Men’s Open bodybuilder Samson Dauda has had a competitive year in 2022, but he still faces an uphill battle to make the most of his upcoming debut at the 2022 Mr. Olympia. “The Nigerian Lion” is both figuratively and literally one of the biggest upcoming names in the sport — and an August 24 Instagram post proves it
“The Nigerian Lion” regularly shares updates leading up to the upcoming 2022 Mr. Olympia, noting it’s his goal to have a strong performance at the contest. His latest freakish physique appears to be a step in the right direction.
On August 24, 2022, Dauda shared a video on his Instagram where his upper-body and lower-body mass look colossal as he works through different poses. According to the bodybuilder, he weighs 330 pounds at the time of the clip.
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Per the caption of his Instagram post, 1989 Mr. Universe Milos Šarčev is Dauda’s coach. (Note: Šarčev also coaches Joe Mackey, another Men’s Open athlete, and Men’s Open Olympia contender Regan Grimes.) Dauda partly credited Šarčev for helping him reach his off-season training goal.
“Finally ending this off-season at 330 pounds, the exact number we hoped to hit but not for one minute did I really think I was really going to achieve it,” Dauda wrote. “But [Milos Šarčev] had no doubt.”
Dauda’s Rise
Dauda earned his International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) Pro League card in 2018. Ever since that point, the athlete has steadily improved performance-wise. According to NPC News Online, he came in 11th place at the 2018 Romania Muscle Fest Pro in his Pro League debut. The following year saw Dauda notch two top-10 performances in the 2019 Wings of Strength Pro (seventh) and the 2019 Vancouver Pro (eighth). (Note: Dauda has only ever competed in the Men’s Open category)
In 2022, Dauda is enjoying some of the best results of his career to date. The Nigerian athlete came in fourth place at the 2022 Arnold Classic and followed up with another fourth-place finish at the 2022 Boston Pro. Per the IFBB’s qualification standards for the 2022 Mr. Olympia, Dauda’s performance in the recent Arnold Classic earned him a whopping eight points in the standings. Dauda’s result in the Boston Pro garnered the athlete two points. Those results appeared to earn Dauda a berth in the 2022 Olympia — his debut at the contest.
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[Related: The Best Landmine Workouts for More Muscle and Better Conditioning]
Road to the Olympia
At the time of this article’s publication, Dauda appears to be deadset on making his debut at the Olympia this December a memorable one. After reaching his offseason goal weight-wise, the Nigerian competitor appears to be pushing himself and his strength to the limit with his appearance on bodybuilding’s grandest stage on the horizon.
The 2022 Mr. Olympia will take place on December 16-18 in Las Vegas, NV.
Featured image: @samson__dauda on Instagram