“It’s coming home,” Nigerian-born bodybuilder Samson Dauda wrote on Instagram after being crowned Mr. Olympia 2024 on Saturday, taking home the 24-karat gold plated trophy and a record first prize of $600,000.
The physique athlete, who represented the United Kingdom at the competition was finally crowned at the final event held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in the United States on Sunday after years of coming inches close to the top prize.
But there is more to Dauda than meets the eye. If you had told 21-year-old Dauda that he would be Mr. Olympia in 11 years, it would probably have been too good to be true. “The Nigerian Lion’s” rise to greatness came with patience, love, and consistency.
Growing up and Nigerian roots
Dauda was born on March 11, 1992, to Patrick and Helen Dauda in Lagos, Nigeria, where he lived before permanently relocating to the United Kingdom during his teenage years. “I see myself first and foremost as Nigerian,” Dauda said when asked if he considers himself Nigerian.
Nicknamed “The Nigerian Lion,” the bodybuilder has asserted that his experiences growing up were heavily influenced by British culture, yet he maintains a strong connection to his Nigerian heritage, making occasional visits to the country.
His family resides in the northern region of the country and belongs to the Hausa tribe. However, his family’s roots trace back to the East, with his father hailing from the Edo tribe and his mother belonging to the Igbo tribe. “I’m a mix of all three,” he said.
Rugby, a full-time job and a dream
In 2013, at 21, Dauda took his strength and physique to new lengths by playing Rugby. Training for the sport had helped Dauda build an admirable physique which made his rugby teammates and a gym owner, Chris Jones encourage him to take bodybuilding seriously. But it didn’t happen just yet.
Before entering the bodybuilding world full-time, Dauda worked at a construction site. “I used to work in construction, used to be a maintenance worker at a care home. Basically, I’ve always worked in construction, being a builder from carpentry to joinery since I got out of college,” Dauda revealed in past interviews.
“But it’s only recently, in the past two weeks since I was in Korea, that I’ve actually become a full-time bodybuilder for the first time.”
During his South Korea show in 2020, Dauda made a pivotal decision. He would quit his full-time job and focus entirely on bodybuilding.
Road to Mr. Olympia
After witnessing Phil Heath at the 2013 Mr. Olympia, Samson Dauda shifted his focus to competitive bodybuilding and entered his first bodybuilding competition in April 2014. He earned his International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation (IFBB) Pro card in 2017 after winning the overall title at the IFBB Amateur Diamond Cup Rome, which marked a turning point in his bodybuilding career.
The following year, he made his professional debut at the EVLS Prague Showdown in 2018, finishing fifth. His first victory as an IFBB Pro athlete came in 2021 at the EVLS Prague Pro, which earned him a qualification for the 2022 Mr. Olympia competition.
Dauda’s debut didn’t go as planned as he finished sixth in the competition. He shrugged off the disappointment and went back in the gym. Fortune shone when Dauda entered the Arnold Classic US and took home the winning trophy.
With a newfound confidence, he returned to the Mr. Olympia competition in 2023 and placed third but Dauda learned from that experience as he returned in 2024, and against all odds, clinched the top prize.
Behind every successful man…
After parting ways with his former coach, Milos Sarcev, his wife, Marlena Gustowska took up the job of coaching Dauda. After his historic win, she became the first female to coach a Mr. Olympia winner. Marlena, a former bodybuilder herself has drawn attention to the role of women coaches in a male-dominated coaching industry through the recent win. Dauda often credits his success to Marlena, emphasising her crucial role since the inception of his bodybuilding pursuits.
“[Marlena] has been training me right from day one when I first decided to bodybuild. She got me into bodybuilding and has been on my case since then,” Dauda said during a Q&A session in 2020. “She knows all my diet, cycles, and everything I’ve been on from day one. She’s watched over everything ensuring I put on weight rapidly year after year while maintaining my shape and size. The promise of a good coach, not genetics.”
Following his successful outing at Mr. Olympia 2024 taking home the 24-karat gold-plated trophy, Samson Dauda has been confirmed to compete at the Arnold Sports Festival in 2025.
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