HackTwat
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[h=1]How The Gift Arrived![/h]
Phil Heath Won His First Mr. Olympia Title On September 17, 2011. The Writer Who Spotted The Former Basketball Player's Potential Way Before He Slam-Dunked His Way To The Pinnacle Of His Sport Gives A Fly-On-The-Wall Account
Of How He Witnessed The Development Of The Man Who Many Say May Eventually Be Proclaimed The Best Bodybuilder In History.[h=2]GETTING MY PHIL[/h]It was early June 2005 when I saw a couple of shots on the Internet of a then-unknown Phil Heath, who would be entering the NPC Junior Nationals three weeks hence. I was gobsmacked (British slang that translates to "utterly astounded") as, in 40 years in this industry, I'd never seen such dense and rounded fibrous muscle tissue combined with such heaven-given insertions on anyone before. My next task was to track this guy down and sign him. I had his name and the fact he was from Denver. As I began the search I, by some form of serendipity, got a call from Jay Cutler (15 months away from winning his first Olympia) who told me, "There's a kid in Colorado who's gonna be great one day." The kid was Phil Heath.
I contacted my quarry at Bally's Fitness in Denver, where he managed the nutrition store. He was at first somewhat baffled by my interest. He'd heard stories of older, gravelly voiced men trying to contact young bodybuilders: in such a scenario, having an English accent didn't lessen the creepiness. Finally, the 25-year-old accepted that I was kosher and over the next 48 hours I had a couple of long conversations with him, during which time I became convinced that he had the mental muscle to back up his genetics. Cut to the chase: I offered him a contract, which he agreed to. It's the only time I gave a contract on the basis of two photos. All other signings I had first seen onstage in the flesh with my own peepers. The NPC Junior Nationals were in Chicago on June 18, and two weeks prior to that we flew him to LA for photo shoots. In taking the Heavyweight and Overall at the Junior Nationals (which I didn't attend), Phil Heath created a sensation. Several luminaries called me from the Windy City, telling me I should check him out. I told them the deal had already been done.
The day after his Junior Nationals victory, my wife Anne and I met Phil at LAX. She asked in light of me never having picked another bodybuilder up from the airport, why was I making a special exception for this guy. I replied, "Because he is special— he's a future Mr. Olympia." She remarked that she had only heard me say that about one other emerging star; Dorian Yates back in 1988. Let's just say I'm picky. Any road up, a smiling Phil emerged from baggage claim wearing a tank top and I had my first sight of the unique muscle detail and roundness he possesses. As he walked toward us, I asked Anne what she thought. She replied, "He has such remarkable green eyes."Yeah, I know— we're from Mars and they're from Venus. Having said that, it's a fact that the unusual hue of his orbs only added to his impact.
We took the amiable Phil for a meal, got to know him over the next couple of days of photo shoots and delving into his mindset only reinforced my view that a Sandow or two would come his way. Plus I'm pleased to say Anne and I bonded with him and later on with his future wife, Jennie. So much so that following the Olympia press conference of 2011, we were standing chatting to Phil when a young woman from China came up and asked if he would take a photo with her. He obliged and she asked looking toward us, "Is this your Mom and Dad?" The soon-to-be Mr. Olympia smiled slowly and said, "Kinda."[h=2]THE EARLY DAYS[/h]Phillip Jerrod Heath was born in Seattle, Washington, on December 18, 1979. How neat is it that the baby later to be called "The Gift" was delivered a week before Christmas? His father left home while Phil was just a toddler and he was brought up by his mother, Rosella Braxton and later her second husband, Jerry Dorsey III. Believe me, they are an adorable couple. The young Heath grew up in Rainier Beach, which is in the south-eastern corner of Seattle. It was and still is a tough area with gang altercations common, but Rosella made sure her boy never stepped out of line. She had him attend piano lessons and today he is an accomplished classical pianist. Of living in those mean Seattle streets Heath says, "Bad stuff happened, but I never knew how bad it was until I left."
As a teenager he was naturally quite muscular, and the future Mr. Olympia was a star on the Rainier Beach High School basketball team, leading them to a state championship. Despite being on the short side, 5'9", for his sport, his coach Mike Bethea recalls how he taught Phil to win— and how despite being undersized, the youngster defied the odds with a great work ethic and iron-willed determination. Rosella's boy worked hard on and off the court and earned a scholarship to the University of Denver, and played on their hoops team from 1998 through 2002. Following squad instructions he started lifting weights in 1998, but it was a real basic program: adding muscle was not yet on his agenda.
