Raquel Livia Elizondo McLish (born 21 June 1955) is an American

female bodybuilding Female bodybuilding is the female component of competitive bodybuilding. It began in the late 1970s, when women began to take part in bodybuilding competitions.

champion, actress, and author.Hispanic role in America

Early life and education

McLish was born in 1955 as Raquel Livia Elizondo in

Harlingen, Texas Harlingen ( ) is a city in Cameron County, Texas, Cameron County in the central region of the Rio Grande Valley (Texas), Rio Grande Valley of the southern part of the U.S. state of Texas, about from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The city co ...

. She was the second-youngest daughter of father Rafael, who was of Mexican ancestry, and mother Raquel Elizondo. She attended

Harlingen High School Harlingen High School is a public high school located in Harlingen, Texas, United States. It is part of the Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District and was the first of five HCISD high schools established. HHS was the sole high schoo ...

, where she was a cheerleader and twice-named Cardinal’s Football Sweetheart. She graduated in 1973. In 1978, she graduated from the Pan American University with a degree in physiology and health and nutrition.Rachel McLish Biography
/ref>Rachel McLish: Championing Strength and Grace in the World of Bodybuilding
/ref>

Bodybuilding career

Amateur

While attending college, McLish worked at a health club in

McAllen, Texas McAllen is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Hidalgo County. It is located at the southern tip of the state in the Rio Grande Valley, on the Mexican border. The city limits extend south to the Rio Grande, acros ...

. When she graduated from college, she and the health club manager formed a partnership and founded the Sport Palace Association in Harlingen. With the success of the Sport Palace Association, she opened two more facilities in Corpus Christi and Brownsville in 1980. She was inspired to compete in bodybuilding thanks to

Lisa Lyon Lisa Robin Lyon (May 13, 1953 – September 8, 2023) was an American female bodybuilder and photo model who is regarded as one of female bodybuilding's pioneers. Biography Born in Los Angeles, California, on May 13, 1953, Lyon studied art at th ...

and the club manager, Javier Gutierrez, who would show her magazines of female bodybuilders and encourage her to compete. She decided to compete because the opening of her new health club would coincide with a women's bodybuilding contest and bodybuilding would give her a platform to promote fitness to women.

Professional

McLish merits special historical significance in the sport of women’s bodybuilding. In 1980, she won the inaugural United States Championships, as well as beating Auby Paulick to win that year’s first-ever IFBB Ms. Olympia contest. After her 1980 Olympia win, no woman appeared on more magazine covers for the next five years. She got sponsored by Dynamics Health Equipment Manufacturing Corporation. These breakthrough victories, together with her visual appeal, brought women’s bodybuilding a further rush of media attention, which had been jump-started into action by Lisa Lyon. In a competitive career that spanned only four years, McLish proved a resilient force, never placing lower than third in any contest she entered. In 1981, she lost her Ms. Olympia title to

Kike Elomaa Ritva Tuulikki "Kike" Elomaa (née ''Sainio''; born 16 July 1955, in Lokalahti) is a Finnish professional female bodybuilding champion, pop singer, and member of the Finnish Parliament. Early life and education Elomaa was born in Lokalahti, ...

, because her physique was not as defined as usual. At the 1982 Ms. Olympia, she beat

Carla Dunlap Carla Dunlap-Kaan (born October 22, 1954) is a professional American female bodybuilding champion. Early life and education Dunlap was born in 1954, in Newark, New Jersey. She started competing in sports with gymnastics at age 10. She later co ...

to reclaim her title. Both Paulick and Dunlap brought more muscle than McLish in those respective contests, but neither could match McLish's overall appeal. Dunlap defeated her in the 1983 Caesar's World Cup contest. She finished a controversial second behind

Cory Everson Corinna "Cory" Everson (née Kneuer; born January 4, 1958) is an American female bodybuilding champion and actress. Everson won the Ms. Olympia contest six years in a row from 1984 to 1989. Education Corinna Kneuer was born in Racine, Wiscon ...

in the 1984 Ms. Olympia. As quoted by several magazines covering the event, some competitors expressed surprise at McLish's high placement because she didn't carry the muscle mass carried by many of the top women. Though Dunlap, who finished fifth, was the defending Ms. Olympia, the cover of the March 1985 Strength Training for Beauty's March 1985 cover declared "Cory dethrones Rachel."IFBB Rachel McLish

Retirement

After finishing second at the 1984 IFBB Ms. Olympia, McLish retired from competitive bodybuilding.

