The Complete Guide to Earning an IFBB Pro Card & Reaching Bodybuilding’s Biggest Stage
For those new to bodybuilding, it would probably be a good idea to know how an athlete competes for the Mr Olympia title – bodybuilding’s highest honour. How exactly does a bodybuilder compete among the best in the world?
I’m going to tell you, but first let me preface it with the following for clarity: While the “Olympia” today consists of 11 divisions and most eligibility requirements to compete in them are the same, my focus here is on the original men’s open Mr. Olympia, on which the entire fitness industry rests.
While what I discuss here is in many ways relevant to other IFBB divisions, subtle situations can arise and raise certain limits. Accordingly, it is about them – the basic elements – and the process by which one can find their way among them.
Like competing in a world championship in any sport, the first thing you have to do is qualify. And in bodybuilding, it involves the culmination of everything you’ve been doing for years – the dedication, the suffering, the avoidance, the sacrifice, the gruelling workout after gruelling workout, the fatigue and the starvation, not giving up even for a second. Because if you do that, someone else will move ahead and pass you by. Bodybuilding is the best option to leave no stone unturned. In our world, those stones are the size of gravel and large enough to create a circular path. Every single one of them matters, and if fate leaves just one to chance and it goes awry, the entire row of dominoes collapses.
This phenomenon is why there is less accommodation on top of Mount Olympus. Since Larry Scott first won the title in 1965, the honour has been fought for a total of 62 times, producing only 19 champions. Let me say it another way: In 61 continuous years, only 19 men have earned the title of Mr Olympia. This makes the Sandow Trophy the rarest award in modern sports – and you’ll want one.
Conquer the Amateurs and Earn IFBB Pro Card
Well, while you’re spaced on the mantle, you’d better free up some space for the many other trophies you’ll have to win first. And that’s just to rule out amateurs. Once you’ve got the hang of the pros, you’re starting to climb to the top.
Olympia is the proverbial world championship of bodybuilding. That’s as high as you can go, and there’s no other competition at its level—it’s the peak of Everest. It represents the ultimate achievement in all body sports. Critics will decry the Arnold Classic as being equivalent to Olympia, saying that the honour is the same. But it’s not like that. It’s just not. Mr Olympia is the historical centre of our universe. Any kid who ever dreamed of being a bodybuilder has dreamed of becoming Mr Olympia. Now, you can win the Arnold to qualify for the Olympia, but not the other way around. There are no two sides in this. Sir, oh, it is.
As far as it is concerned, those who want to grace its platform have to start somewhere. In IFBB pro bodybuilding, this means obtaining a Pro Card – your ticket to entry. The pro card has become ubiquitous these days – it’s entirely possible that the girl with the beer tub at a trendy pool bar is a card-carrying IFBB bikini pro – it doesn’t make it any easier to get a card, especially among the men chasing Sando. Specifically for the Men’s Open, to “pick up” your pro card, you must earn an overall win at one of the USA Championships, NPC Nationals, Junior Nationals, North American or Universe competitions. There are also international pathways through the Arnold Amateur and other international Arnold events in Ohio, the IFBB World Championships, and the NPC Worldwide Pro Qualifiers in various countries.
The road to Olympia is narrow due to heavy traffic
You must win the national qualifiers to compete in any of these US shows. These days, many state-level shows are open national qualifiers.
This stage is where you can struggle for years to climb, or you can get on the fast track. If you bide your time and wait to compete until you’re ready – unless you’re Olympia calibre – you can literally win a state-level show, sometimes even just your weight class, which will qualify you for the NPC national show. Win overall there, and you’ll get your Pro Card. If you are an aggressive and talented monster who gets federation approval, you can immediately enter your first pro show – an Olympia qualifier —and win it, and thus qualify for Olympia. No one has ever done this, but it can happen. The way is there. But to get on this stage you have to be a hitherto unseen freak.
No matter what kind of monster you think you are, to compete in the big show, you have to win the Olympia Qualifiers. Apart from the Arnold, there are a lot of events held in the US – the New York Pro, Tampa Pro, Toronto Pro, Pittsburgh Pro, etc., to name a few. There have also been some events around the world—for example, there was a recent Arnold UK Olympia qualifier.
I made that path look easy, but it is not. While there are—and have been—outsiders who came from nowhere and made it to the top, it is a tough task for most. I know people who have spent a decade or more trying to become professional. It’s not simple—especially today. Competition is still as fierce today, especially among professionals. Many people become professionals and you never see them again.
To add more stress to the equation, qualifying for the Olympia is also a strategic consideration in managing your professional career. Should you try to qualify as soon as possible after Olympia or try to get as close to it as possible? How do you best manage your situation? This decision is one of the many gambles that athletes take to compete at the Olympia. Some people blow it, don’t make it and have to try again the next season.
Competing at the Olympia is a serious endeavour. Nothing is being allowed to slide. If you have any doubts, remember: In 61 years, only 19 people have been crowned Mister Olympia. Just 19 out of eight billion people in the world.
What does that tell you?
