Corinna "Cory" Everson (
née Kneuer; born January 4, 1958) is an American
female bodybuilding champion and actress. Everson won the
Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
contest six years in a row from 1984 to 1989.
Education
Corinna Kneuer was born in
Racine
Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...
, Wisconsin and attended high school in
Deerfield, Illinois. She attended the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
, where she was a multi-sport standout (gymnastics, track & field and
badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...
).
Early career
While attending the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...
, she met Jeff Everson, a competitive bodybuilder who worked there as a strength coach. They married in 1982. While they were married, the Eversons built a successful mail-order clothing business called Sampson and Delilah.
Bodybuilding career
Everson began to train seriously as a bodybuilder after her graduation, and made rapid progress. In the early years, she and Jeff trained at Ernie's Gym on Sherman Avenue in Madison.
She won the Ms. Olympia contest at her first participation and remained undefeated from 1984 to 1989 when she retired from competition.
Contest history
*1980 Ms. Mid America - 1st (Tall and Overall)
*1980 American Couples - 3rd (with Jeff Everson)
*1981 Ms. Midwest Open - 1st (Tall & Overall)
*1981 Ms. Central USA - 1st (HW and Overall)
*1981 Couples America - 1st (with Jeff Everson)
*1981 American Championships - 11th (MW)
*1982 Ms. East Coast - 1st (MW)
*1982 Bodybuilding Expo III - 2nd (MW)
*1982 Bodybuilding Expo Couples - 2nd (with Jeff Everson)
*1982 AFWB American Championships - 5th (HW)
*1982
IFBB North American - 1st (MW and Overall)
*1982
IFBB North American Mixed Pairs - 1st
*1983 Bodybuilding Expo IV - 1st (MW and Overall)
*1983 Bodybuilding Expo Mixed Pairs - 1st
*1983 U.S. Bodybuilding Championships Couples - 1st (with Jeff Everson)
*1983 AFWB American Championships - 8th (HW)
*1983
NPC Nationals - 2nd (HW)
*1984 American Women's Championships - 1st (HW and Overall)
*1984
NPC Nationals - 1st (HW and Overall)
*1984
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
*1985
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
*1986
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
*1987
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
*1988
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
*1989
IFBB Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
- 1st
Awards and honors
In January 1999, Everson was inducted into the
IFBB Hall of Fame The IFBB Hall of Fame was established in 1999 to honor outstanding athletes and officials in the sport of bodybuilding. There have been no inductees since 2011.
Induction years
1999
*Carla Dunlap
*Cory Everson
*John Grimek
* Lee Haney
* Rachel Mc ...
, as part of the inaugural group.
She was inducted into the
Muscle Beach
Muscle Beach is the birthplace of the United States physical fitness boom, which started in 1934 with predominantly gymnastics activities on the south side of the Santa Monica Pier. Muscle Beach Venice is the contemporary title of the outdoor we ...
Venice
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...
Body Building Hall of Fame on September 5, 2005.
At the 2007
Arnold Classic
The IFBB Arnold Sports Festival, also known as the Arnold Schwarzenegger Sports Festival, is an annual multi-sport event consisting of professional bodybuilding (''Arnold Classic''), strongman ('' Arnold Strongman Classic''), fitness, figure ...
she became the first woman to be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2008 was inducted into the
National Fitness Hall of Fame
National Fitness Hall of Fame is an American hall of fame for notable fitness professionals. It includes notable figures involved in fitness instruction, training, education, fitness management and product development. The mission is to recognize ...
.
Film and television career
After retiring from competition, she turned to acting with her first major movie appearance being ''
Double Impact
''Double Impact'' is a 1991 American action film written and directed by Sheldon Lettich, and written, produced by and starring Jean-Claude Van Damme as Chad and Alex Wagner. The film marks Van Damme's third collaboration with director Sheldon ...
'' (1991) alongside
Jean-Claude Van Damme
Jean-Claude Camille François Van Varenberg (, ; born 18 October 1960), known professionally as Jean-Claude Van Damme (, ), is a Belgian actor, martial artist, filmmaker, and fight choreographer. Born and raised in Brussels, Belgium, at the ag ...
