Harold Poole (December 25, 1943 – August 7, 2014) was an AAU, IFBB and WBBG professional bodybuilder.
Early life
Born in Louisville, Kentucky Poole's athleticism was apparent very early on. He was quarterback on his football team at Shortridge High School in Indianapolis, placed fourth in the state high school wrestling championships, ran 440 yards in 50 seconds and put the 12 pound shot 55 feet. His high school history teacher, Loren J. Comstock, was a bodybuilder who had won state championships himself, and helped organize a local bodybuilding gym.
When Poole was 14 years old, his father died. He began bodybuilding from a young age and worked both manual labor jobs and figure modeling at the Herron School of Art and Design. As a teen, he had been too poor to afford exercise equipment or a gym membership, and he started his bodybuilding journey by improvising workouts with his brother. By age 18, he had already reached 200 lbs.
Career In 1960, Poole entered the AAU Mr. America and, at the age of 16, took 18th place. His final AAU teen opportunity came in June 1963, where he won most muscular, but was the runner-up to Vern Weaver. Three months later, Poole switched to the IFBB and, at age 19, he won the Mr. Universe. In 1964, he became the first African-American to be named IFBB Mr. America. Starting in 1965, Poole became the only man to compete in the first three Mr. Olympia contests finishing runner-up to Larry Scott in the first two Olympias. He is the youngest ever Mr. Olympia competitor; he was only 21 when he competed in the 1965 Mr. Olympia. He is noted for first popularizing the most muscular pose.
Harold was an active businessman operating a gym and discothèque. He was also a bodyguard for fashion model Twiggy, travelling across North & South America as well as the UK with her.
Legacy and death He retired from bodybuilding competition following the 1982 IFBB Night Of Champions, where he placed outside the top 10. He lived in Florida, where he continued to train with weights and practice martial arts until the end of 2010, when he moved to New York City. He was inducted to the IFBB Hall of Fame in 2004 and the WBBG Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2008, Poole was voted the Greatest Teenage Bodybuilder of All-Time.
Harold Poole died in New York City on August 7, 2014.Harold Poole: 1943-2014 A Legend Passes
Competition and award history
1960
Mr America - AAU, 18th Mr Mid-America - AAU, Most Muscular, 2nd
1961
Mr. Indiana, 1st Mr America - AAU, 4th Junior Mr America - AAU, Overall Winner
1962
Mr America - AAU, Most Muscular, 1st Mr America - AAU, 2nd Mr North America - AAU, Winner
1963
Mr America - AAU, Most Muscular, 1st Mr America - AAU, 2nd Teen Mr America - AAU, 2nd Universe - IFBB, Tall, 1st Universe - IFBB, Overall Winner
1964
Mr America - IFBB, Tall, 1st Mr America - IFBB, Overall Winner
1965
Mr. Olympia - IFBB, 2nd 1966
Mr. Olympia - IFBB, 2nd
1967
Pro Mr America - WBBG, Winner Mr. Olympia - IFBB, 2nd
1968
Pro Mr America - WBBG, Winner
1971
Mr USA - IFBB, Tall, 1st
1972
Mr World - IFBB, Tall, 3rd
1980
Night of Champions - IFBB, 12th
1981
Grand Prix California - IFBB, 7th Grand Prix New England - IFBB, 9th Night of Champions - IFBB, 6th Canada Pro Cup - IFBB, 8th
1982
World Pro Championships - IFBB, 9th
2004
IFBB Hall of Fame
2007
WBBG Hall of Fame
See also List of male professional bodybuilders List of female professional bodybuilders
References
Sources Comstock, Loren. (August, 1962). "Introducing Harold Poole". Strength & Health
External links Harold Poole Official Website (Archived)