Roelly Winklaar does not have plans for a return but did not completely shut the door.
Bodybuilder Roelly Winklaar is not yet officially retired but has not taken the stage in two years. During a recent interview, Winklaar discussed the potential of a return to the bodybuilding stage. While he did not commit, he did not completely shut the door on the idea either.
[RELATED: Roelly Winklaar Talks Comeback: “I Don’t Want To Retire]
Winklaar was one of the biggest mass monsters during his peak on stage. He competed at the Olympia 10 times over the course of his career but was never able to grab the elusive Sandow Trophy. In 2018, Winklaar put on his best show and finished third to the late Shawn Rhoden and Phil Heath. In 2021, Winklaar stepped on stage for the last time during the 2021 Romania Muscle Fest Pro.
During his extended break, Winklaar has suffered different injuries that have kept him off stage. This includes a five-hour rotator cuff surgery on his left shoulder that put his bodybuilding career in jeopardy.
Roelly Winklaar Discusses Bodybuilding Return
Roelly Winklaar joined Dennis James on The Menace Podcast to discuss some of the recent happenings in bodybuilding. The topic of his own comeback came up and as of now, Winklaar is not retired and did not completely shut down the idea.
“I tell myself how I was last, if I’m not going do beat that, I’ll never go on stage. We bodybuilders, we are always hungry to go on stage. Everybody wants the challenge. Maybe someday if I feel so good, you never know.”
James went onto say how Winklaar looks like age does not apply to him given the fact that he looks younger than he is. He continued to discuss his physique and how he would fair on the Masters Olympia stage. Winklaar shutdown the idea of competing against the veterans.
“No, those guys are good, man.”
The Masters Olympia officially made its return in 2023. The event was held at the BT Arena in Cluj Napoca, Romaniawhere all 10 divisions in bodybuilding were present to compete. Kamal Elgargnihighlighted the event with a victory in Men’s Open. The event was not part of the IFBB Pro League schedule this year but will make its return in August 2025.
The 2025 Masters Olympia will take place on Aug. 9-10 in Tokyo. The qualification period will end on Aug. 3. While Winklaar would be a prime candidate, he shut down the thought.
Roelly Winklaar continues to train at a high level just in case he decides to return to the stage. When will this time be? We do not know if it ever will but the idea is not completely lost on Winklaar.
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