Joseph Baene, the son of Arnold Schwarzenegger, has proven that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree this weekend, as the 28-year-old claimed three gold medals and a silver in his first ever bodybuilding competition.
Schwarzenegger is widely viewed as one of the most important figures in bodybuilding. The 78-year-old won multiple awards during his career on the circuit, including seven Mr Olympia titles, deeming you to be the greatest bodybuilder in the world, five Mr Universe titles, and even winning Mr World.
This weekend, however, it was the turn of his son, Joseph Baene, to write his name into the echelon of the sport, as he claimed three golds and a silver at the NPC Natural Colorado State competition. His first ever in the sport.
Joseph Baene’s Successful Bodybuilding Debut
Just days after being spotted training alongside his illustrious father in Venice Beach, Baene claimed gold in the Men’s Open Bodybuilding Heavy Weight Class, Men’s classic Physique True Novice, and the Men’s Classic Physique Novice. Also claiming silver in the Classic Physique Open Class C event.
Baene posted images of himself on Instagram with the caption “Mission Accomplished” as well as the list of medals he had collected. The image has received over 59,000 likes with 3,000 fans also commenting to show their support.
Despite having the “best genes on the planet”, Baene has previously spoken about being bullied during his school years for his physique, labelling himself as “chubby” in a July post on his Instagram page.
Joseph Baene Opens Up on Bullying He Received as a Child
“People sometimes forget that I used to be chubby in high school. I got cut from my basketball and soccer team because I couldn’t keep up with the other kids. Swim didn’t have tryouts, thankfully, and completely changed my life forever. That was my introduction to fitness and training.”
Bullied by his classmates, including those he considered to be friends, he told PEOPLE back in 2022: “It was my closest friends that were the ones that bullied me the most and made fun of me for being overweight and all these kinds of things, so that was really a big struggle for me in finding myself and figuring out and creating that ambition to change my weight and my physique.”
He also added that he was really overweight from the end of elementary school into the beginning of high school.
Baene has now truly had the last laugh with his insane championship-winning physique, and with his father still on hand to give him tips, this probably won’t be the last time he comes out on top on the bodybuilding circuit.