In 2002, the 21-year-old graduated with a business degree and was hired to manage the nutrition store at Bally Total Fitness in Denver. He went to the 2002 Colorado State Bodybuilding Championships in July to watch an acquaintance compete. Another bodybuilder noted the contours of Phil's muscular, 160-pound physique and suggested he compete. "You're not going to get me up there in a banana hammock," snapped back the basketball player.
Still, fresh from that exposure and free from basketball, he upped his weight training and went from 160 pounds to 185 pounds in a few months and attended the Rocky Mountain Championships in November 2002. Guest posing was Claude Groulx, who next year would win the Masters Olympia. Eying up the spectating Heath, Groulx asked him if he competed. Getting a "No," the pro suggested Heath should try it. (So Jay Cutler, Kai Greene, Branch Warren, Dennis Wolf and company ... now you know it's all Claude Groulx's fault.)
Emboldened by Groulx's encouragement, the formerly reluctant bodybuilder decided to enter the Northern Colorado Championships slated for April 2003. At 192 pounds, he won the Light-heavy and Overall titles. But probably the biggest win of that night was meeting guest-poser Jay Cutler, as from that initial encounter they forged a close— and what promises to be a lifelong—friendship. Two months later he met Jennie Laxson, whom he would marry on June 23, 2007— which entailed him gaining a stepson, Michael, who is now 18. Of Jennie, the 131 Mr. Olympia says, "She has been my number one supporter in my life in and out of bodybuilding. She is my best friend and with her selfless attitude has been with me throughout all of my trials. She is truly a gem."
Despite his genetic advantages, it still takes supreme determination to become a top pro and then take it up to the ultimate notch of being Mr. Olympia. As celebrated French novelist Emile Zola said, "The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work." (Who knew Emile was a musclehead?) Heath believes, "knows," that his sense of discipline and ability to make sacrifices came from his mother and stepfather. Plus they gave him a stability many of his peers didn't have growing up. For honing his competitive instincts and cultivating the will-to-win mindset, he credits "Coach Bethea."
In the years since they first met, Jay Cutler and Phil Heath developed a famous mentor/pupil relationship. Which was more than gracious on Cutler's part because he told me back in 2006, "I know this kid will beat me and be unbeatable one day." Well, history now records that day came on September 17, 2011.[h=2]HEATH TAKES HEAT[/h]"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled, "This is a bodybuilding contest, not some competition for best-behaved spectator." The target of my ire was Phil Heath. The date: May 13, 2006. The place: backstage at the Shawn Ray Pro/ Am Classic, just after the prejudging in which the aforementioned Heath was making his pro debut in his adopted hometown of Denver. I continued the onslaught, "Get it into your head, you belong on that friggin' stage. You're a pro— don't let these guys shuffle in front of you. Don't be so friggin'nice."
I was soon joined by Hany Rambod, the debutante's contest prep advisor, who gave his charge the same "Get in there and mix it" instruction. Heath's entry into the pro ranks had been hotly anticipated ever since he had clinched his right to flex alongside Coleman, Cutler & Co. by winning the Heavyweight and Overall titles at the 2005 NPC USA Championships 10 months earlier. He became a pro after less than three years of training, and was looked upon as such a genetic phenom that his self-given nickname "The Gift" was deemed entirely appropriate. But at the Denver prejudging he seemed to be handing out gifts of his own, appearing a little reserved in waiting for others to take the lead, and not showcasing and projecting his spectacular physique in the way it deserved. Fact is he had let Darrem Charles (eventual runner-up) boss proceedings. A few days previously, the rookie pro had said, "A year ago I was a fan reading about these guys, now I'm competing against them." Onstage it seemed he maybe still had that thought too much in mind. The collective message from Rambod and I was, "Forget about competing against them, you're here to beat them."
From that point on he was more aggressive, and duly took top spot as he did a week later at the New York Pro. By winning his first two pro contests he further cemented his rep among many as maybe the next big thing. But in May 2006, others— citing his lack of clavicle width, lagging chest thickness, and 215-pound bodyweight in an age of 260 pounders— doubted he would ever claim a Sandow. Five years and five months later, it was all so different.[h=2]FULPHILMENT[/h]Fast-forward those five years and five months. The scene is the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. The date is Friday, September 16, 2011. The time is 10:22 p.m. The 6,000 or so bodybuilding souls who have assembled for the Mr. Olympia prejudging are about to see the future.
