Mr. Olympia is the biggest and greatest title for competitive bodybuilders. The greatest bodybuilders showcase their incredible physique n the event. Once, the Open Class was though to be the face of the event, but eventually, the classic physique category is earning huge popularity in recent days. There is a huge difference in the payouts of both categories, in this article, we will discuss the facts.
Mr. Olympia was first held in 1965. It immediately becomes the most desired title in the sport. The title attracts more fans and media. The sport became so famous when Arnold Schwarzenegger won the seventh Mr. Olympia title back in the seventeenth century. the event became a trademark for athletes to display their bodies to the world and gain appreciation. Later, Ronnie Coleman took the event even higher, after winning it for the 8th time.
The event started earning global value from Arnold’s time and became massive in the 20th century. All sponsorships, and media value focused on the Mr. Olympia Title, making the event highly profitable. As a result, the organizers started to provide massive payouts to the winners. When the tournament started, the winner’s payout was $1000 in 1965, which increased to $100,000 in 1990. The prize money raised to $200,000 in 2009, and later from 2015, the winner was having $400,000 as a payout.
Classic Olympic on the other and started from 2016. The category was introduced to showcase aesthetic physic, mainly displaying the golden era of body building. From the established Mr. Olympia title, the Classic Physique winner earns a lot less. The payout was $50,000 in 2023. There are some factors behind this.
Firstly, each of the category are paid based on the market demand, And to sponsors and media, Mr. Olympia title holds much more significance than the Classic Physique category. Classic physique is a newer category, so it is operated by a little different economy. The long term presence of Mr. Olympia in the market has helped the category to earn more and pay the athletes more.
But, the Classic physique category is becoming more and more popular and thanks to the 5 times winner Chris Bumstead. This generation is more attracted to aesthetic physique, not bulky muscular Mr. Olympia Physique. As the public demand is rising, the Classic Physique category will get more media coverage, as well as sponsorship. So, in near future, we can expect the payouts for the category will be close to the Mr. Olympia’s Purse.