Universe Championships facts for kids

The Universe Championships are big yearly bodybuilding events. They are organized by a British group called the National Amateur Body-Builders' Association (NABBA).

At first, this competition was only for men and was called the Mr. Universe contest. But in 1968, women's competitions were added too! Some very famous winners include Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was a bodybuilder, actor, and even a governor. Another famous winner was Steve Reeves (1926–2000), who was also a bodybuilder and actor.

What are the Universe Championships?

The Universe Championships have different categories for athletes to compete in. Here are the main ones:

A Look Back: History of the Championships

John Grimek, the first Mr. Universe, posing for the magazine that helped start the event.

How it All Began: The First Contest

The very first Mr. Universe contest happened in London in 1948. It was organized by David Johnston, who was the editor of a magazine called "Strength and Health." The event was held at the same time as the Olympic Games. Many bodybuilders and people came to watch.

John Grimek won the first title. Steve Reeves came in second place. Steve Reeves later said that he thought John Grimek was "the greatest bodybuilder who ever lived!"

The Birth of NABBA

There was no contest in 1949. But behind the scenes, people from the "Strength and Health League" were busy. They were setting up the National Amateur Body-Builders' Association, or NABBA.

NABBA announced that they would host the Mr. Universe contest again in 1950. That year, Steve Reeves came back to England and won the championship. Even though Steve Reeves was the first NABBA Mr. Universe, the picture used for the NABBA logo is actually of John Grimek. His image is still used today as the symbol for the association.

In 1955, Oscar Heidenstam became the NABBA Secretary. He had been a very successful competitor himself. He quickly became a main leader for NABBA and the Mr. Universe contest. Around this time, local shows were also started in the UK to get more people involved.

Famous Champions and New Classes

In 1957, Arthur Robin from Guadeloupe-France became the first Black man to win the Mr. Universe title.

Many famous bodybuilders helped the Mr. Universe contest become popular. These included John Grimek, Steve Reeves, Reg Park, and Bill Pearl. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Mr. Universe contest helped launch the careers of many other famous bodybuilders. Some of these were Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, and Serge Nubret. These champions not only competed but also encouraged others in America and Europe to support the contest. Their stories still inspire many young bodybuilders today.

At first, the contest was only for amateur male bodybuilders. An amateur is someone who has not earned prize money in a professional event. A professional class was added in 1952. Today, NABBA International gives "Pro Cards" to the top male winners at the Universe Championships.

Between 2011 and 2013, there was no professional Mr. Universe class because fewer people were interested. But in 2013, Lee Priest returned to compete after seven years away. He won the amateur title. After his win, NABBA decided to bring back the professional division in 2014. Dave Titterton won the Professional Mr. Universe title that year.

Women and Junior Bodybuilders Join In

Women's bodybuilding classes were added in 1968. They were first called Ms. Physique. In 1986, they were divided into Ms. Physique and Ms. Figure. The Ms. Physique class was stopped in 2010 at the Universe Championships. However, there are now Miss Trained, Athletic, and Toned Figure categories for women.

In 1985, a Junior Mr. Universe class was added for men under 21 years old. This class was stopped for a while but came back in 2000.

In 1991, a Masters Over 40 class was introduced for older bodybuilders. Graeme Lancefield from Australia was the first winner. In 2002, a Masters Over 50 class was added. Ian Lawrence from Scotland won this new award.

The NABBA Universe Championships are run by NABBA UK and its chairman, Jim Charles.

It's important to know that another group, the IFBB, used to have a competition called "IFBB Mr. Universe." But they changed its name in 1976 to the World Amateur Bodybuilding Championships.

How Bodybuilders are Judged

Bodybuilders are judged on several things. Judges look at how balanced their bodies are (symmetry). They also check the proportions of their muscles and how big and clear each muscle group is. Most of the judging happens during the day, before the evening show. This part is called "pre-judging."

