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The AAU,
IFBB and NPC
In 1939,
the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) introduced the United States to competitive
bodybuilding with an event titled “America’s Best Built Man”. The following
year, the event name was changed to the “Mr. America” competition, which
remains the top level of bodybuilding recognition in the AAU.
In 1946,
Canadian brothers Ben and Joe Weider launched the International Federation
of Body Builders (IFBB) out of concern that the AAU was switching its
emphasis to Olympic type sports. The Weider’s felt that an organization
which focused specifically on physique athletes was needed to both protect
and promote the integrity of the sport. Ben Weider was already a promoter
and Joe Weider had a magazine publishing business. The Weider’s used their
magazine empire to promote “The Weider Philosophy” of training and fitness.
In 1949, the IFBB held its own Mr. America contest which caused a protest on
the part of it’s now rival organization the AAU. As a result, the AAU banned
anyone from competing in their sanctioned events if they had previously
competed for the IFBB. These two sanctioning bodies of competitive physique
events remained in contention until 1965 when the IFBB launched the “Mr.
Olympia” competition. The Olympia quickly became the dominant professional
bodybuilding event as it drew top level athletes away from other
organizations, including the Mr. America competition of the AAU.
Riding on the
momentum of the Mr. Olympia competition, the IFBB quickly grew to become the
seventh largest amateur sports federation, and the largest professional
bodybuilding federation in the world. Athletes who rose through the ranks of
the IFBB to become contenders for the Mr. Olympia title became the featured
celebrities in Weider’s magazine “Muscle & Fitness”. While the monetary
rewards of winning a professional bodybuilding title would be considered
meager by most standards, endorsements can become very lucrative.
As if to
back a winning horse, a third association known as the National Physique
Committee (NPC), severed all ties with the AAU to become an affiliate of the
IFBB. As such, the only route to an IFBB pro card is through the NPC. “The
IFBB recognizes only one amateur physique federation per country, and in the
United States, the NPC is the amateur arm of the IFBB. All bodybuilders -
must win a qualifying NPC show before they can become IFBB professionals" (www.npcnewsonline.com).
The NPC is
unquestionably the largest amateur physique organization in the world. The
NPC website brags of more than 20,000 members and between 800 to 1000 NPC
sanctioned events held annually. The NPC also claims to be serious about the
use of performance enhancing drugs and boast of drug testing competitions.
Regarding the drug issue, current NPC President Jim Manion states on the NPC
website, “We all want drugs to be eliminated from sports, and that means all
sports," (www.npcnewsonline.com).
Adding further to the NPC stance on the drug issue, Manion further boast "In
the past three years, the NPC has produced steroid tested shows, and this
year, we'll promote nearly 150 of them”.
The above
information was taken from the same page of the NPC website and has not been
misrepresented in any form. The NPC claims to be serious regarding the use
of anabolic steroids in the sport of bodybuilding stating that they want
drugs to be eliminated from all sports. The site further states that the NPC
sanctions between 800 to 1,000 competitive events annually. Finally however,
we see that of the nearly 1,000 competitions, less than 150 of them will be
drug tested events. This roughly equates to 15%. A rational person would
immediately question the integrity of a sanctioning organization which
claims to take a serious stance on the drug issue and yet offers drug test
at only 15% of its events.
The lack of
drug testing at the amateur level of bodybuilding in the NPC is further
compounded as one approaches the professional ranks. As stated further on
the NPC website, “For amateur bodybuilding in the USA, the NPC is the big
kahuna. If you want to make it as a pro and take advantage of all the
publicity and money making opportunities, you must come up through the NPC”.
Attempting to mask the severity of the drug problem and simultaneously gain
legitimacy for the sport of bodybuilding, the IFBB has instituted
International Olympic Committee (IOC) drug testing standards which are
publicized on its official web site, (www.ifbb.com). This has gained the
IFBB recognition by over 90 National Olympic Committees which is in keeping
with an IFBB goal of achieving the recognition of bodybuilding as an Olympic
event. While this is a laudable step in the right direction, a deeper look
into the IFBB web site reveals that these drug testing standards are only
applicable to amateur level events. This is referenced in a page titled
“More about the IFBB” and is thus stated, “Today, all IFBB international
amateur events, at the Area, Continental, and World levels, in both
bodybuilding and fitness, are drug tested”. No where in the document can
references to the Olympia, or other professional events be found. |