Contest history

* 1980

International Federation of Bodybuilders The International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation (IFBB) is an international professional sports governing body for bodybuilding and fitness. Headquartered in Las Rozas de Madrid, it oversees many of the sport's major international events, ...

(IFBB) Frank Zane Invitational – 2nd * 1980 Superior Physique Association (SPA) US Bodybuilding Championship – 1st * 1980 IFBB Professional Division (IFBB) Ms. Olympia – 1st * 1981 IFBB Ms. Olympia – 2nd * 1982 IFBB World Pro Championships – 1st * 1982 IFBB Ms. Olympia – 1st * 1983 IFBB Grand Prix Las Vegas - 3rd * 1984 IFBB Grand Prix Las Vegas - 3rd * 1984 IFBB Ms. Olympia – 2ndRachel McLish
/ref>

Legacy

McLish was the first winner of the Ms. Olympia title. She is one of bodybuilding’s most recognizable personalities. In January 1999, she was inducted into the

IFBB Hall of Fame The IFBB Hall of Fame was established in 1999 to honor outstanding athletes and officials in the sport of bodybuilding. There have been no inductees since 2011. Induction years 1999 * Carla Dunlap *Cory Everson *John Grimek *Lee Haney *Rachel Mc ...

Filmography

McLish was featured in the 1985 documentary '' Pumping Iron II: The Women'', which focused on her participation in the 1983 Caesar’s World Cup. She also co-starred alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the fitness instructional video ''Shape Up'' (1982). She acted in ''Getting Physical'' (1984), '' Aces: Iron Eagle III'' (1992) and '' Raven Hawk'' (1996), movies in which she played the part of a physically strong woman. She was one of the first women to take such a role. McLish also starred in

Herb Alpert Herb Alpert (born March 31, 1935) is an American trumpeter, pianist, singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, conductor, painter, sculptor and theatre producer, who led the band Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass (sometimes called "Herb Alpe ...

's 'Red Hot' music video.

Author

McLish has authored two books on weight training for women that made the ''New York Times'' bestseller list – ''Flex Appeal, by Rachel'', and ''Perfect Parts''. She is now working on two books that focus on fitness and nutrition.

Personal life

McLish is a Christian and describes herself as a

compassionate conservative Compassionate conservatism is an American political philosophy that stresses using conservative techniques and concepts in order to improve the general welfare of society. The philosophy supports the implementation of policies designed to help the ...

. While attending Pan American University, she met John P. McLish, whom she married on February 3, 1979. They later divorced. In 1990, she married film producer

Ron Samuels Ron Samuels is an American film producer and artist manager. His film production credits include ''Iron Eagle'' (1986), '' Aces: Iron Eagle III'' (1992), and '' Raven Hawk'' (1996). Career Samuels owned a television production company in Beverly ...

. She and her husband lived in

Rancho Mirage, California Rancho Mirage is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. The city is a low-density desert community with resorts, golf courses, and country clubs within the Colorado Desert section of the Sonoran Desert. Nestled along the foothil ...

in 1996. In 2008, she sold her house for $3 million to

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

player Coco Crisp.

References

External links

IFBB Hall of Fame profile
*
Internet Pinball Database
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- , width = 40% align = center , First (1980) , width = 30% align = center , Succeeded by:

, - , width = 30% align = center , Preceded by:

, width = 40% align = center , Second (1982) , width = 30% align = center , Succeeded by:

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLish, Rachel 1955 births Actresses from California Actresses from Texas American female bodybuilders American sportspeople of Mexican descent Living people People from Harlingen, Texas People from Rancho Mirage, California American professional bodybuilders Sportspeople from California Sportspeople from Riverside County, California Sportspeople from Texas 21st-century American women American actresses of Mexican descent 20th-century American sportswomen