When Brandon Curry won the 2019 Mr. Olympia, becoming only the 15th man to hold the title of Mr. O, it’s safe to say fans who have been following his career from the beginning weren’t too surprised. It took years of dedication and plenty of sacrifices—he once spent 11 months training in Kuwait, away from his wife, Brandy, and their children—for Curry to achieve the bodybuilding world’s most prestigious victory.
Now that he’s won the Olympia, Curry is qualified to compete in the competition every year until, well, forever (a perk that the legendary Dexter Jackson was seemingly going to take advantage of before announcing that the 2020 Olympia will be his last show.)
Some may see that part of the prize as a chance to forget about representing the title until it’s time to prepare to defend it. Instead, Curry is using his newfound full off-season—something he’s never had in years past—to be there for his family, keep working toward his ideal physique for this year’s competition, and go out of his way to be present for fans around the world.
That’s because despite the time and effort it took for him to clinch the win, Curry carries his title with the mindset that it’s not just his, but it also belongs to the people who support him—and even the bodybuilding fans who don’t. No matter who you are or where you’re from, he’ll hand you his Sandow trophy and rattle off facts about the winners listed on the storied award.
“I know some of the bodybuilding history, speaking notes for the title holders, which are on the trophy, to just kind of give [people] some general background on the sport,” Curry told Muscle & Fitness. “Some of the people they can identify are doing things today. So it’s a way to communicate what our sport is, what we do and how significant it is.”
He drives the point home by doing everything he can to positively represent the title of Mr. Olympia, from attending charity events to speaking for youth sports teams, visiting high schools, and taking the time to talk to his fans on social media.
“I try to give back in those ways as much as I can because you know, I’m on a platform ,” Curry said. “I’m representing us, and at this point it’s a responsibility on me. I like to connect with the fans, any way I can.”
Curry has also caught the attention of Dan Solomon, the man in charge of the Olympia. “Brandon has been a model champion. He has traveled the world as Mr. Olympia, inspiring people of all ages to pursue their dreams. We are incredibly proud of the way Brandon is representing the sport of bodybuilding.”
With this year’s Olympia Weekend rapidly approaching, we spoke with Curry for his take on what it means to bring Mr. Olympia to the fans, his experience on the 2020 Olympia All-Star Tour, and his strategy for defending his title in 2020.
Earning a Sandow trophy is bodybuilding’s crown achievement, and it’s one that Curry lets his fans share with him. “We let them take pictures with it, hold it, feel how heavy it is, look at the names on the trophy,” he says. “It was just the coolest experience to share with these people, both people that are fans and not fans and people that are just meeting me for the first time. It’s always cool because it’s really an eye catcher—you can’t really ignore it.”
Curry is so set on sharing the Sandow, he lugged it around the world with him so fans could see and feel the tangible reward for his Olympia win. But once it was almost taken from him at the airport in Saudi Arabia, he stopped traveling with the trophy. When he does have it on hand, however, he makes it clear that it belongs to the fans.
“I encourage people to hold it, pick it up, they want to take pictures with it as well,” he says. “This is the magnitude of how much weight this is, you know. It’s one of those things I like to share.”
Whether in person or on his various social media channels, Curry is a big proponent of engaging with fans. Scroll through the comments on his posts, and you’ll find him answering questions and offering encouragement to those who admire him most.
“It’s definitely important, you know, when I can make time to do that,” he says. “And you know, of course we know social media nowadays is just the easiest way to [connect with fans]. So if I’m active, if I’m responsive, if I can get more people involved and interested and answering some questions and I’m all for it as long as time permits.”
Once the dust settled, Curry embarked on the 2020 Olympia All-Star Tour to meet fans and show them just what it’s like to become Mr. O. From his perspective, visiting gyms and interacting with fans is one of the many ways he can make a difference as Mr. Olympia.
“It’s been like overwhelming, but it’s been a real good energy experience,” Curry says. “I just kind of fill a need when I’m there to kind of help and make sure I share the things that I think can help them be successful or help them give them some motivation to pursue whatever their personal goals are, and not necessarily bodybuilding-oriented. So it’s an opportunity for me to kind of share my story in an intimate setting and kind of talk about my trials and talk about my triumphs as well.”
And while many would consider it a privilege to be around him, he feels lucky to be around them. “Just being able to go to these gyms where I would say the heart of bodybuilding is all over the world, I can’t really explain it. I just feel it’s a privilege for me to be welcomed into these places and being able to train and being able to share knowledge and being able to motivate these communities. It’s definitely a privilege for me.”
“It’s really the people that you don’t know that you impacted,” Curry says. “When they come up to you and share the impact that you’ve had over whatever decisions they made. People that have followed me since my BSN days and they tell me they’ve been a fan and they’re happy that I’ve done it. I mean, I’ve run into so many of those different people.
“I’m often shocked by the different types of fans, and the people that I wouldn’t think will be a fan, like if a small little lady or a girl comes up to me and is really excited and wants to get a shirt. That’s a fan that I wouldn’t necessarily relate too much to, but they’re still motivated by what I do. I think that’s probably one of the biggest surprises.”
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Chris Nicoll / M+F Magazine
On Goals for the 2020 Olympia
As the past few years have proven, you never know what will go down on the Olympia stage. From competitor changes to upsets, there’s never a dull moment. It’d be understandable for a first-time winner to feel more pressure than ever leading up to a title defense, but not Curry.
“For me, I feel like I’m in the same place, pressure-wise,” he says. “There’s chasing the win at Olympia and keeping it, but I think it’s a pretty similar scenario in my mind.”
And when it comes to hitting the stage at his best this year, Curry’s got some specific goals.
“The plan is to come in a lot more crisp for this Olympia. It’ll be easier for me being at this one show because typically, preparing for the Arnold really makes it harder to get where you want to be for the Olympia,” he says. “Being that I don’t have that on my plate this year, it’s definitely a benefit to me when it comes to peaking at the Olympia itself.
“So if all I have to do is focus on that, I think my body is going to be a lot fresher and more ready to cooperate. I’ll be in a focus having a full off-season. We’re able to work on bringing in the legs the way we want and bringing into condition the way we want, and it just makes me more dangerous coming into the show.”
