s tenth place finish is a great indication that the judges preferred condition and balance before mass.
Rumors are making its rounds that Rafael might switch to Classic Physique. Evolutionofbodybuilding.net believes this would be a bad move, as Rafael is pushing the open division in the right direction.
Everything will now depend on what the judges decide to do at the 2023 Mr. Olympia. We can be sure that Hadi Choopan, will arrive with a balanced and chiseled physique, to defend his title. Meanwhile, mass monsters such as Nick Walker, Big Ramy, Brandon Curry, Samson Dauda, Iain Valliere, Andrew Jacked and Michal Krizo, will all be fighting for the top prize.
Will the judges at the 2023 Mr. Olympia focus on condition and balance, as they did in 2022, or will they go back to awarding the bigger athlete? For the answer, we will have to wait and see, but the results leading up to the 2023 Olympia Weekend, might give an indication.
Stars of the 80’s and 90’s continue to criticize
As the athletes celebrated and made their way home, social media was alive with criticisms about certain physique, mainly the condition of the athletes.
The two athletes that were criticized heavily are 2022 Mr. Olympia Hadi Choopan and two-time Mr. Olympia Big Ramy.
Big Ramy was not at his best, all he had to do is arrive with a physique similar to his first Mr. Olympia victory in 2021. Unfortunately, not only did Big Ramy not arrive in his best condition, as confirmed by Steve Weinberger, but it looks as Ramy could be taking care of some injuries in his back, that is also affecting his triceps.
Hadi Choopan was also in the spotlight when it came to criticism. From the minute Hadi Choopan lifted the Sandoe trophy in victory, he will have to be ready for a year long battle with critics. Some criticism might be constructive, but others will just be useless.
In the last few days, two bodybuilding legends, Berry DeMey and Rich Gaspari, criticized Choopan’s back condition.
Evolutionofbodybuilding.net has always praised the condition of the bodybuilders of the 80’s and 90’s. Till today, the condition of the athletes from the past can’t be matched. At the same time, the bodybuilders from the 80’s and 90’s would have no chance standing next to the Mr. Olympia lineup of today..
Criticizing Hadi Choopan for not having the similar back condition to Berry DeMey or Rich Gaspari is not fair, that is just one pose from all the others. Hadi was totally dry and striated in all his other poses, and the entire lineup could match his condition.
Berry DeMey compared Hadi Choopan to six-time Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates. Dorian had unbelievable back development, one of the best in the history of the sport, but when he turned around, let’s be honest, he could not match Hadi’s condition, in any pose. It is useless taking Hadi Choopan a part, just for one pose.
Then there is Rich Gaspari, another respected bodybuilding legend, he shared the same photo that Berry DeMey published. Gaspari basically repeated what DeMey said, but he then followed up with a video, trying to explain himself after receiving a backlash for his comments from bodybuilding fans and media.
Hany Rambod most probably could have pushed Hadi to have a much better back, but health concerns could also have been a major factor. We have bodybuilding legends and media preaching that bodybuilders should play it safe, when it comes to pushing the limits. Then at the same time, they want to see a totally dry and striated condition.
Andreas Münzer brought the condition everybody is crying for, but he died at 32, because of this. Andreas crossed the line to bring unbelievable condition, but unfortunately, he paid the price for this with his life.
Evolutionofbodybuilding.net believes the condition that Hadi Choopan presented was at the highest level, and he deserved the Mr. Olympia title from the moment he stepped on stage.
View this post on Instagram
