Samir Bannout Returns !!

[Tim Wescott]

Samir Bannout Returns!

Tuesday, March 09, 2004

BREAKING NEWS!

1983 Mr. Olympia SAMIR BANNOUT has announced his return to the stage!
“The Lion of Lebanon” will compete this weekend at the San Francisco Pro Invitational. Event promoter Giorgio Tsoukalis has reported to Pro Muscle Online that Samir will join an athlete lineup that already includes:

01) Mohamad Anout
02) Gustavo Badell
03) Paul Baker
04) Samir Bannout
05) Bob Cicherillo
06) Chris Cormier
07) Kris Dim
08) Ahmad Haidar
09) David Henry
10) Jaroslav Horvath
11) Dexter Jackson
12) Johnnie Jackson
13) Ken Jones
14) Greg Kovacs
15) Christian Lobarede
16) Stan McCrary
17) Mustafa Mohammad
18) Ntuk Ntuk
19) Dragan Paunovic
20) Lee Priest
21) Craig Titus
22) Clifton Torres
23) Idrise Ward-El
24) Fabrizio Zittucro

[robertparis]

WHY?! He spent all of the 90's ruining his legacy as a Mr. Olympia! Why is he going to attempt a comeback in an era of huge, ultra-ripped guys that he'll never approach? His title means less and less - it's a shame.

[powerhouse7]

thats some huge competition to come back against. It will be interesting to see how he does.
-powerhouse

[Perseus]

I give Samir credit for returning and look forward to seeing how he fares. The competitive fire must still burn for the Lion of Lebanon, and he is obviously not intimidated by the impressive competition at the SF. I am looking forward to this.

John

[Tim Wescott]

Samir might not be a formidable opponent for some of these younger guy`s but I`d love to see him compete in good shape once again.

[Jeff Preston]

After this last weekend, just having someone on stage who actually knows how to pose will be a treat!

[Ken B.]

I like Samir as much as anyone but.......

If I wanted to be crude I'd say

he's writing checks with his mouth his body can't cash

He never was able to attain his winning form a second time when he was younger and I don't see him doing it now. I'm afraid what we will see is the ghost of a champ who's competitive drive far exceeds his competitve ability. That or he's gone and done something awful to his body (oil / implants / insulin / gh) to try to chase the guys on today (who would want to?)

I be happy to be wrong but I think Samir in open competition is going to be VERY embarrasing for him.