<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Winning the Olympia is the culmination of a bodybuilder\u2019s career. There is no title that\u2019s higher or more respected. Every amateur athlete competes with the goal of earning a pro card, and from there it is all about the O. For many competitors who are lucky enough to get a pro card, the Olympia can be one of the most elusive stages to step foot on. Now, more than ever, there are hundreds \u2013 if not thousands \u2013 of pro competitors depending on the division. And they all want to be on the Olympia stage. An even fewer number are able to place. Everyone just assumes that the guy who took 15th<\/sup> was last. That\u2019s actually not true. There\u2019s usually more guys who didn\u2019t get a number. They made it to the stage, but for whatever reason they just didn\u2019t make the cut.<\/p>\n Being 15th<\/sup> isn\u2019t really being last among all the guys. At least you got a placing. Then there\u2019s guys who break the Top 10. For a guy to market himself as a \u201cTop 10 Olympian\u201d is a total game changer. From there, things get really interesting. Making Top 6 is huge. Getting Top 5 means you\u2019re in the running for the tile. How many guys have gone from 5th<\/sup> one year, to 1st<\/sup> the next year. It\u2019s happened more times than I can count. Being Top 5 means you\u2019re a top contender. Being Top 3 means you could have won. Winning is just another level. Nick Walker won the 2026 Olympia, but not even a week later, he had already thrown his hat into the 2027 Arnold Classic \u2013 the second most difficult sport in bodybuilding. Why did he do it? Why didn\u2019t he savor his Olympia win? What could happen in Columbus, OH?<\/p>\n Nick Walker should be on top of the world right now. I just saw him with Guy Cisternino doing a ribbon-cutting at a local gym and I was so happy to see it. He should be doing more of this. It\u2019s not just because he owns a stake in the facility, but he should be at charity events, talking to kids, maybe doing some network tv appearances. That\u2019s what a newly minted Mr. O should do. But he\u2019s already talking about doing the Arnold Classic. Did he learn nothing from the blunder of Samson Dauda a couple years ago? I see a lot of similarities between Dauda and Walker after their first Olympia win. Neither of these guys felt truly secure in the title. It\u2019s like they immediately wanted to get out there and prove they were the best. Back in the day, there were a number of bullshit European shows immediately after the Olympia. Maybe we need those again. And why do I call them bs shows?<\/p>\n It\u2019s no shade on our friends across the pond. The grand prix shows after the Olympia were a way to bring the top guys, right after the big dance, to many smaller European markets. There were grand prix shows from Austria to Poland to the Czech Republic. These shows gave the fans a chance to see the top guys, seemingly, battling for these checks. The reality of the matter is that the titles didn\u2019t mean very much and the guys would flip flop placings. The prize money wasn\u2019t anything to write home about, either, but it added up. That\u2019s why these shows were in the bs category, but they made everyone happy.<\/p>\n It was only after all of these shows that the reigning Mr. O would hunker down, enjoy a vacation, and then resurface during for the next year\u2019s Olympia prep. The idea of doing the Arnold of the NOC was unheard of for a reigning Mr. O. Even the great Ronnie Coleman tried his hand at doing the Arnold and nearly lost the following Olympia to Jay Cutler in 2001. Why gamble? You\u2019re the best bodybuilder in the world, why press your luck? Well, if you\u2019re insecure or you don\u2019t know think you\u2019re the best or worse, you think the media and\/or the fans don\u2019t think you\u2019re the best, then you keep competing. That\u2019s what I suspect is happening with Nick.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n