Can You Be Vegetarian And Still Compete On A World Class Level?

By Farah Lindstrom
Posted on 25 Jun, 2019

Can a world-class athlete get enough protein from a vegetarian diet to compete with their carnivorous counterparts in physical competition? One of the most-cited vegan athlete success stories is of Carl Lewis, who in the video above, credits his outstanding 1991 results in part to the vegan diet he adopted in 1990.

But he is not the only one. There are other vegetarian athletes who have risen to the top as well, without the help of meat.

	Adam Myerson American Professional Bicycle Racer
	Albert Beckles Former IFBB Pro Bodybuilder Three-time New York City Night of Champions winner
	Andreas Cahling 60 Year Old IFBB Pro Bodybuilder Won the IFBB Mr. International title in 1980
	Anthony Peeler Professional Basketball Player
	BJ Armstrong American Professional Basketball Player Winner of 3 NBA Championships
	Bill Pearl 5 Time Mr. Universe Winner
	Bill Walton American Professional Basketball Player Winner of Two NBA Championships Named League MVP
	Billy Jean King Former World No. 1 Professional Tennis Player 39 Grand Slam Titles
	Brendan Brazier Ironman Triathlete Winner of the 2003 50K Harriers Elk/Beaver National Ultramarathon Championships Winner of the 2006 50K Toronto Ultra Race
	Carl Lewis Track and Field Athlete 10 Olympic Medals (9 Golds) 10 World Championship Medals (8 Golds)
	Catherine Johnson Winner of the 2005 Boulder Cyclocross Series
	Catra Corbett Professional Ultra Marathon Runner (Has completed over one hundred 100-mile Races)
	Chris Evert Former World No. 1 Professional Tennis Player 157 Singles Championship Titles (18 Grand Slams) 29 Doubles Titles (3 Grand Slams)
	Christine Vardaros World Championship Cyclist Contender
	Cory Everson Won Ms. Olympia 6 Years In A Row
	Dave Scott Six Time Ironman World Champion First Person Inducted Into The Ironman Hall Of Fame
	Edwin Moses Track and Field Athlete 4 Olympic Gold Medals Winner of 107 consecutive finals
	Fiona Oakes Extreme Marathon Runner Double Guiness World Record Holder Fastest aggregate marathon time for all 7 continents Fastest for a marathon on all continents and the polar ice cap.
	Greg Chappell Cricketer Captained Australia between 1975-1977 World record for the most catches in Test cricket.
	Hank Aaron Baseball Hall Of Famer
	Jim Morris Mr. USA (1972) AAU Mr. America (1973) Mr. International (1974) Mr. Olympia Masters Over 60
	Joel Kirkilis Victoria Bodybuilding Champion (2009)
	John Salley American Professional Basketball Player 4 Time NBA Champion
	Judy Leden Two Time World Hang Gliding Champion One Time World ParaGliding Champion
	Juta Muller German Championship Skater
	Leroy Burrell Track and Field Athlete Two-time World Record Holder (100m Sprint) Olympic Gold Medalist 4x100 Relay
	Leslie Marx American Fencer Gold Medalits at the 1995 Pan American Games
	Mac Danzig Mixed Martial Arts Fighter Gladiator Challenge Lightweight champion IFC Lightweight champion 5-time King of the Cage World Champion
	Martina Navratilova Former World Number 1 Tennis Player 18 Grand Slam Singles 31 Grand Slam Doubles 10 Grand Slam Mixed Doubles
	Maureen Shea Featherweight World Boxing Champion NABA Featherweight Champion Former NABF and Former Interim WBC Featherweight Champion
	Paavo Nurmi Middle And Long Distance Runner Nine Olympic Gold Medals Set 22 world records from 1500m to 20K
	Rich Roll Ultra Endurance Athlete Voted one of the fittest men in the world by 2009 Men’s Fitness
	Rob Bigwood Professional Armwrestler
	Robert Millar "King of the Mountains" 1984 Tour de France
	Robert Parish NBA Hall Of Famer 4-time NBA Champion 9-time NBA All Star
	Scott Jurek Champion Ultramarathoner Hardrock Hundred (2007) Badwater (2005, 2006) Spartathlon (2006, 2007, 2008) Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run (1999-2005)
	Silken Laumann Canadian Champion Rower U.S. Championships, Gold Pan American Games, Two Golds World Championships, Gold
	Tim VanOrden Winner of 9 ninth USA Masters Championships U.S. Masters Runner of the Year, four times Ten U.S. Trail Running Championships
	Toni Innauer Olympic Gold Medal Ski Jumper