Once again there seems to be only one man sticking up for what he believes in within our sport. Rumours ran rampant and were confirmed by Lee on getbig.com that he is indeed pulling out of the Mr.O. The following was posted and confirmed by Lee:

OFFICIAL NOTICE: LEE has pulled out of the Olympia!!!

His decision is based on his disapproval with the way the show is run and handled, he believes he has to stick to his word. The contract for the show is totally restricting and one sided all the way for the promoters to the point it is disrespectful to the athletes in some instances.

The promoters requirements of the Athletes prior to the event is totally unnecessary and shows no comparison for the competitors. The athletes have to participate in promotional products for the promoter which have the potential to earn millions of dollars with not one cent being given back to the athlete.

The athlete has to sign away his rights to image and likeness for promotional and product endorsement with no financial compensation what so ever, plus in most cases go against there Sponsors obligations and rights.

All the athlete gets to be at the Super Bowl of Bodybuilding is there flight paid for, a room (with no cooking facilities, and no microwaves) plus a $50 buck meal allowance, and 1 ticket to the event.

If the athlete chooses to stay at a hotel other than the one given to them (because of cooking requirements) no transport will be offered to them to get to and from the event.

The judging is not independently monitored. The challenge round is a joke and takes away the anticipation of the top 5 plus the money offered in this round should be used to pay for athletes lower down in placing or should have been put to the Women’s Olympia , which has been demoted to having their show held in the EXPO hall!

One might wonder how many athletes are going to follow suit and start to drop out of shows. If AMI continues along these lines, we are sure things are going to change big time in the near future.