"ONE DAY I'M
GOING TO BE
THE BEST
BODYBUILDER
IN THE WORLD."
more his self-confidence and feelings of
security increased. A teenage Antoine was
becoming addicted to bodybuilding. He
loved the feeling of being the biggest, the
leanest and when looking at himself in the
mirror he saw that frightened boy as a man
that couldn't be pushed around by anyone.
At sixteen years of age he won his first
bodybuilding contest. At 5’11, 175 lbs
Antoine won the Mr. Granby junior class
(under 21). “I had a ripped upper body
ready for the beach and super heavyweight
bodybuilding legs.” Between the time
Antoine won the Mr. Granby show, to 2012
when he won Mr. Canada, he had entered
countless shows and was becoming a major
player in the amateur bodybuilding world.
Magazines were labeling him the next “It”
kid; he was a sure bet to go Pro and win big. weeks prior to the 2012 Canadian Nation-
als in Edmonton, his long term girlfriend
broke his heart. For the next few weeks
he managed to train and contest diet but
his mind was no longer in the game. Again
his support system seemed to fail him and
he felt abandoned. His life began to spiral
out of control. “I had enough money to
spend carelessly without worry. I quit my
job at the gym and had saved up tens of
thousands of dollars, which I’d later spend
on partying and drugs.” He moved into
his own apartment and was taking home
different girls every night. He was drinking,
and abusing drugs. He partied for weeks
on end, then crashed for days at a time. He
disappeared from the gym and had become
a drug addict in less than a year.
2012 CANADIAN NATIONALS
After winning the Canadian Nationals,
the world was his oyster. “The rush I had
from winning was better than the rush
any drug could have given me.” Sponsors
were lining up and everyone wanted to be a
part of his team. He wasn't afraid to ask for
what he thought he was worth. The maga-
zine Muscular Development signed on as a
sponsor and gave Antoine his own column.
Universal Nutrition and Iron Bull Strength
also became major sponsors. But just three 2013 TORONTO PRO SUPERSHOW
Antoine competed in the 2013 Toronto
Pro Show and finished dead last. The drugs
had replaced the weights in his quest to
control his life. Without the drugs he felt
depressed and anxious. His sponsors began
to withdraw their funding and cut ties with
him. He had become emotionally unrav-
eled. He was that nine-year old boy again
looking for love and comfort except this
time he was a drug addict. Something had
to change or he'd be dead.
strong and most of all, they appeared to be
in control of their lives which was some-
thing Antoine was missing.
At fifteen his mother purchased him a
gym membership at Physique Action in
Granby, Quebec. Antoine was blown away
by the equipment and told the owner, "One
day I'm going to be the best bodybuilder in
the world."
The gym became a second home. The
more weights he piled onto the barbells the
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