Samir Bannout is a retired former IFBB professional bodybuilder.
Biography
Known as "the Lion of Lebanon", Samir Bannout won the Mr. Olympia title in 1983. At that time, only six men had held this most prestigious title since the contest began in 1965. Many of them, obviously, held the title for several years, Bannout won it once, a distinction shared with Chris Dickerson, Dexter Jackson, Shawn Rhoden, and Brandon Curry. Samir has appeared on the covers of many fitness and bodybuilding publications, including Strength and Health, MuscleMag International, Muscle Digest, Flex, Muscle Training Illustrated, Muscle and Fitness, Muscle Up, IronMan and Muscular Development magazines. Samir Bannout first moved to Detroit, Michigan, in the United States. He competed at the amateur level and achieved IFBB pro status by winning his light-heavyweight class at the 1979 IFBB World Amateur Championships. By this time Samir had already relocated to Santa Monica, California. Bannout took 4th place at the 1982 Mr. Olympia contest and returned the following year to take home the title in 1983. The contest was held in Munich, Germany that year and the trophy awarded to him is called a "Sandow" for Eugen Sandow. Bannout weighed 196 lbs. for his win, the last Mr. Olympia to weigh under 200 lbs. His win ended the "aesthetics" era for the Mr. Olympia contest which started with Frank Zane winning in 1977 and reverted to emphasizing increased mass and size starting with Lee Haney winning in 1984. The extreme muscular definition that Bannout achieved in his lower back region helped to shape "Lebanon Cedar" when referring the shape made visible during a back pose on the competition stage. After placing 6th at the 1984 Olympia, the IFBB suspended him for three years as punishment for his participation at the World Championship competition of a rival federation, the WABBA. Samir Bannout did not get a top six placing another time at a Mr. Olympia contest despite competing at the event many more times. In 1990 he won his second IFBB pro show, the IFBB Pittsburgh Pro Invitational. His professional career lasted 17 years. Samir Bannout has been open about his past use of anabolic steroids: "I have to be quite truthful with you, I have used anabolics, I'm not going to have to deny it, because all the other Mr Olympia contenders, I feel that they are using it, and I only use it to reverse catabolic effect." Bannout openly criticizes the IFBB during the years he competed, in that he felt that he had been "robbed" of winning in other events and that there was significant political undertones to selection of winners at the Mr. Olympia. Today Samir Bannout lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife Randa and his three children Lea, Jesse, Sergio. He was inducted to the IFBB Hall of Fame in 2002. He was previously married to the sister of fellow IFBB professional Lee Labrada, Lourdes; they had two daughters.