In over 40 years of following bodybuilding I have had two spine-tingling, hairs-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck, goose bumps, never-to-be-forgotten, WTF (you getting the message?) moments. The initial occasion was seeing Sergio Oliva in person for the first time at the 1971 Mr. Universe in London. I'd seen stacks of photos of the three-time Mr. Olympia, but in the flesh, with his small bones and massive muscles, he just blew my mind and made me jump back in my seat. The second was July 1993 at the Temple Gym, Birmingham, England, when I witnessed Dorian Yates posing for those famous besocked and untanned shots, seven weeks before taking his second Olympia. Forget all those great Olympia-winning nights, that was the best Yates I've ever seen. He could have walked on the Olympia stage wearing socks and no tan and won the Sandow. Now 18 years later, I was about to get my third "I was there the day..." unforgettable experience.
On that September night, out of the darkness in the middle of the rear of the stage, Phil Heath emerges. With an angry look, fists clenched, he stomps (no word better fits his approach) out to complete his mandatories. This was our first look at him since 2010. The collective sharp intake of breath from the audience is so intense, I expect oxygen masks to fall from the ceiling. I look at this figure getting ever closer and wonder if in fact we are viewing some kind of computer-generated imagery (CGI). Is James "Avatar" Cameron in the house? Quite simply, Heath doesn't seem real. He's like a walking cartoon. We had long considered his muscle fiber composition, rounded muscle bellies and insertions as being indeed a unique gift— he has muscle in places others don't have places.
But tonight, tonight my friends, he is super full: the 248 pounds distributed on his 5'9" frame have an almost a 3-D effect, with his proportions being as balanced as a tightrope walker. His musculature is tighter than Shawn Ray's wallet and he has more detail than the federal budget. The 215-pounder, burdened with narrow shoulders and lack of pec density, is no more. That look is long gone— as yesterday as a Kim Kardashian marriage.
Seated along from me Flex Wheeler looks stunned, like he had just been informed that KFC was closing down. Often heralded as having the most aesthetic physique ever in our sport, it seems Flex is ready to hand that particular baton to the onstage protagonist as he murmurs, "Man, I've never seen anything like this."
Heath's physique is so other-worldly you suspect he arrived in a spacecraft— and he does give the impression of being on a mission as almost with a "You think you can take me?" scowl, his distinctive green eyes sear into the audience like dual laser beams. As he hits his first shot of the contest, one expects a Sandow to be quietly shoved onstage. Why in all honesty, wait for the next day's finals?
In the ongoing "Aesthetics vs. Freakiness" brouhaha, Phil Heath quashes all discussion. He is the hybrid: the first "Aesthetic Freak," unveiled at 10:22 p.m. on this never-to-be-forgotten night of September 16, 2011. We have just witnessed fulphilment. Or had we? The man himself says he will continue improving, and the smart money agrees that this is a Gift that, in Olympia winning terms, may very well keep on giving.
Phil Heath Won His First Mr. Olympia Title On September 17, 2011. The Writer Who Spotted The Former Basketball Player's Potential Way Before He Slam-Dunked His Way To The Pinnacle Of His Sport Gives A Fly-On-The-Wall Account
I contacted my quarry at Bally's Fitness in Denver, where he managed the nutrition store. He was at first somewhat baffled by my interest. He'd heard stories of older, gravelly voiced men trying to contact young bodybuilders: in such a scenario, having an English accent didn't lessen the creepiness. Finally, the 25-year-old accepted that I was kosher and over the next 48 hours I had a couple of long conversations with him, during which time I became convinced that he had the mental muscle to back up his genetics. Cut to the chase: I offered him a contract, which he agreed to. It's the only time I gave a contract on the basis of two photos. All other signings I had first seen onstage in the flesh with my own peepers. The NPC Junior Nationals were in Chicago on June 18, and two weeks prior to that we flew him to LA for photo shoots. In taking the Heavyweight and Overall at the Junior Nationals (which I didn't attend), Phil Heath created a sensation. Several luminaries called me from the Windy City, telling me I should check him out. I told them the deal had already been done.
The day after his Junior Nationals victory, my wife Anne and I met Phil at LAX. She asked in light of me never having picked another bodybuilder up from the airport, why was I making a special exception for this guy. I replied, "Because he is special— he's a future Mr. Olympia." She remarked that she had only heard me say that about one other emerging star; Dorian Yates back in 1988. Let's just say I'm picky. Any road up, a smiling Phil emerged from baggage claim wearing a tank top and I had my first sight of the unique muscle detail and roundness he possesses. As he walked toward us, I asked Anne what she thought. She replied, "He has such remarkable green eyes."Yeah, I know— we're from Mars and they're from Venus. Having said that, it's a fact that the unusual hue of his orbs only added to his impact.
