Ok. I am not going to use my name for obvious reasons, but let me say that the following information is reliable:

1. The WPO lost the Arnold because of the drug issue. This is true. However, there are ways around this which will probably come into play for the bodybuilding show, so this piece is obviously not the whole pie. Would you agree?

Well...

2. The second and just as big reason why the WPO lost out was because of the judging and the multi-ply suits! Yes, this is true. Lorimer has been wanting to get rid of the WPO for about 4 years now, and the drug issue gave him the "legitimate" reason to do so. However, once the organizers of the Arnold (Lorimer,Arnold himself, etc. who knows?) got wind of the gear and what it did for the lifters, the whole thing became a huge inside joke. This is true. They got wind of how much the gear does when guys could not squat to proper depth and could not touch benches because of the gear. They have actually been anonymously polling the average joe and jane that watches the powerlifting over the last several years and have found out that most of the people that watch the powerlifting actually think it to be a big joke once they learn about the suits!!! The suits have done more harm than good because now we are just regular guys that are dumb enough to put on all of these suits and "powerlift". They think that we are athletic rejects and throwbacks and most think that guys at their local gym are stronger. I am not kidding!

Now, for those that follow powerlifting...we know that the single-ply suits of today give a tremendous amount of support also, but it is also true that guys in those feds. rarely miss a squat because they could not hit depth. They miss like a normal person would miss. Therefore, it is more marketable to the masses. The same goes for the bench press. Guys in single ply feds usually miss at lockout like a normal gym-goer. Very few fail to even get the weight to their chest like in multi-ply feds. Again, it is more marketable.

If the truth be told, a raw organization would have got the contract to the Arnold a long time ago. However, none of them are that big (in terms of membership, etc.) and more importantly none of them were as interested nor as organized as the USAPL. Which leads me to the 3rd reason why the WPO lost the Arnold:

3. Organization and professionalism. Do I really need to explain this one? Suffice it to say that Lorimer considered dealing with Larry Maile and the USAPL a breath of fresh air after dealing with the WPO for years. You can say what you want about the USAPL, but facts are facts. They are the largest powerlifting organization in the USA in terms of members, and they can prove it. They also run it like a business and it shows. They are professional.

Now, many of you may not care, etc. However, being a pretty good powerlifter myself...I CARE. I suspect some of my brothers in the WPO and others that take this sport more seriously care as well.

You guys are going to be amazed at what happens now for the powerlifters of the USAPL. They are going to be exposed like never before and there are real chances now that they are going to be getting big sponsorships, putting the USAPL on T.V., etc. All of the things that an athlete wants.

Again, many of you will shrug and not care. However, many WPO guys are going to be envious of the USAPL lifters when they are on tv, commericals, magazine ads, etc. Envious because that could have been us and it could have been the WPO that was getting all of the spoils.

I hope that we learn from this and realize what is really needed for this sport to take off if we ever want it to get bigger than just a "click" hobby.

The drugs did play a big part, but the gear and the reputation/professionalism of the USAPL is what ultimately got them into the Arnold and onto bigger and better things. Yes, drugs exist in the USAPL. I know this also from reliable info. But they are smart about it. Remember that it is only bad if you get caught!

Believe what you want. This information is very reliable.