Past Winners: Champions Through the Years

Year	Mr. Universe (Professionals)	Mr. Universe (Amateur)	Miss Physique	Miss Trained Figure	Miss Toned Figure	Miss Athletic Figure
1948		John Grimek
1950	Monotosh Roy	Steve Reeves
1951	Manohar Aich	Reg Park
1952	Juan Ferrero	Mohammed Nasr
1953	Arnold Dyson	Bill Pearl
1954	Jim Park	Enrico Thomas
1955	Leo Robert	Mickey Hargitay
1956	Jack Delinger	Ray Schaeffer
1957	Arthur Robin	John Lees
1958	Reg Park	Earl Clark
1959	Bruce Randall	Len Sell
1960	Paul Wynter	Henry Downs
1961	Bill Pearl	Ray Routledge
1962	Len Sell	Joe Abbenda
1963	Abd El Hamid El Gindi	Tom Sansome
1964	Abd El Hamid El Gindi	John Hewlett
1965	Reg Park	Elmo Santiago
1966	Paul Wynter	Chester Yorton		Elizabeth Lamb
1967	Bill Pearl	Arnold Schwarzenegger		Kathleen Winstanley
1968	Arnold Schwarzenegger	Dennis Tinerino		Silvia Hibbert
1969	Arnold Schwarzenegger	Boyer Coe		Jean Galston
1970	Arnold Schwarzenegger	Frank Zane		Christine Zane
1971	Bill Pearl	Ken Waller		Linda Thomas
1972	Frank Zane	Elias Petsas		Christine Charles
1973	Boyer Coe	Chris Dickerson		Jean Galston
1974	Chris Dickerson	Roy Duval		Linda Cheesman
1975	Steve Michalik	Ian Lawrence		Linda Cheesman
1976	Serge Nubret	Shigeru Sugita		Cindy Breakspear
1977	Tony Emmot	Bertil Fox		Bridget Gibbons
1978	Bertil Fox	Dave Johns		Sandra Kong
1979	Bertil Fox	Ahmet Enünlü		Karen Griffiths
1980	Tony Pearson	Bill Richardson		Erika Mes
1981	Robby Robinson	John Brown		Jocelyn Pigeonneau
1982	Edward Kawak	John Brown		Jocelyn Pigeonneau
1983	Edward Kawak	Jeff King		Mary Scott
1984	Edward Kawak	Brian Buchanan		Mary Scott
1985	Edward Kawak	Tim Belknap		Jocelyn Pigeonneau
1986	Lance Dreher	Charles Clairmonte	Monika Steiner	Heidi Thomas
1987	Olev Annus	Basil Francis	Connie McClosky	Sonia Walker
1988	Charles Clairmonte	Victor Terra	Lisa Campbell	Sarah Staunton
1989	Charles Clairmonte	Matt Dufresne	Tatjana Scholl	Tracey Citrone
1990	Charles Clairmonte	Peter Reid	Monika Debatin	Browny OBrien
1991	Victor Terra	Reiner Gorbracht	Ute Geisel	Helen Maderson
1992	Peter Reid	Mustafa Mohammad	Bernadette Price	Anita Lawrence
1993	Edward Kawak	Dennis Francis	Deborah Compton	Ali Slater
1994	John Terilli	Nick van Beeck	Kathy Butler-Corish	Susana Perez
1995	Brian Buchanan	Grant Clemesha	Kathy Butler-Corish	Susana Perez
1996	Shaun Davis	Chris Hoshi	Billie Kaine	Pina Theodoridis
1997	Eddy Ellwood	Grant Thomas	Patricia Veldmann	Jasraj Bhadana Gujjar
1998	Eddy Ellwood	Gary Lister	Julia Abel	Pina Theodoridis
1999	Eddy Ellwood	Franco Malè	Taylor Young	Giovanna Rosa
2000	Eddy Ellwood	Sergei Ogorodnikov	Olga Tikhonova	Giovanna Rosa
2001	Eddy Ellwood	Steffen Müller	Anja Timmer	Giovanna Rosa
2002	Gary Lister	Costantino Galeazzo	Claudia Bianchi	Giovanna Rosa
2003	Gary Lister	Hassan Al Saka	Olga Tikhonova	Cherie Loomes
2004	Hassan Al Saka	Steve Sinton	Sandra Waterschoot	Lorena Bucci
2005	Sergei Ogorodnikov	Charles Mario	Desiree Dumpel	Andrea Carvalho
2006	Steve Sinton	Tomáš Bureš	Olga Tikhonova	Silvia Finocchi Ferreira
2007	Orazio Salvatori	Orazio Salvatori	Alina Popa	Andrea Carvalho
2008	Alessandro Savi	Lionel Beyeke	Vivian Hijikema	Maria Stukova
2009	Alexey Netesanov	Martin Kasal	Larissa Cunha	Dora Rodrigues
2010	Charles Mario	Miha Zupan	Valentyna Yefyemchuk	Flora Conte
2011	Sangram Chougule	Paulo Lima Santos		Maria Kuzmina	Maria Tereza Mendonca Pintya
2012	Sangram Chougule	Andy Polhill		Maria Kuzmina	Nicola Bentham
2013	Lepomir Bakić	Lee Priest		Flora Conte	Nicola Bentham
2014	Dave Titterton	Barny Du Plessis		Dora Rodrigues	Charlotte MacGill
2015	Tony Mount	Paul Stewart		Daria Diossi	Alex Larkin
2016	Tony Mount	Fabian Mayr		Emma Gormley	Amy Wilson
2017	Shaun Joseph-Tavernier	Lee Seung Chul		Gemma Lancaster	Natasha Novak	Lee Tae Hee
2018	Lee Seung Chul	Loughlin Gannon		Jekaterina Übelacker	Natalia Jaremko	Christine Scerri
2019	Josh Maley	Jack Brooker		Ilaria Armeni	Gabriela Dezan	Ana Carla Ceron
2020	These editions of the competition were not held due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021
2022	Petr Kovář	Daniel Glamm		Emma Thackray	Lisa Capper	Tracy Hutchinson
2023	Petr Kovář	Klaus Drescher		Elodie Moore	Kelsey Yung	Aurélie Moreau

See also

In Spanish: NABBA Mr. Universo para niños