Arnold Schwarzenegger Talks ‘Breakthrough’ Life Moment in Ireland as He’s Awarded Honorary Doctorate

Arnold Schwarzenegger recently reflected on the major personal growth he made decades ago in Belfast, Northern Ireland, as he returned to the city to receive an honorary doctorate from Ulster University.

On Monday, March 30, the former California governor, 78, gave a speech upon accepting his honorary degree, which, according to Ulster University, was “in recognition of his extraordinary career and his remarkable contributions to public service, environmental advocacy, and the arts.”

In his speech, the former professional bodybuilder explained that he first visited Belfast 60 years ago for a bodybuilding competition, noting, “something very unique happened.”

The actor recalled how, during the competition, late bodybuilder Reg Park called him to the microphone and asked him a question in front of the audience.

“He said, ‘So, how do you like it here?’ And I’m now almost fainting because I’ve never ever spoken in public before,” Schwarzenegger recounted. “My heart rate went up, and I said, ‘Oh my god, doesn’t he know that I’ve never ever spoken to people before in public?'”

“People always talk about, ‘It must have been difficult for you in the beginning with the Irish accent,’ and I said, ‘I didn’t even know there was an accent,’ because I didn’t speak English,” Schwarzenegger admitted. “So the only words that came out of me was, ‘I no speak English.'”

However, the Terminator star recalled how Park then praised him for speaking and had him repeat some additional phrases to the audience, which gave him a “standing ovation.”

“He said, ‘Thank you very much, Arnold, that was fantastic. Your first time that you spoke in public, you did such a great job, and your English was great,'”  Schwarzenegger remembered. “And afterward I left, and I said to myself, ‘Oh my God, I thought I was going to die when I spoke in front of people, but this was the most encouraging audience.'”

This experience seemingly motivated Schwarzenegger to keep up public speaking at competitions.

“Each time I’d say more and more and more, and eventually you couldn’t shut me up,” Schwarzenegger joked. “I loved talking so much in public.”

“This was a breakthrough, and I always tell people about that breakthrough and that it happened here in Belfast, and this is why I have such fond memories of Belfast,” he further gushed.