Derek Lunsford wins Olympia despite serious injury!

The bodybuilding world has a new hero. Derek Lunsford, the recent Mr. Olympia champion in the Open category, narrowly escaped the end of his participation in the most prestigious competition. Sixteen days before the grand finals in Las Vegas, he tore his pectoral muscle in training. His quest for the title was in jeopardy.

"It was just 16 days before the Olympics when I seriously injured my chest while warming up with the one-armed dumbbells," Lunsford told his fans on YouTube.

Although his world came crashing down at that moment, he was able to recover and build on his 2023 triumph.

The bench press exercise proved fatal for him. Lunsford, accustomed to heavy weights, was training with 70kg one-armed barbells. "I felt exceptionally good that day and toyed with the idea of trying 75 or even 80 kilos. Every repetition was perfect," he said of the fateful moment.

But then came the turning point.

"After a few reps, I knew it was wrong. At that moment, my whole career went through my head," he admitted.

The injury didn't become fully apparent until the next day, when bruises appeared on his chest. His start at Mr. Olympia seemed lost.

"I was in a bad place mentally for a few weeks, but by God's grace the injury healed incredibly quickly," he added with relief.

The 32-year-old bodybuilder managed to get back into the gym and although it took him a while to get back into shape, he gave the performance of his life at the competition.

"It was a serious injury that could have cost me not only this year's Olympia but my whole career. But sixteen days later, here I stand, almost 100 per cent ready to train," he said.

This story shows how thin the line is between success and failure. All it took was a little and someone else could have taken the throne for the king of bodybuilding. For example, Hadi Choopan, who finished second, or bronze medallist Andrew Jacked. Last year's winner Samson Dauda had to settle for fourth place this time, but this weekend, on 25 and 26 October, fans will see him live at EVLS Prague in the Czech Republic.