Franco Columbu (August 7, 1941, Ollolai, Sardinia) is an Italian actor and bodybuilder.
Starting out his athletic career as a boxer, Columbu progressed into the sport of powerlifting and later bodybuilding, winning the title of Mr. Olympia in 1976 and 1981. At one time he was considered to be one of the world's strongest men and held a number of powerlifting and weightlifting world records. At 5 feet and 5 inches in height, Columbu is shorter than most of his bodybuilding competitors, however that has not prevented him from achieving widespread success.
Franco Columbu is also famous for being a long time friend of Arnold Schwarzenegger, | whom he met in Munich in 1965 and competed against in several international-level bodybuilding competitions. For the Mr. Olympia competitions however, he competed in the under 200 lb (90.7 kg) category, whereas Schwarzenegger was in the over 200 lb category. The final champion was determined by a pose down between the two class winners. The IFBB has since abandoned weight classes.
In addition to his athletic accomplishments, Columbu has also made intermittent minor forays into acting. Appearing alongside Arnold in Pumping Iron, he has also appeared in cameo roles in Conan the Barbarian, The Terminator, The Running Man and starred in his own films, notably, Berretta's Island.
He holds doctorates in chiropractic and nutrition. |
