The oldest Mr. Olympia champion in history not only broke records, he also broke barriers.
Chris Dickerson was the youngest of triplets born in Montgomery, Alabama in 1939 in the Jim Crow-era South.
In a career spanning over 30 years and 50 titles, he has grown to become one of the best bodybuilders in the world.
“He was brilliant,” said Dickerson’s friend and rival Samir Banute. Washington Post“He had more confidence than anyone else.”
At just 5-foot-6, Dickerson said he felt overshadowed by peers like Lou Ferrigno and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
“I’m a little used to being overlooked,” he said in a 2007 interview with Flex magazine. “
Nonetheless, Dickerson did what others couldn’t before him, becoming the first black Mr. America and the first openly gay Mr. Olympia.
Although he rarely spoke about it in interviews, Dickerson’s sexuality was widely known in his bodybuilding work by the late ’70s.
Dickerson liked to use his time to shatter stereotypes about bodybuilding.
“Some people like flashy cars, others like flashy hairstyles. We like healthy bodies,” he once said.
“Everyone has their own, and ours is no more interesting than anyone else’s.”
His physique wasn’t just for winning competitions. Dickerson was trained in opera and dance, and had begun lifting weights to work out his chest to expand his vocal range.
In 1970, he won the Amateur Athletic Federation’s Mr. America title, becoming one of the shortest champions in the competition and the first black winner.
But unlike other Mr. America champions, Dickerson said he didn’t get many movie offers or endorsements.
“If someone calls me, I’m ready,” he said.
Dickerson has written a monthly column for Strength & Health magazine, appeared on What’s My Line and The Tonight Show, and has had the opportunity to talk to students about staying fit.
“I want people to feel that if humans are made in God’s image, then the human body has power and beauty,” he told the Associated Press.
By the end of the 1970s, Dickerson competed in international competitions such as Mr. Olympia, finishing fourth in 1979.
He looked like a favorite to win the 1980 tournament in Sydney, Australia, but controversy erupted when Dickerson came second and retired Schwarzenegger came first. .
Many were against the decision, but Dickerson said he was “overjoyed” to finish second.
I said, “Wow! Second place!” After all, Arnold is Arnold,” he told his Flex magazine. “He wasn’t at his best, but what can you do with Arnold Schwarzenegger?”
He finished second again in 1981 and finally finished first in 1982 at the age of 43, becoming Mr. Olympia’s oldest champion.
Dickerson continued bodybuilding at age 40 before retiring in 1994 after finishing fourth in the first Masters Olympia competition for former champions over 40.
“If you don’t enjoy the process, don’t do it,” he told the Atlanta Constitution.
“It’s like an affirmation of your youth. You want to keep it. Bodybuilders are like old soldiers, old jocks.
After retiring, Dickerson became a bodybuilding commentator for ESPN and ABC’s Wide World of Sports.
He also worked as a security officer and personal trainer.
Dickerson was inducted into the International Bodybuilding Federation and Fitness Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Muscle Beach Venice Hall of Fame in 2014.
He died of heart failure on December 23, 2021 at the age of 82 with no immediate survivors.
“He was one of the nicest guys in the whole sport,” said Bannout.
“He didn’t have a chip on his shoulder. When he won Mr. Olympia he was still a normal guy. Now you see the guys winning and you talk to them They can’t. They walk the gym and think they own the world…”
