{"id":17015,"date":"2026-04-01T22:21:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T22:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=17015"},"modified":"2026-04-01T22:21:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T22:21:00","slug":"i-will-forever-be-a-classic-athlete","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=17015","title":{"rendered":"I Will Forever Be A Classic Athlete"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/mike-somerfeld-profile-stats\/\">Mike Sommerfeld<\/a><\/strong> has risen to the top of the Classic Physique division and he intends to stay there for a long time. The top competitors in the world are always rumored to make moves into Men\u2019s Open once they become established elsewhere. They have already begun circulating around Sommerfeld and he shut them down right away.<\/p>\n<p>Sommerfeld joined BTS TV for a conversation and he stated firmly that he will not be moving out of Classic Physique.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cI am Classic. I will be Classic and I will be forever Classic, I won\u2019t compete in Open, I won\u2019t compete in 212. Never ever. If I compete in Open, it\u2019s not a competition.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Sommerfeld had a breakout year in 2024. He finished as the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/chris-bumstead-profile\/\">Chris Bumstead<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>during the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/2024-mr-olympia-results-all-divisions\/\">2024 Olympia<\/a>. He followed that up with a victory at the Arnold Classic and this inserted his name into the conversation atop the Classic division, especially after Bumstead announced his retirement. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-157308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-384x216.jpg 384w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-400x225.jpg 400w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-489x275.jpg 489w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16.jpg 1920w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" src=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1024x576.jpg\"\/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-157308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-384x216.jpg 384w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-150x84.jpg 150w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-400x225.jpg 400w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16-489x275.jpg 489w, https:\/\/generationiron.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/unnamed-16.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mike Sommerfeld Instagram<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-mike-sommerfeld-determined-to-stay-in-classic\">Mike Sommerfeld Determined To Stay In Classic<\/h3>\n<p>The rumors have been swirling around Mike Sommerfeld, just like other competitors who reach the pinnacle of their divisions. Many bodybuilders have successfully switched divisions but Sommerfeld will not be next.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cIf I ever step on an Open stage, it\u2019s just for the crowd. It\u2019s just for me. It has nothing to do with the show. I am Classic, I am staying Classic and I will forever be a Classic athlete.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram\"\/>\n<p>Sommerfeld is coming off a victory at the Arnold Classic UK. He made a successful return after missing the Arnold in Columbus in early March.<\/p>\n<p>The former Arnold champ did not make weight on the morning of the competition. The German bodybuilder had been considered one of the notable names to watch in the Classic Physique lineup. However, as the final weigh-in approached, it became clear that Sommerfeld\u2019s weight had not dropped enough to qualify within the division\u2019s limits.<\/p>\n<p>Mike Sommerfeld reflected on the mental side of things heading into the Arnold Classic UK after what happened in Columbus.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cEven though I might act like I\u2019m a robot and I\u2019m just executing and doing the things I need to do, there is still a human side, with emotions. Not every day is a good day. Honestly, the closer you go to a show, the darker and harder it is going to be. That has nothing to do with a coaching thing by itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>For more news and updates, follow Generation Iron on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/generationiron\">Facebook<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.twitter.com\/generationiron\">Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/generationiron\/?hl=en\">Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/generationiron.com\/mike-somerfeld-wont-compete-in-mens-open-212\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mike Sommerfeld has risen to the top of the Classic Physique division and he intends to stay there for a long time. The top competitors in the world are always rumored to make moves into Men\u2019s Open once they become established elsewhere. They have already begun circulating around Sommerfeld and he shut them down right [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":17016,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[217,285],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-17015","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-classic-physique","8":"category-mike-sommerfeld"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>I Will Forever Be A Classic Athlete - World Bodybuilding News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldbodybuildingnews.com\/?p=17015\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"I Will Forever Be A Classic Athlete - World Bodybuilding News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Mike Sommerfeld has risen to the top of the Classic Physique division and he intends to stay there for a long time. 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