We took the amiable Phil for a meal, got to know him over the next couple of days of photo shoots and delving into his mindset only reinforced my view that a Sandow or two would come his way. Plus I'm pleased to say Anne and I bonded with him and later on with his future wife, Jennie. So much so that following the Olympia press conference of 2011, we were standing chatting to Phil when a young woman from China came up and asked if he would take a photo with her. He obliged and she asked looking toward us, "Is this your Mom and Dad?" The soon-to-be Mr. Olympia smiled slowly and said, "Kinda."[h=2]THE EARLY DAYS[/h]Phillip Jerrod Heath was born in Seattle, Washington, on December 18, 1979. How neat is it that the baby later to be called "The Gift" was delivered a week before Christmas? His father left home while Phil was just a toddler and he was brought up by his mother, Rosella Braxton and later her second husband, Jerry Dorsey III. Believe me, they are an adorable couple. The young Heath grew up in Rainier Beach, which is in the south-eastern corner of Seattle. It was and still is a tough area with gang altercations common, but Rosella made sure her boy never stepped out of line. She had him attend piano lessons and today he is an accomplished classical pianist. Of living in those mean Seattle streets Heath says, "Bad stuff happened, but I never knew how bad it was until I left."
As a teenager he was naturally quite muscular, and the future Mr. Olympia was a star on the Rainier Beach High School basketball team, leading them to a state championship. Despite being on the short side, 5'9", for his sport, his coach Mike Bethea recalls how he taught Phil to win— and how despite being undersized, the youngster defied the odds with a great work ethic and iron-willed determination. Rosella's boy worked hard on and off the court and earned a scholarship to the University of Denver, and played on their hoops team from 1998 through 2002. Following squad instructions he started lifting weights in 1998, but it was a real basic program: adding muscle was not yet on his agenda.
In 2002, the 21-year-old graduated with a business degree and was hired to manage the nutrition store at Bally Total Fitness in Denver. He went to the 2002 Colorado State Bodybuilding Championships in July to watch an acquaintance compete. Another bodybuilder noted the contours of Phil's muscular, 160-pound physique and suggested he compete. "You're not going to get me up there in a banana hammock," snapped back the basketball player.
Still, fresh from that exposure and free from basketball, he upped his weight training and went from 160 pounds to 185 pounds in a few months and attended the Rocky Mountain Championships in November 2002. Guest posing was Claude Groulx, who next year would win the Masters Olympia. Eying up the spectating Heath, Groulx asked him if he competed. Getting a "No," the pro suggested Heath should try it. (So Jay Cutler, Kai Greene, Branch Warren, Dennis Wolf and company ... now you know it's all Claude Groulx's fault.)
Emboldened by Groulx's encouragement, the formerly reluctant bodybuilder decided to enter the Northern Colorado Championships slated for April 2003. At 192 pounds, he won the Light-heavy and Overall titles. But probably the biggest win of that night was meeting guest-poser Jay Cutler, as from that initial encounter they forged a close— and what promises to be a lifelong—friendship. Two months later he met Jennie Laxson, whom he would marry on June 23, 2007— which entailed him gaining a stepson, Michael, who is now 18. Of Jennie, the 131 Mr. Olympia says, "She has been my number one supporter in my life in and out of bodybuilding. She is my best friend and with her selfless attitude has been with me throughout all of my trials. She is truly a gem."
Despite his genetic advantages, it still takes supreme determination to become a top pro and then take it up to the ultimate notch of being Mr. Olympia. As celebrated French novelist Emile Zola said, "The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work." (Who knew Emile was a musclehead?) Heath believes, "knows," that his sense of discipline and ability to make sacrifices came from his mother and stepfather. Plus they gave him a stability many of his peers didn't have growing up. For honing his competitive instincts and cultivating the will-to-win mindset, he credits "Coach Bethea."
In the years since they first met, Jay Cutler and Phil Heath developed a famous mentor/pupil relationship. Which was more than gracious on Cutler's part because he told me back in 2006, "I know this kid will beat me and be unbeatable one day." Well, history now records that day came on September 17, 2011.[h=2]HEATH TAKES HEAT[/h]"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled, "This is a bodybuilding contest, not some competition for best-behaved spectator." The target of my ire was Phil Heath. The date: May 13, 2006. The place: backstage at the Shawn Ray Pro/ Am Classic, just after the prejudging in which the aforementioned Heath was making his pro debut in his adopted hometown of Denver. I continued the onslaught, "Get it into your head, you belong on that friggin' stage. You're a pro— don't let these guys shuffle in front of you. Don't be so friggin'nice."
