Phil Heath
Phillip "The Gift" Heath | |
---|---|
Bodybuilder | |
File:PhilHeath2014.JPG | |
Personal info | |
Nickname | The Gift, The Next Big Thing |
Born | [1] Seattle, Washington, United States | December 18, 1979
Professional career | |
Pro-debut |
|
Best win |
|
Predecessor | Jay Cutler |
Active | Since 2002 |
Phillip "The Gift" Heath (born December 18, 1979 in Seattle, Washington) is an American IFBB professional bodybuilder and current Mr. Olympia.
Early life and Education
Phil Heath grew up in Seattle, Washington, and attended Rainier Beach High School, where he played shooting guard on the varsity basketball team. Heath attended the University of Denver in Colorado on a full athletic scholarship. While at Denver, Heath double-majored in IT and Business Administration and played shooting guard for Denver's Division I basketball team.
Bodybuilding career
Phil Heath entered bodybuilding in 2002. In 2005 he won the overall title at the NPC (National Physique Committee) USA Championships, earning the right to compete as an IFBB Pro. He won his first two IFBB professional events the following year: The Colorado Pro Championships and The New York Pro Championship.
In 2007, Heath placed fifth at the Arnold Classic.[citation needed] Although he still qualified to compete in the 2007 Mr. Olympia contest, Heath, nevertheless, decided not to enter the contest, stating that he needed additional time to improve his form. Heath then won the 2008 Iron Man show and placed second to Dexter Jackson at the 2008 Arnold Classic. In his 2008 Mr. Olympia debut, Heath finished third, becoming the first novice to place in the top three since Flex Wheeler in 1993. He was a favorite for the 2009 Mr. Olympia title,[citation needed] but a stomach virus caused him to arrive 6 lbs lighter than planned on the first day, and this resulted in his taking fifth place in the competition. In 2010, he took second place at the Mr. Olympia contest when Jay Cutler won his final title, but after improving his rear lat spread Heath defeated Cutler and became Mr. Olympia for 2011. In both the 2012 and 2013 Mr Olympia, Heath successfully defended his Mr. Olympia title against Kai Greene.
Heath has been featured in many fitness and magazine articles, and has also appeared on the cover of FLEX magazine.
Heath resides in Arvada, Colorado and trains at Armbrust Pro Gym in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Heath has released four bodybuilding DVDs: "The Gift", "The Gift Unwrapped", "Journey to the Olympia," Becoming the Number 13, and "Operation Sandow". These were directed by Jonathan McFarlane and released by Bodybranded Films.
Gifted Nutrition/Athletics
Heath owns a fitness apparel company called Gifted Athletics, a name derived from his nickname “The Gift” in the sport of bodybuilding. In addition to running this successful apparel venture, in July of 2014 Heath partnered with a small team of nutritional supplement and business experts to create Gifted Nutrition. This latest venture aims to bring “the highest quality premium fitness and nutritional supplements available” to the market. In creating his own supplement company in this way, Phil Heath became the first professional bodybuilder to head up his own sports nutrition company while still competing in the prime of his career.[2][3]
Other media
On October 20, 2013, during the Countdown to Bound for Glory pre-show "Mr. Olympia" Phil Heath made his TNA debut, accompanying The BroMans (Jessie Godderz and Robbie E) to the ring for their tag team gauntlet match, which they won and later on in the night, accompanied them to their TNA World Tag Team Championship match against Gunner and James Storm. After the match, Heath celebrated their title victory with them in the ring and backstage during an interview.[4]
Competitive history
- 2003 Northern Colorado State, Novice, Light-Heavyweight 1st and overall
- 2003 NPC Colorado State, Light-Heavyweight, 1st
- 2004 NPC Colorado State, Heavyweight, 1st and Overall
- 2005 NPC Junior Nationals, HeavyWeight, 1st and Overall
- 2005 NPC USA Championships, HeavyWeight, 1st and Overall
- 2006 Colorado Pro Championships, 1st
- 2006 New York Pro Championship, 1st
- 2007 Arnold Classic, 5th
- 2008 IFBB Iron Man, 1st
- 2008 Arnold Classic, 2nd
- 2008 Mr. Olympia, 3rd
- 2009 Mr. Olympia, 5th
- 2010 Arnold Classic, 2nd
- 2010 Mr. Olympia, 2nd
- 2011 Mr. Olympia, 1st
- 2011 Sheru Classic, 1st
- 2012 Mr. Olympia, 1st
- 2012 Sheru Classic, 1st
- 2013 Mr. Olympia, 1st
- 2013 Arnold Classic Europe, 1st
See also
- List of male professional bodybuilders
- Mr. Olympia
- Arnold Classic
- Ironman Pro Invitational
- Night of Champions
References
- ^ phillipheath.com - About Phillip Heath
- ^ "Phil "The Gift" Heath Launches Gifted Nutrition". Flex Online. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
{{cite web}}
:|first1=
missing|last1=
(help) - ^ "Gifted Nutrition". Retrieved 23 July 2014.
- ^ "TNA Bound for Glory 2013 Results".