Lee Priest spoke about the recent criticism surrounding Nick Walker following the Olympia.
Lee Priest knows a thing or two about competing on stage and what it takes. Recently, he defended Nick Walker following criticisms from the bodybuilding world about his decision to withdraw from the 2024 Olympia.
“Everyone is coming down on Nick. I think what it is because Nick was so open and always put up these progress pictures, training pictures, people are fickle.”
Walker missed the 2023 Olympia after suffering a hamstring injury. This kept him out of the gym ahead of the competition and forced him to pull out of the show. Walker quickly returned to training and had his sights set on this year’s Olympia.
Walker returned to win the 2024 New York Pro but received criticism for his performance. Many believed he would not bring his best package to the Olympia but Walker initially welcomed challenges. Walker has been open with his fans about his mindset when it comes to competing but also about sharing physique updates. Priest believes this is a reason fans expect so much.
“Once they see so much. They start ‘he looks good but oh what about this now, what about that on him?’ They start getting nitpicky. To me, if I was Nick, I’d just train covered up, show my forearms and calves.”
Lee Priest Defends Nick Walker
Lee Priest believes that Nick Walker is getting unwarranted criticism following his decision. This is something he knows plenty about and shared his own personal experiences.
“I went on the boards, just wanted to let my fans know I’m not going to be doing the Olympia but I’ll be at the expo to meet you all. The amount of hate I got…I’m like ‘oh f*ck. I said to Kathy, I’m going to have to do it. The fans are upset.”
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Following this performance, Priest received harsh comments from fans despite them wanting him to take the stage.
“I did it. Next day on boards, ‘how could you go on stage looking like that? You like us down.’”
Lee Priest finished by saying that competitors must be all in to compete in competitions. If they are not, they should not take the stage.
“Listen, if you’re going to get ready for a show, you’ve got to be 100% in or not. Not 98%. If you want to go into a show, you got to be 100%.”
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