Written by Peter McGough
14 September 2015

15kaigreene-questions

The Kai Greene Question

Will He Do the Mr. O?..No is the Answer!

 

 

 

This story was posted when it seemed Kai Greene’s participation in the 2015 Mr. Olympia was still in the balance. According to a YouTube video recently posted by Kai he says in his own words he won’t be competing at this year’s Mr. Olympia. So that’s the way it is. Whatever the reasons, the runner-up of the past three years not taking part this weekend is a blow to the contest and his fans.

 The first Mr. Olympia took place 50 years ago this month. And in all that time there has never been a “Will-He, Won’t-He?” brouhaha like the one revolving around Kai Greene’s participation in this year's rendition of Joe Weider’s brainchild. Here we are with just a few days to go with the Mr. Olympia prejudging due to commence on Friday September 18, at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, and we still don’t know if The Predator, the runner-up at the last three Olympias, will be flexing onstage or sitting in the audience eating – as befits his situation – an in-an-out burger. As we understand it Kai has been told that if he shows up at the athletes meeting scheduled for 6.00pm on Wednesday, September 16, he will be allowed to compete. If he doesn’t meet that deadline, then he’s out.

 In the past there have been other contractual anomalies concerning Olympia entries but never such a stalemate as is the case with Greene. In 1980 we had Arnold Schwarzenegger (having supposedly having retired in 1975) making an unannounced comeback and -- to everyone’s surprise -- showing up in the athletes’ locker room just before prejudging with training bag and trunks. The then six-time Mr. Olympia and emerging Hollywood star was allowed to compete and so take his seventh Mr. O title.

In 1984 there was much to-and-fro involving protracted negotiations to finalize Sergio Oliva’s first Olympia appearance in 12 years. But that was all done and dusted weeks out and we saw The Myth return to claim eighth place.

 In 2001 Kevin Levrone went to the athletes meeting haven't not signed a contract and was threatened with expulsion by promoter Wayne DeMilia who then launched into a scathing attack on Levrone’s tardiness in front of his peers at the meeting. Eventually The Maryland Muscle was allowed to compete and finished third.

Then we had the curious case of Andrulla Blanchette, the 2000 Ms. Olympia lightweight champ and 2001 runner-up in that same class. She arrived at the 2002 Ms. Olympia event having not signed a contract. This time DeMilia was adamant she couldn’t compete and she was disqualified. This was a very mean decision as she had trained for 12 months, dieted for weeks and was left high and dry. Of course it could be argued she should have made sure she signed the contract, so maybe she should have been fined and allowed to compete. But no, she was not given the same break that Levrone was given a year earlier. Surprise, surprise, she never competed again.

 In Kai’s case it seems his people made unheard of demands on the promoter. Apparently the demands have nothing to do with actually competing onstage or anything to do with his bodybuilding career; it is strictly a business issue.

Whatever, the situation with Greene is unprecedented. And one has to ask why he doesn’t for the sake of his many fans announce his decision now? After all, if he is entering and waiting to reveal that at the athletes meeting on Wednesday then as of today (Sunday September 13) or tomorrow he needs to start depleting and/or going through the modern day ramifications of final contest prep. And if he is not doing, why not – again as a courtesy to his fans – announce it? Not for the first time Kai is causing more head scratching than found at a scalp doctor’s convention.

 

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