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Olivier Richters
Olivier Richters (born 5 September 1989) is a Dutch bodybuilder and actor. Known as The Dutch Giant, Richters stands at 218 centimetres (7 ft 2 in) tall.[1] After pursuing a career in bodybuilding, Richters focused more intentionally on his acting career, portraying characters such as Ursa in the 2021 film Black Widow. He also appeared in The King's Man and Louis Wain in 2021, and in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny in 2023. Early lifeRichters was born in Hilversum, North Holland, on 5 September 1989. From a young age, Richters dwarfed other students of his age. While he continued to grow, Richters developed pectus excavatum, which required surgery in his childhood, breaking his ribcage and allowing the ribs to regrow to rectify the issue.[2] By 19, Richters had grown to 218cm tall, yet weighed under 80kg. This motivated Richters to seek a "change," and to pursue bodybuilding.[3] Bodybuilding careerRichters started to train in 2007, but didn't start to pursue bodybuilding until 2013. After 8 years of training, the difference was tangible – Richters had gained nearly 75kg of mass, predominantly composed of lean muscle. In 2021, he also took home the World Record for the "tallest professional bodybuilder", 12.7 centimetres (5.0 in) taller than Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson.[4][5] Following this feat, Richters was featured on the cover of the November 2018 Netherlands' edition of Men's Health,[6] and the subject of a documentary by the magazine.[7] To achieve his bodybuilding goals, Richters rigorously committed to consuming up to 7000 calories a day spread over seven meals.[8] Acting careerAfter a few minor television roles in the 1990's and early 2010's, Richters pursued a career in acting more intentionally from 2018 onwards, appearing in the 2018 Horror/Comedy film, Ravers. Richters has stated that his inspiration for his acting career is Richard Kiel, the actor of equal height who had portrayed the henchman Jaws in two James Bond films.[9] Since 2018, Richters has appeared in films such as Knuckledust, Black Widow, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, The King's Man, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Borderlands. On television, Richters has been cast in shows such as Gangs of London and Reacher, appearing as the main villain in the third season of the latter, set to be released in early 2025. Filmography
Film
Television
Lifestyle and healthDue to his size, Richters maintains a regimen of 5,000 calorie intake for filming, and 6,500 to 7,000 calories for all other purposes, within a 24 hour period. The intake is spread out in seven meals, with one of them at 3:00 a.m., consisting of carbs, up to 1,000 grams of various meats[9] and vegetables, in addition to an oat shake, made of "ultra-fine oats, blended with a whey scoop".[5] In his interview with Adil Ray on Good Morning Britain, Richters maintained that he is "pushed" to keep up with his diet.[9] Richters was born with pectus excavatum, causing the bones of his ribcage to grow in such a way to squeeze the cardiac muscle. CT-scans revealed his heart was 20% smaller than it should have been. He underwent a procedure involving breaking the ribs and allowing the heart and lungs to continue growing, something made possible due to his still young age at the time, and extending his lifespan. Richters spent six months recovering (two under morphine, his third month was spent learning to gain basic mobility – walking, cycling and swimming – and his fourth month saw a return to weightlifting).[11] According to The Times, Richters' stature is the result of the natural growth process and he does not suffer from gigantism, a condition where a tumor would normally affect the pituitary gland, causing abnormal height growth.[12] A DNA test revealed he was 48.2% Scandinavian.[13] In March 2014, Richters and his two siblings founded Muscle Meat, a company which provides athletes with resources and foods supplements.[14][15] References
External links
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