Marko "Supermass" Savolainen (born 13 February 1973) is a Finnish professional heavy-weight
IFBB bodybuilder
Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuse ...
.
Career
Savolainen, who was born in
Oulu
Oulu ( , ; sv, Uleåborg ) is a city, municipality and a seaside resort of about 210,000 inhabitants in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in northern Finland and the fifth most populous in the country after ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bo ...
, retired in 2003, but made a comeback in 2006. First Savolainen was keen practitioner of
Taekwondo
''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast kicking techniques. ...
which he began in his early teens and was a multiple master of the sport before becoming interested in
bodybuilding
Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...
. He won Finnish junior officials in his youth in the sport. He was also promising wrestler in youth heavyweight division. Switching to bodybuilding at age of 16, he weighed 120
kg or 270
lb in on-season shape, and boasted a pumped 24 in. arm. In the off season he weighed 310 lbs. at a height of 5 ft. 9 in. So far in his professional career, his best placing was in the 1997 IFBB Grand Prix Finland, resulting in 7th place. Marko also made a training DVD/video, titled Supermass—Return. In 2007, as a result of
kidney failure
Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...
, Marko left bodybuilding and started training and competing in
kickboxing
Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, gen ...
. In late November 2008, doctors said they had found him a kidney donor. He started bodybuilding again, saying he would be a natural bodybuilder, which means no use of
anabolic steroid
Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related and have similar effects t ...
s.
Contest history
Records
* Bench press: 260 kg or 575 lb
* Incline Bench press: 8 x 240 kg or 530 lb
* Smith-Squat: 8 x 360 kg or 790 lb
* Biceps curl: 8 x 120 kg or 265 lb
References
Entry for Marko in the BodybuildingPro.com database
External links
BODY-magazineinterviews Marko (in Finnish)
Marko's blog
See also
* List of male professional bodybuilders
This is a list of male professional bodybuilders.
A
* Fouad Abiad
* Manohar Aich, "Pocket Hercules"
* Abdulhadi Al-Khayat
* Achim Albrecht
* Troy Alves
* Charles Atlas
* Art Atwood
* Dayo Audi
B
* Jim Badra
* William Bankier
* Mohamm ...
Finnish bodybuilders
Finnish male weightlifters
Finnish male taekwondo practitioners
Finnish male kickboxers
Finnish male sport wrestlers
Living people
1973 births
Sportspeople from Oulu
{{Finland-martialart-bio-stub