What bodybuilders (other than Arnold) have made a successful comeback?

[BartPimpson]

I honestly can't think of many.

For the most part, they end up either like Reg Park (who placed well in a few NABBA shows but never quite recaptured his old glory), or outright embarassments like Lou Ferrigno (who returned to the stage as an aging, Palumboised version of his former self with small arms and crappy synthol calves).

So who's come back from retirement and continued to do well? I'm talking about serious retirements, not bodybuilders who miss a season.

[dimman]

I wouldn't classify it as a comeback, but Cutler did loose one year and came back the year after that. But he still competed.

Otherwise idk

[Ryan-Z]

Franco Columbu retired after his first O then came back and won another in 81. Don't care if people think he looked like ****, just answering thread lol.

[a-dog]

well Bob Paris was doing medicore in most of the pro shows he did when he first turned pro.

he came back in 88ish and looked incredible and took 3rd at the NOC and the Niagra falls pro show from that year. he did well in a totally stacked Olympia (10th but that olympia was incredible and he beat Phil Hill and Robby who had been the only 2 guys to beat him earlier that year). He faded a bit but I think that had more to do with him coming out in ironman than anything else. Robby Robinson made a pretty big comeback as well. Padilla looked great when he came back in the late 80's but he went to the WBF so he was done. Tony Freeman comes to mind but his comeback was on the national level not the pro level.

I can think of alot more failed comebacks than successful ones.....I can give you a ton of those.

[cbezz]

Will Harris, disappeared for i think two years... Then came back, made the O and did alright there. Not sure his other comp stats, but obviously he managed to qual for it.

umm...
Vince Taylor, retired for ages. Came back and won shows. Pretty fkn impressive if you ask me.

I think a lot of the time they have the odds stacked against them... Age is one of the main ones, but the lack of preparation time is the most important one.

[BartPimpson]

Will Harris, disappeared for i think two years... Then came back, made the O and did alright there. Not sure his other comp stats, but obviously he managed to qual for it.

umm...
Vince Taylor, retired for ages. Came back and won shows. Pretty fkn impressive if you ask me.

I think a lot of the time they have the odds stacked against them... Age is one of the main ones, but the lack of preparation time is the most important one.

Yeah, bodybuilding is something you need a really good run at to be successful. You can't just start training 2 months out. Even Arnold in 1980 was coming off a long period of training for Conan.

[flangmasterj]

Robby Robinson.

[flangmasterj]

"Palumboised version of his old self"?

Lou looked incredible when he made his comeback.

[Kiwi_]

I think he was meaning more how he looked on stage.

[TheNewestGuy]

He still wasn't that bad.

Placed 12th and 10th in 92 and 93.

[BlackNumero]

Did he charge the photographers at the Olympia for taking his picture?

[TheNewestGuy]

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9z...-olympia_sport

[BartPimpson]

"Palumboised version of his old self"?

Lou looked incredible when he made his comeback.

That's him in the 90s? Woah, impressed. I wish he could have brought that to the stage.

[a-dog]

That's him in the 90s? Woah, impressed. I wish he could have brought that to the stage.

for all the hoopla that surrounded his comeback it was disappointing at the time. in 92 he looked ok at best when compared to the top guys. He looked better in 93 but he had those weird calf implants that trew everything off.

I give him credit but I think he would have done better had he did the comeback about the time he did the movie hercules, they had him on the cover of M&F and he looked awesome at that time.

[dvsness]

Helle Nielsen won the 2011 FIBO Pro last weekend. Before that she hadn't competed for 7+ years. Helle won the 2003 Jan Tana Pro and placed 5th in the 2003 Olympia as the youngest female competitor ever.