The Universe Championships are annual worldwide bodybuilding events organised by the British National Amateur Body-Builders' Association (NABBA). Originally promoted as the Mr. Universe contest, the event was expanded to include women's classes in 1968. Notable previous winners include bodybuilder, actor, and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger, and bodybuilder and actor Steve Reeves (1926–2000).
John Grimek, the first Mr. Universe, posing for the magazine organizing the event
Bodybuilding is the practice of progressive resistance exercise to build, control, and develop one's muscles via hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. It is primarily undertaken for aesthetic purposes over functional ones, distinguishing it from similar activities such as powerlifting and calisthenics.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, one of the most notable figures in bodybuilding, 1974
A bodybuilder performs the incline dumbbell press.
The Farnese Hercules, 216 AD
Eugen Sandow, often referred to as the "Father of Modern Bodybuilding"