I was soon joined by Hany Rambod, the debutante's contest prep advisor, who gave his charge the same "Get in there and mix it" instruction. Heath's entry into the pro ranks had been hotly anticipated ever since he had clinched his right to flex alongside Coleman, Cutler & Co. by winning the Heavyweight and Overall titles at the 2005 NPC USA Championships 10 months earlier. He became a pro after less than three years of training, and was looked upon as such a genetic phenom that his self-given nickname "The Gift" was deemed entirely appropriate. But at the Denver prejudging he seemed to be handing out gifts of his own, appearing a little reserved in waiting for others to take the lead, and not showcasing and projecting his spectacular physique in the way it deserved. Fact is he had let Darrem Charles (eventual runner-up) boss proceedings. A few days previously, the rookie pro had said, "A year ago I was a fan reading about these guys, now I'm competing against them." Onstage it seemed he maybe still had that thought too much in mind. The collective message from Rambod and I was, "Forget about competing against them, you're here to beat them."
From that point on he was more aggressive, and duly took top spot as he did a week later at the New York Pro. By winning his first two pro contests he further cemented his rep among many as maybe the next big thing. But in May 2006, others— citing his lack of clavicle width, lagging chest thickness, and 215-pound bodyweight in an age of 260 pounders— doubted he would ever claim a Sandow. Five years and five months later, it was all so different.[h=2]FULPHILMENT[/h]Fast-forward those five years and five months. The scene is the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. The date is Friday, September 16, 2011. The time is 10:22 p.m. The 6,000 or so bodybuilding souls who have assembled for the Mr. Olympia prejudging are about to see the future.
In over 40 years of following bodybuilding I have had two spine-tingling, hairs-standing-up-on-the-back-of-your-neck, goose bumps, never-to-be-forgotten, WTF (you getting the message?) moments. The initial occasion was seeing Sergio Oliva in person for the first time at the 1971 Mr. Universe in London. I'd seen stacks of photos of the three-time Mr. Olympia, but in the flesh, with his small bones and massive muscles, he just blew my mind and made me jump back in my seat. The second was July 1993 at the Temple Gym, Birmingham, England, when I witnessed Dorian Yates posing for those famous besocked and untanned shots, seven weeks before taking his second Olympia. Forget all those great Olympia-winning nights, that was the best Yates I've ever seen. He could have walked on the Olympia stage wearing socks and no tan and won the Sandow. Now 18 years later, I was about to get my third "I was there the day..." unforgettable experience.
On that September night, out of the darkness in the middle of the rear of the stage, Phil Heath emerges. With an angry look, fists clenched, he stomps (no word better fits his approach) out to complete his mandatories. This was our first look at him since 2010. The collective sharp intake of breath from the audience is so intense, I expect oxygen masks to fall from the ceiling. I look at this figure getting ever closer and wonder if in fact we are viewing some kind of computer-generated imagery (CGI). Is James "Avatar" Cameron in the house? Quite simply, Heath doesn't seem real. He's like a walking cartoon. We had long considered his muscle fiber composition, rounded muscle bellies and insertions as being indeed a unique gift— he has muscle in places others don't have places.
But tonight, tonight my friends, he is super full: the 248 pounds distributed on his 5'9" frame have an almost a 3-D effect, with his proportions being as balanced as a tightrope walker. His musculature is tighter than Shawn Ray's wallet and he has more detail than the federal budget. The 215-pounder, burdened with narrow shoulders and lack of pec density, is no more. That look is long gone— as yesterday as a Kim Kardashian marriage.
Seated along from me Flex Wheeler looks stunned, like he had just been informed that KFC was closing down. Often heralded as having the most aesthetic physique ever in our sport, it seems Flex is ready to hand that particular baton to the onstage protagonist as he murmurs, "Man, I've never seen anything like this."
Heath's physique is so other-worldly you suspect he arrived in a spacecraft— and he does give the impression of being on a mission as almost with a "You think you can take me?" scowl, his distinctive green eyes sear into the audience like dual laser beams. As he hits his first shot of the contest, one expects a Sandow to be quietly shoved onstage. Why in all honesty, wait for the next day's finals?
In the ongoing "Aesthetics vs. Freakiness" brouhaha, Phil Heath quashes all discussion. He is the hybrid: the first "Aesthetic Freak," unveiled at 10:22 p.m. on this never-to-be-forgotten night of September 16, 2011. We have just witnessed fulphilment. Or had we? The man himself says he will continue improving, and the smart money agrees that this is a Gift that, in Olympia winning terms, may very well keep on giving.
