Lee Priest, 50, from Australia has spent decades competing at international events and says his shortness has never got in the way of his career or love life.
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Not long ago, a fan insecure about his height asked Priest if he had ever felt this way, to which he replied no.
“The only time my height has been like, even on my mind, is when people ask me a question about it,” said the legendary bodybuilder.
Reassuring the fan, he said: “I never once thought ‘I wished I was taller’, not once, I’ve never been insecure about my height.”
The bodybuilding superstar seems to have been unwaveringly confident and not let any height negativity into his head.
“I’ve never thought about it, I’ve dated girlfriends who have been near 6ft, and I’m 5’5. So, that’s never bothered me.”
The star continued: “When I stood on stage near Coleman or anyone, Marcus Rule, Paul Delet like 6’1 or 6’2… I didn’t even think oh s*** he’s taller than me.”
His successes on the world stage have inspired people around the world to forget whatever barriers they believe stand in their way.
However, other titans in the game have disagreed that height isn’t an issue, including veteran Frank Zane who claimed shorter bodybuilders will always be at a disadvantage.
It seems that Priest has never let it get him down, particularly since he started blowing the competition away at 13 when he won his first major competition.
Throughout his teenage years, Priest continued to win many competitions, including the International Federation of BodyBuilding Mr. Australia Championship.
He became the youngest man ever to turn pro in the International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation at 20.
During the 1990s and 2000s, he competing alongside the masterful Jay Cutler and absolutely stunned the 4x Mr Olympia with his strength and physique.
In a 2018 interview, Culter admitted that Priest at only 20-years-old was the most mental bodybuilder he’d ever seen.
“He was f***ing insane big he was crazy big like I’d never seen anything like that,” he said.
Since then, Priest has been on a mission to prove all of his sceptics wrong and placed high in successive Mr Olympias and won serious titles competing in Mr Universe.
His final title was won in 2013 when he took home the NABBA Mr Universe.
Now in his 50s, he spends his time on podcasts and offering advice as well as recovering from a few injuries.
But fans hope that he might still make a comeback to the profession that made the 5ft5in star a serious force to be reckoned with.
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