Les Mills, New Zealand Olympic Runner and Gym Founder, Dies at 91
Les Mills, New Zealand Olympic Runner and Gym Founder, Dies at 91
Les Mills Snr, an Olympic athlete from New Zealand who later became a successful gym entrepreneur and mayor of Auckland, died in June 2026 at age 91. ABC News and RNZ reported his death on 29 June. His career moved from competitive running to public service to building a fitness business that spread across the globe.
From Local Gym to Worldwide Brand
Mills opened a gym in Auckland in 1968, when fitness clubs were still uncommon outside the United States. What started as a single facility grew into Les Mills International, a company that now licenses its workout programs to gyms in dozens of countries. The most recognizable formats — including BodyPump and BodyCombat — are now taught by trained instructors worldwide.
The business model was smart. Les Mills International didn't own the gyms that used its name. Instead, it sold the workout programs, instructor training, and certification to gym owners who wanted to offer them. This approach meant the company could expand globally without spending massive amounts of money to build and run physical locations. It worked more like a movie studio that licenses films than a traditional gym chain — gym owners paid to use the content and training system.
Newswire Canada called Mills "a founding father of fitness." This captures his place in the history of group exercise classes. Mills's company succeeded because it treated fitness classes like a product that could be carefully designed, replicated, and taught the same way everywhere. The choreography, music, and instructor training were all standardized, which allowed the workouts to work in different countries and cultures.
Why His Background Mattered
Mills's life as an Olympic athlete was foundational to his later success. He competed in track and field when New Zealand's runners were winning on the world stage — the country had an outsized reputation in athletics. This sporting credibility gave his gym business something that pure businessmen couldn't easily claim: a genuine connection to athletic excellence and physical fitness.
His time as Auckland Mayor reinforced his standing in New Zealand. The combination of Olympic credentials, civic authority, and business skill was unusual, but it worked. His son Phillip later took the company through its international expansion.
The broader context here is that Mills arrived in the fitness business before it became an industry category. He wasn't following a template. His son built on that foundation, and the company's licensing model allowed it to grow in ways that would have been impossible if they had tried to own every gym. By the time of his death, the business he began in one Auckland facility in 1968 was operating in markets across Europe, Scandinavia, and Southeast Asia.