.
She took a minor role in ''
Natural Born Killers
''Natural Born Killers'' is a 1994 American crime film directed by Oliver Stone and starring Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, and Tom Sizemore. The film tells the story of two victims of traumatic childho ...
'' (1994). Then in ''Ballistic'' (1995), she reprised the evil musclewoman role, losing the final fight to
Marjean Holden
Margaret Jean Holden (born November 3, 1964) is an American actress, stuntwoman and martial artist.
Early life and education
Margaret Jean Holden was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on November 3, 1964, and attended Northern Arizona Universit ...
playing an undercover cop.
Everson has made a number of guest appearances in television series, most notably playing
Atalanta
Atalanta (; grc-gre, Ἀταλάντη, Atalantē) meaning "equal in weight", is a heroine in Greek mythology.
There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia (region), Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene (mythology ...
on ''
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
''Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'' is an American television series filmed in New Zealand, based on the tales of the classical Greek culture hero Heracles (Hercules was his Roman analogue). Starring Kevin Sorbo as Hercules and Michael Hurst as ...
''. She appeared in two episodes of ''
The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.'' with her sister, Cameo Kneuer.
In 1991 Everson appeared on ''
To Tell The Truth'' Game Show.
Everson was the original host of the fitness show ''
BodyShaping
''BodyShaping'' is an American fitness and exercise television series that has shown on ESPN, with segments on weight training, cardiovascular exercise, stretching and nutrition. It was in production from 1988 to 1998, and has been in reruns ever ...
'',
which she also produced. She also hosted her own exercise show on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
, ''Cory Everson's Gotta Sweat'',
for seven years.
Film
Television
Personal life
Cory and Jeff Everson divorced in 1996; however, she kept 'Everson' as her stage name. In 1998, she married Dr. Steve Donia, a cosmetic dentist; they have two children whom they adopted from Russia. She became active with
Nightlight Christian Adoptions, an adoption agency that brings orphans from Russia and Belarus to the US to stay with families looking to adopt a child.
Everson's sister, Cameo Kneuer, is a two-time Ms. National Fitness champion and a mainstay of the TV game series ''
Knights and Warriors
''Knights and Warriors'' is an American competition television program that premiered in syndication on September 19, 1992. The program aired on weekends for one season, with episodes airing until September 11, 1993. The show was a production of ...
''.
Books authored
*''Strength Training for Beauty Volume 3 - Number 1''Runner's World Magazine Company (1986)
*''Superflex: Ms. Olympia's Guide to Building a Strong & Sexy Body'' Contemporary Books (1987) with Jeff Everson
*''Back in Shape''
Houghton Mifflin Company (1991) with Stephen Hochschuler
*''Cory Everson's Workout'' Perigee Trade (1991) with Jeff Everson
*''Cory Everson's Fat-Free & Fit'' Perigee Trade (1994) with Carole Jacobs
*''Cory Everson's Lifebalance'' Perigee Trade (1998)
References
External links
Facebook PageMs Olympia 1986 online - Cory everson win*
Cory Eversonfitness filmography at
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
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Ms. Olympia
The IFBB Ms. Olympia is both the highest ranking professional female bodybuilding competition and the title of the winner of the competition. It was first organized in 1980, and was held as part of the Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance ...
, -
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Carla Dunlap
Carla Dunlap-Kaan (born October 22, 1954) is a professional American female bodybuilding champion.
Early life and education
Dunlap was born in 1954, in Newark, New Jersey. She started competing in sports with gymnastics at age 10. She later c ...
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Herself
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Lenda Murray
Lenda Murray (born February 22, 1962) is an American professional female bodybuilding champion.
Early life and education
Murray was born in 1962 in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of Darcelious and Louvelle Murray. She began participating in or ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Everson, Corinna
1958 births
American exercise and fitness writers
American exercise instructors
American female bodybuilders
American film actresses
American television actresses
Living people
People from Deerfield, Illinois
Professional bodybuilders
Sportspeople from Racine, Wisconsin
21st-century American women