In truly tragic circumstances Steve Stone, Chief Expeditor of the Olympia Weekend, collapsed and died today during the prejudging section of the women’s competition. The cause of death was pulmonary embolism.
Steve, 51, had been Chief Expeditor of the Olympia since 2004 and has performed that same role at all major NPC shows since the early 1990s. A bodybuilder through and through Steve was popular with athletes, officials and press alike. He competed in the NPC in the late ’80s through until 1992 and his best showing was winning the light heavyweight division at the 1989 North American Championships. During the ’90s he was co-host with Tom Terwilliger on Fox Sports long-running bodybuilding program MuscleSport USA.
Tonight NPC New York Chairman Steve Weinberger will ask the Friday night crowd for a minute’s silence in remembrance of Steve. I have known Steve since 1992, and like everyone who ever met him found him to be as regular a guy as one could meet. A shadow now hangs over the Olympia but Steve would be the first to say, “The show must go on.” It will Steve, but it’s going to be hard, very hard.
On behalf of the whole bodybuilding community we extend our sincere condolences to Steve’s wife Andrea (who is an IFBB and NPC statistician) and the whole Stone family.
