Chris Bumstead is preparing to defend his 2019 Mr. Olympia professional bodybuilding title at this year’s event in December.
Bumstead—who is native to Ottawa—is a professional bodybuilder who competes in the Men’s Classic Physique division. At only age 25, Bumstead has built an impressive resume.
Bumstead first competed in bodybuilding in 2014, when he was 19 years old. Two years later, he received his pro card after winning the 2016 International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) North American bodybuilding championships.
Getting a pro card proves that the competitor won amateur competitions. One can only get a pro card for winning a bodybuilding show such as the North American championship.
Getting his pro card gave Bumstead the opportunity to compete in the Mr. Olympia— the most prestigious event in the sport of bodybuilding.
In 2017, Bumstead made his Mr. Olympia debut. While Bumstead fell short and lost by a small margin to his competitor, Breon Ansley, many have argued that Bumstead should have won the competition.
Many argued—and I agree—that Ansley was much more conditioned and defined than Bumstead, and so the title was properly handed to Ansley.
After this competition, a rivalry was born between the two Classic Physique competitors.
Following his loss, Bumstead continued to train for Mr. Olympia in 2018, looking bigger and better than ever. In his final week of preparation, disaster struck Bumstead, and he was hospitalized for six days.
Bumstead was holding 15 pounds of water weight. Fifteen pounds of water retention is not good for anyone, but it is especially bad for someone competing in the Mr. Olympia. Water retention makes a bodybuilder’s physique look much less detailed and conditioned.
A kidney biopsy concluded Bumstead had an autoimmune disease. Despite this obstacle, Bumstead managed to grab second place at the Olympia that year. In interviews following the competition, he called 2018 one of the most meaningful years of his life.
In 2019, after placing second two years in a row, Bumstead had a chip on his shoulder. He took his preparation for the next Mr. Olympia to the next level. Working closely with his brother-in-law Ian Valliere, another Ottawa-born IFBB pro and current 2020 Mr. Olympia competitor, Bumstead managed to dethrone Ansley and won his first Mr. Olympia. Bumstead dedicated his win to the support of his family and Valliere’s hard work to help him prepare.
With Bumstead’s first Mr. Olympia win, his career propelled to new heights. He has an astounding 1.3 million followers on Instagram, and launched a training app with his workouts. The goal of the app was to motivate people to better themselves and to see what it takes to train like an Olympia champion.
Despite the pandemic, Bumstead trained as if this year’s Mr. Olympia would still happen. He worked out in Valliere’s basement. On May 7, the IFBB pro league social media announced that the 2020 Mr. Olympia would take place Dec. 17-20. Bumstead now can take the proper measures to ensure a victory and prove all the doubters that last year was not a fluke.
Now just a few weeks out, Bumstead is sharing his training on Instagram and said via his Instagram story that he feels he has yet to show everyone his 100 per cent.
For a career filled with promise and obstacles, Bumstead is looking to take home his second Mr. Olympia win and perhaps many more championships in the future.
Over the last few weeks of preparation for the Olympia, Bumstead has shared several physique updates on Instagram. He has been showing off how much muscle and size he has managed to maintain while cutting from 260 pounds to the 230 pound weight cap for his division.
Bumstead is looking defined and conditioned. He looks better than he did last year and I personally think he can take home his second Mr. Olympia win. However, Breon Ansley is not letting last year’s loss discourage him.
It will be tough to choose a favourite right now. Ansley is looking more conditioned while Bumstead is looking bigger and a little less conditioned than Ansley. We cannot know for sure until the competitors step onstage within the next few weeks, but we can expect to see a very close and good show between all the competitors.
Featured image by Sara Mizannojehdehi.
