Bodybuilding fans can mark their calendars to attend the 2023 Joe Weider’s Olympia Fitness and Performance Weekend. The world championship event of the IFBB Pro League is set to take place on the weekend of Nov. 2-5, 2023, at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL.
The IFBB Pro League schedule was released on their website, and it included the dates and city for the Olympia. Mr. Olympia’s website has changed its banners to reflect the dates and location. The Olympia features 11 pro divisions’ biggest contests of the year. The main event of the weekend is the Mr. Olympia (Men’s Open) show, which will be held for the 59th year in 2023.
2023 will be the third time in the last four years that the Olympia is held in Orlando.
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Mr. Olympia
After 20 years of the Olympia held in Las Vegas, NV, the Olympia was moved to Orlando in 2020 in correspondence with regulations to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. That year’s event was also held at the Orange County Convention Center, where the Olympia returns in 2023. The Olympia date in 2020 was moved from September, which is when it was traditionally held, to December. Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay scored his first of two consecutive Mr. Olympia titles that year.
The Olympia weekend remained in Orlando for 2021. It was at the same location, but the date was moved from December to October. Elssbiay repeated as champion. The Olympia then returned to Las Vegas, in the Zappos Theater in Planet Hollywood, on the weekend of Dec. 16-18, 2022. Hadi Choopan became the 17th Mr. Olympia by winning his first title. Elssbiay finished in fifth place.
Qualifying
In early January 2023, the IFBB Pro League announced that athletes that aren’t yet qualified for the Olympia will have to win a contest in order to compete on bodybuilding’s grandest stage. Past Olympia champions, 2022 Olympia winners, the top five in the 2022 Mr. Olympia contest, and the top three finishers in the other Olympia contests are qualified. Winners of the 2022 Bigman Weekend Pro are qualified for the Olympia.
In previous years, athletes could either win a pro contest or finish in the top three of the Olympia Qualification System. Officials at the 2022 Olympia reported that the event had over 400 qualified competitors across the five male and six female divisions — the most in Olympia history.
Featured Image: @hadi_choopan on Instagram
