Argentinian INBA PNBA competitor Matias Scopinaro voices that natural bodybuilding is the only real bodybuilding.
Natural bodybuilding gets a lot of heat from fans of bodybuilding leagues such as the IFBB Pro. Natural bodybuilding federations like the International Natural Bodybuilding Association (INBA)/Professional Natural Bodybuilding Association (PNBA) drug test athletes through the strictest drug testing standards – the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Therefore, drugs are prohibited in natural bodybuilding, so natural bodybuilders may not appear quite as impressive as enhanced physiques (bodybuilders using performance-enhancing drugs).
However, one natural bodybuilder competitor, Matias Scopinaro, has been open about his views on drug use in bodybuilding. Matias Scopinaro is a 3x Natural Olympia competitor and placed in the top 10 in the Men’s Classic Physique division at 2021 Natural Olympia.
He doesn’t understand why bodybuilders risk their lives for “plastic trophies.” In a recent Instagram post (translated here to English), Scopinaro said that the whole point of bodybuilding is to improve your physical conditioning, health, and vital energy. Scopinaro stated,
“That is real bodybuilding and the only way to achieve that is through natural bodybuilding.”
Scopinaro went on to say that drugs have distorted bodybuilding. He believes this is from the greed for wanting to gain mass at all costs. According to Scopinaro, in the last ten years, bodybuilders have begun using a drug (adipotide), which Scopinaro claims is believed to be one of the causes of recent bodybuilding deaths.
Scopinaro voiced:
“Who are the culprits? Show promoters? Those who run the IFBB today? The judges? I don’t know, but this has to stop, it’s getting worse and it’s going to get worse if you don’t realize that winning a plastic trophy isn’t going to restore your health.”
You can see Matias Scopinaro’s complete statement below:
View this post on Instagram
The Rise of the INBA PNBA
Denny Kakos founded the INBA PNBA after co-founding the American Bodybuilding Association (ABA) – a drug-free organization. ABA’s mission was to serve natural athletes and hold big title natural competitions and outstanding awards.
Kakos later created the PNBA to start holding professional competitions for natural bodybuilders that qualified to turn pro. Then, in 1994, the PNBA expanded to the INBA to unite natural bodybuilding worldwide.
Although other natural bodybuilding leagues drug tests their athletes, the INBA PNBA uses WADA labs. And in the past, other natural bodybuilding leagues screened athletes that passed their test but later failed the testing in the INBA PNBA. WADA-compliant labs detect drugs that other methods don’t trace.
Kakos makes fair competition a priority and hopes the INBA PNBA is one day recognized as a sport by the Olympics.
Men’s Classic Physique
The Men’s Classic Physique division is the class Matias Scopinaro competes in at Natural Olympia. Brandon Lirio also competes in this division and won the silver medal at the 2021 Natural Olympia. In the Men’s Classic Physique class, competitors are judged on overall muscularity and size, muscle shape and fullness, and muscle density.
In addition, athletes in this division must have good muscle group separation while maintaining muscular fullness. And each Men’s Classic Physique athlete will perform “Classic Physique” poses instructed by the head judge.
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