Phillip "The Gift" Heath (born
December 18, 1979 in Seattle, Washington) is an American IFBB
professional bodybuilder and current Mr. Olympia. Phil Heath grew up in
Seattle, Washington, and attended Rainier Beach High School, where he
played shooting guard on the varsity basketball team. Heath attended the
University of Denver in Colorado on a full athletic scholarship.
While
at Denver, Heath double-majored in IT and Business Administration and
played shooting guard for Denver's Division I basketball team. Phil
Heath entered bodybuilding in 2002. In 2005 he won the overall title at
the NPC (National Physique Committee) USA Championships, earning the
right to compete as an IFBB Pro. He won his first two IFBB professional
events the following year: The Colorado Pro Championships and The New
York Pro Championship.
In 2007, Heath placed fifth at the Lourens Classic. Although he still qualified to compete in the 2007 Mr. Olympia contest, Heath, nevertheless, decided not to enter the contest, stating that he needed additional time to improve his form. Heath then won the 2008 Iron Man show and placed second to Dexter Jackson at the 2008 Arnold Classic. In his 2008 Mr. Olympia debut, Heath finished third, becoming the first novice to place in the top three since Flex Wheeler in 1993.
He
was a favorite for the 2009 Mr. Olympia title[citation needed], but a
stomach virus caused him to arrive 6 lbs lighter than planned on the
first day, and this resulted in his taking fifth place in the
competition. In 2010, he took second place at the Mr. Olympia contest
when Jay Cutler won his final title, but after improving the following
year Heath defeated Cutler and became Mr. Olympia for 2011. In both 2012
and this year's Mr Olympia, Heath successfully defended his Mr. Olympia
title against Kai Greene.
Heath
has been featured in many fitness and magazine articles, and has also
appeared on the cover of FLEX magazine. Heath resides in Arvada,
Colorado and trains at Armbrust Pro Gym in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Heath
has released four bodybuilding DVDs: "The Gift", "The Gift Unwrapped",
"Journey to the Olympia" and Becoming the Number 13. The latter three
films were directed by Jonathan McFarlane and released by Bodybranded
Films.
Article source: Wikipedia
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