Nick Scott talks about the inevitability of Pro Wheelchair Bodybuilding growing in popularity in the sport.
Over the past decade, Pro Wheelchair Bodybuilding has seen a large amount of exposure and growth. It’s made its way onto the main stage at the Arnold Classic and inclusion in the Mr. Olympia weekend. But the division still has a lot of improvements it can make – most important of which is further exposure and popularity. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Nick Scott explains how he plans to grow the Pro Wheelchair Bodybuilding division. And how it’s not a matter of “if” but “when.”
Nick Scott has put all of his passion and effort for bodybuilding into the Pro Wheelchair division. What started as a small selection of wheelchair athletes competing in occasional shows has become a full division represented at the Mr. Olympia. This allows for a clear path, like every other division, towards standing out as the best in the world of bodybuilding.
Of course, the division still has a long way to go – most specifically in expanding the number of active pro bodybuilders, getting an official woman’s division consistently active, and bringing in a bigger audience. Nick Scott knows all of these things. He’s actively still working on expanding the division.
Getting to the Mr. Olympia stage was not the end of his work. Instead, it’s the next big springboard to bring more eyeballs on the sport. This is both for fans and athletes. The more both of those components grow, the more monetary stability the division can have. This means better prize money, consistent sponsorships, and Pro Wheelchair bodybuilders that can drop their day job and become career athletes.
During our discussion with Nick Scott, we asked him if the division could grow more from where it’s at today. Scott confidently believes it’s not a matter of “if” but “when.” Scott already has a plan to bring the Pro Wheelchair division to the international Arnold Classic events. But the big hurdle is making it monetarily possible for the athletes to get to the events.
Flights and hotels are expensive, and a bigger division benefits from sponsorships that can offer to cover hotel and flight costs. That’s not quite the case for Pro Wheelchair Bodybuilding at the moment.
In fact, there was a time when even the prize money came straight from Nick Scott’s pocket. That’s how passionate he is about this division and what he’s willing to sacrifice to help it grow. He paid out of pocket for the division until it was able to get more stability on bigger stages. This allowed for more financial support in the industry. But again, this is only the beginning of Nick Scott’s plan.
You can watch Nick Scott go into detail about his vision for the future of Pro Wheelchair bodybuilding in our latest GI Exclusive interview segment above.
