Chris Cormier announced on Pro Bodybuilding Weekly that he will be returning to the stage in August for a pair of contests, the Pro Bodybuilding Weekly Championships on August 9 and the Europa SuperShow on August 16.
Cormier, one of the most successful competitors in IFBB history and a likely future Hall of Famer, last competed at the 2007 Atlantic City Pro, placing sixth. A week before Atlantic City, Cormier placed fourth at the Montreal Pro. Those competitions marked an improbable return to the stage, as just a year earlier Cormier lost the ability to walk while hospitalized with a severe back injury. Cormier guest posed at the Pittsburgh Pro Figure Championships last weekend weighing 275 pounds and said he feels rejuvinated and ready to challenge for an Olympia qualification once again.
It's taken me lot of time to get comfortable with mu body again, but I finally felt like I was starting to hit poses right again," Cormier said. "I haven?t felt good since the injury. I felt like I competed way too soon, when I wasn't ready to show where my body was at. I felt really uncomfortable on stage never been uncomfortable on stage ever in my life. It has just been a chopping wood type of thing. I knew I wasn't done, I still have the fire inside of me."
Never one to mince words, Cormier says he will know when it is time to walk away. But he is convinced he still has a few good years left on the competitive circuit and enough left in the tank to close out his career on a winning note.
"This means everything," Cormier said. "I'm not going to do A, B and C and then miss the X, Y and Z. I gotta finish the alphabet type of thing. No I way can live with myself without doing that. I'm not that type of person. The passion I have, the things I've learned and experienced over the years ? I don't want to be Muhammad Ali, just getting punched on by these fools coming through. If I can?t be competitive with the top guys in the world, I'm not going to do it."
For more of what Cormier had to say, check out the replay on
Pro Bodybuilding Weekly - The Voice of Bodybuilding Radio.
CHRIS CORMIER IFBB CONTEST HISTORY
1994
Arnold Classic, 4th
Grand Prix France, 7th
Grand Prix Germany, 6th
Ironman Pro Invitational, 2nd
Mr. Olympia, 6th
1995
Grand Prix England, 5th
Grand Prix France, 5th
Grand Prix Germany, 4th
Grand Prix Russia, 5th
Grand Prix Spain, 4th
Grand Prix Ukraine, 4th
Night of Champions, 4th
Mr. Olympia, 6th
1996
Grand Prix Czech Republic, 8th
Grand Prix England, 8th
Grand Prix Germany, 7th
Grand Prix Russia, 8th
Grand Prix Spain, 8th
Grand Prix Switzerland, 8th
Mr. Olympia, 7th
1997
Canada Pro Cup, 3rd
Grand Prix Czech Republic, 2nd
Grand Prix England, 2nd
Grand Prix Finland, 2nd
Grand Prix Germany, 6th
Grand Prix Hungary, 8th
Grand Prix Russia, 4th
Grand Prix Spain, 6th
Night of Champions, Winner
Mr. Olympia, 8th
Toronto Pro Invitational, 3rd
1998
Arnold Classic, 5th
Grand Prix Finland, 4th
Grand Prix Germany, 4th
Mr. Olympia, 6th
1999
Arnold Classic, 3rd
Ironman Pro Invitational, 1st
Mr. Olympia, 3rd
2000
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Ironman Pro Invitational, 1st
2001
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Grand Prix Australia, 1st
Grand Prix England, 2nd
Grand Prix Hungary, 2nd
Grand Prix New Zealand, 2nd
Ironman Pro Invitational, 1st
Olympia - IFBB, 5th
San Francisco Pro Invitational, 1st
2002
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Grand Prix Australia, 1st
Grand Prix Austria, 1st
Grand Prix England, 1st
Grand Prix Holland, 2nd
Ironman Pro Invitational, 1st
Mr. Olympia, 3rd
San Francisco Pro Invitational, 2nd
GNC Show of Strength, 3rd
2003
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Grand Prix Australia, 1st
San Francisco Pro Invitational, 2nd
GNC Show of Strength, 7th
2004
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Grand Prix Australia - IFBB, 2nd
Grand Prix England, 2nd
Grand Prix Holland, 2nd
Mr. Olympia, 7th
2005
Arnold Classic, 2nd
Grand Prix Australia, 2nd
Mr. Olympia, 13th
San Francisco Pro Invitational, 1st
2007
Atlantic City Pro, 6th
Montreal Pro, 4th
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