Leo Stronda says he regrets encouraging steroids to Ganley and apologizes to God: 'I made a mistake as a friend'

Leo Stronda regrets encouraging steroids to Ganley and warns against insulin
Social media
Influencer and bodybuilder Leo Stronda, 33 years old, published a statement on his social media last Sunday night (5) about the death of Gabriel Ganley.
In the video, Stronda admitted regret for having encouraged the use of anabolic steroids to the young man and issued a warning about the use of insulin in sports.
The demonstration took place days after images in which Stronda appears injecting Ganley with anabolic steroids recirculated on the internet.
'It could have been me'
Stronda explained that he chose to wait for his friend's burial before speaking out publicly.
Gabriel was found dead by a friend in the apartment where the young man lived, in Mooca, East Zone of São Paulo, on May 23, after days without family and friends being able to contact him.
When reflecting on the young man's trajectory, the influencer drew a parallel with his own history and took part of the blame for the enthusiasm that the athlete showed with bodybuilding.
"It could have been me. At 22 years old, I also made my crazy things. I regret what I said to him, the jokes I played with him. This thing of 'he's an adult, he knows what he's doing, he chose this' became very polarizing. And there are also some people who say 'you encouraged him, you were part of this'. Both sides are right. 22 years old, will be cremated this Monday, says family
'It was a fatality', says mother of bodybuilder Gabriel Ganley, who died at age 22
Who was the bodybuilder and influencer Gabriel Ganley, who died in SP
Warning about the use of insulin
The influencer revealed that he changed his stance with Ganley after noticing the athlete's level of exposure.
According to Stronda, the young man even consulted him about the use of insulin during a conversation in a restaurant, after the end of a joint recording.
At the time, the 33-year-old content creator stated that he had tried to discourage him: "I started to deny it to him. I said 'don't do that. You're too young. You can't use that'".
In his statement, Stronda took advantage of the space to make a direct warning to other practitioners of the sport about the imminent danger of these substances.
"Are you an athlete, a bodybuilder or are thinking about using them: Forget this insulin thing. Don't use that shit. The only thing that kills instantly is insulin and diuretics. After I realized how emotional he [Ganley] was and what he was willing to do, I changed my tone with him completely", he warned.
Ganley died suddenly
The death certificate of the influencer of 22 years old points out that he had a sudden death caused by hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the heart muscle becomes abnormally thick, which stiffens the organ and makes it difficult to pump blood.
The Public Security Secretariat (SSP) reported that the police are continuing to investigate the case and are awaiting additional tests from the Legal Medical Institute (IML) to clarify the circumstances of the death.
There is no official confirmation that the substances found were used by Gabriel.
Death certificate points out that bodybuilder Gabriel Ganley died suddenly caused by a heart disease
Jornal Nacional/ Reproduction
Influencer admitted using a 'bomb'
After confirmation of Ganley's death, followers retrieved the excerpt from an interview with the Flow podcast, broadcast on October 27, 2025.
In the episode titled "The new era of bodybuilding", Ganley revealed that he was fully aware that the choice to leave Being "natural" (jargon used for athletes who do not use synthetic hormones) would drastically reduce their life expectancy.
"They think it's just taking [the bomb], and it's not. The biggest negative effect is in the long term. It's a heart and liver problem. The real B.O. it's you knowing that you are shortening 10 years of your life. I have this awareness. I know that I want to pursue a career that will shorten [my life] by 10, 15 years."
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Ganley had the dream of being a father
During the report, the bodybuilder detailed that the decision to start hormonal cycles at the age of 22 required consideration, especially when projecting his personal goals and the desire to build a family in the future.
"For you to make this decision at the age of 22 is 'blurry'. Sometimes I think: I have the dream of being a father, will it be that when I have my son and daughter, will I see 15 fewer years of my son growing up? I put everything on paper and said: I'm going to do it. But it was a very deep reflection", he said at the time.
Gabriel Ganley
Reproduction

Source: G1