To fans of 1990’s bodybuilding the name DON LONG conjures images of a mass monster with beautiful lines. The 1995 overall Nationals winner showed tremendous promise right from the start of his pro career, when he took third place in his IFBB bow at the 1996 Night of Champions behind winner FLEX WHEELER and a guy named RONNIE COLEMAN.
A mere four years into his pro career, however, Long was diagnosed with massive kidney failure. He soon learned that he was born with one atrophied kidney that was effectively non-functioning. The condition may very well have necessitated that he eventually undergo dialysis treatment had he lived an average, sedentary life. The extraordinary stresses of elite bodybuilding, though, necessitated it immediately, lest he wanted to end up an extremely muscular corpse. Oh, and he had to give up competitive bodybuilding too, doctor’s orders.
Knowledgeable fans may remember that Long received a kidney transplant on March 23, 2002, courtesy of elder sister Michelle. In a groundbreaking act of selflessness, Michelle had become the first volunteer in a program that allowed family members to donate organs in order to move loved ones up the donor’s list.
Unfortunately, the kidney Long received didn’t take and he was forced to live a lifetime of six-day-a-week dialysis treatments, which he self-administers from his home.
Contest-going bodybuilding fans may have noticed that over the past four years Long has had an increasing presence at top NPC and IFBB competitions and that with each appearance the man has done a bit of increasing himself. In fact, the Don Long of 2006 is beginning to look strikingly similar to the Don Long of a decade ago.
Still, it should come as a surprise to even the most ardent of Long fans that he is planning to test the competitive waters again, dialysis and all. “I’ve decided to step onto a bodybuilding stage once again,” he confides. “Up until a couple of months ago I never even thought about competing again. I had put it all behind me. I was just going to work on my business.
“Part of my business was to do a training video, which I was planning on doing in September. Then, once I’d decided to do that I thought I should start trying to get in shape for it. After that I thought that if I started to look pretty good again, why not just step onstage again? So I’ve got my energy focused on doing that now.”
Long plans to make his return September 23 at the Atlantic City Pro in Atlantic City, New Jersey. But don’t call it a comeback. Long’s only plans are to do this one show and nothing more. “My goal is really just to show people that if you put your heart and mind into something you can always find a way to come back from adversity. For me, this is just about finishing my career on my own terms. It’s not to beat anybody else or to win this or win that. I don’t have any plans for further competitions. When I was told I’d have to go on dialysis in ’99 I had no choice. But now the choice is mine.”
Long says he’s gotten medical clearance to compete again and that with his conviction to maintaining a healthy diet, regular exercise and a positive attitude his return to the posing dais poses little threat to his health.
Here’s to Don beating very Long odds indeed.
