What happened to Shawn Rhoden? Tributes pour in as Mr. Olympia champ passes away at 46

Jamaican-American bodybuilder Shawn Rhoden passed away at the age of 46 on November 6. Rhoden worked as a professional bodybuilder for over a decade. As per reports, Rhoden may have suffered a massive heart attack and died.

He won the 2018 Mr. Olympia bodybuilding contest, beating the seven-time Mr. Olympia winner Phil Heath. He became one of the oldest participants to win Mr. Olympia at 43.

Shawn Rhoden has been involved with bodybuilding at amateur level since the early 1990s.

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What happened to Shawn Rhoden?

As mentioned above, Shawn Rhoden suffered a fatal heart attack, which claimed his life. While other details have not been said, it is medically speculated that the condition may have been caused by Rhoden's reported substance abuse in the past.

However, no statement has been given by Rhoden's family to any publications. Even reports of whether the police have labelled this case as natural or are actively pursuing leads from a post-mortem are unknown.

Rhoden had posted multiple stories on his Instagram just hours before his sudden death in another disheartening development. One of them read,

"Brick by brick and patience it will take. See you on the other side."

While in another, he shared a meme and added the following text to it:

"Be with someone who will take care of you. Not materialistically, but takes care of ur soul, ur well being, ur heart & everything that's you."

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Bodybuilding followers mourn Shawn Rhoden's death

After news of Rhoden's death was reported, fans of the Mr. Olympia champion took to Twitter to share their condolences.

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Shawn Rhoden's legacy

Rhoden was born in Kingston, Jamaica, on April 2, 1975. Following his father's death, Shawn suffered from borderline alcoholism. He started bodybuilding in 1992 when he wanted to pursue being a soccer player.

Shawn Rhoden's amateur career was halted when he sustained several injuries and became an alcoholic. In 2010, the bodybuilder was approved by IFBB Pro to compete professionally,

During his first time competing at Mr. Olympia, Rhoden came 11th. A year later, he came third. This was followed by fourth place in 2013. The bodybuilder won third place at the 2014 Mr. Olympia competition, with another third position in 2015. A year later, he was second and came first in 2018, finally becoming 'Mr. Olympia' in 2018.

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Although he was still barred from competing, Shawn Rhoden shared on his Instagram stories recently that he would be a special guest for the IFBB Pro qualifier in Lithuania around December.