2011 Arnold Sports Weekend: Women's Physique Events Pre-Judging

The women of figure, bodybuilding, and fitness may present different physique looks, but the common denominators were also evident on Friday morning at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

2011 Arnold Sports Weekend: Women's Physique Events
Pre-Judging

The women of figure, bodybuilding, and fitness may present different physique looks, but the common denominators were also evident on Saturday morning at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Before a standing-room-only crowd, each class comprised a deep lineup of women with beautifully sculpted bodies with a fierce determination to leave Columbus with a title in hand. That level of intensity should be expected when you have

If you missed it--or even if you didn't, but you just want a brief recap of each show--Isabel Norton and I have what you're looking for. The critiques are just our opinions, so if you disagree, umm... we're sorry to have offended you.

Figure

The favorites going into this show are Jennifer Gates (who actually hasn't competed since 2008 where she won the Olympia), Erin Stern (who won the 2010 Ms. Figure Olympia) and Nicole Wilkins-Lee (Won the 2009 Ms. Figure Olympia, and is the defending Ms. Figure International).

So the talk has been regarding whether the reigning Ms. International can beat the reigning Ms. Olympia. The dark horse would be Felicia Romero; she placed 5th at the Arnolds last year, and is looking to crack the Top 3 this year.

Another competitor coming in with a lot of momentum is Courtney West. Courtney won the NPC USAs (where she earned her pro card), then went into her 1st pro show (The Houston Pro) and won first place. So we're looking to see her in the Top 5.

Rosa Maria Romero

She's definitely decreased her muscularity since the 2010 Olympia. Looks fantastic and she polished her stage presence.

She had been working really hard on that aspect of the competition as well as bringing up her legs.

 

Courtney West

Tall, graceful, wasp waist with AWESOME abs. Also has great lines, her v-taper was phenomenal.

 

Alicia Harris

Pretty soft, but still has a good shoulder to waist ratio.

 

Ava Cowan

Her physique looks very similar to that of past shows, but what was noticeably different was her stage presence was very polished and graceful.

 

Chelsey Morgenstern

Ohio native, a loud cheer exploded from the crowd. Looked great! Had great lines.

 

Cheryl Brown

Another "shorter" pro, her nerves seem to have gotten the best of her (she was shaking a lot, visibly nervous *or cold*). She was a little bit on the softer side if we compare her to past events.

 

Erin Stern

Polished, great presentation, awesome overall package. Her conditioning was right on point. She has really stepped up her game since winning the Europa Show of Champions last April.

We expected her to look amazing and she delivered.

 

Monica Specking

Coming from her 3rd place at the Houston Pro, she was very hard with amazing quad separation. She had incredible physique. But probably too hard for what the judges are looking for today.

 

Felicia Romero

She had been working to bring up her quads and it seems to have paid of. Her midsection was a little on the softer than usual. She had also been working on her presentation and it really paid off.

She was cool, calmed and polished.

 

Natalia Revajova

Big upper body, probably too big (though it made for a great V-taper),and her suit was different/unique. She was probably too hard.

 

Candice Keene

GREAT back and V-taper. Her presentation was right on. She was polished and graceful.

 

Jennifer Gates

Incredibly rounded delts, perfect (esp given she had a baby 10 months again). There was no sign of a baby bump. Her abs were incredible.

She is probably the envy of a lot of women with and without children.

 

Nicole Wilkins-Lee

Brought down her legs in terms of size and muscularity, but has more definition in her quads.

Beautiful presentation. She is definitely leaner.

 

Latisha Wilder

Great lines, didn't hold her poses long enough though.

 

Larissa Reis

THICK, quad separation, Great suit, looks like she has a new tattoo on her arm.

She has brought her muscularity down some, her color was right as well in terms of tanning. Which really helped her femininity come through.

 

Teresa Anthony

Taller competitor, looks great. She has a polished look. Good presentation.


  • 1st Callout - Courtney, Ava, Erin, Felicia, Nicole
  • 2nd Callout - Courtney, Latisha, Candice, Teresa, Cheryl
  • 3rd Callout - Latisha, Larissa, Jen, Rosa Marie
  • 4th Callout - Alicia, Monica, Natalia, Rosa Marie, Chelsea
  • 5th Callout - Nicole, Ava, Erin
  • 6th Callout - Felicia, Ava

Bodybuilding

Interesting new change in the structure of the competition: We now have the women doing both the quarter turns and the compulsory poses.

We have one new stand out woman to watch out for this time around: Sarah Hayes! She is making her pro debut after winning the 2010 NPC overall title.

The favorites going into this competition are Yaxeni Oriquen Garcia, Iris Kyle, and Debi Laszewski. Iris obviously being the most favorite.

Dayana Cadeau

Soft, again. She hasn't brought her best package the last couple of shows because it seems she's started to favor size over conditioning.

Size isn't her issue anymore. She can start to work on getting a little bit leaner for the next show.

Jeannie Papparone

Huge delts, small legs (but is also short, so she may have kept them small to stay proportionate), great structure.

Maria Seguro

Great conditioning, could use more overall size.

Alina Popa

Really hard and SHREDDED, very balanced physique, great legs, nice glutes, thick, overall very aesthetic physique.

Rita Bello

Hard, thick and vascular legs (definitely her best feature), thick waist, striated chest, legs, glutes (AMAZING), her conditioning is ridiculous.

She was by far the most conditioned athlete on stage this afternoon.

Yaxeni Oriquen Garcia

Great abs and legs, thick and wide back, crazy hamstring separation.

Antoinette Thompson

Smaller than most of the girls up there but has a really aesthetic physique, little bit softer than the other competitors though.

Tina Chandler

Definitely has the size overall, but she could use a little more size on her arms.

Sarah Hayes

She needs more size and conditioning on her legs, they came in a little soft and small, great back though.

Iris Kyle

One of the best V-tapers in the sport, it's her show to lose, she looks softer than she has in the past, but in terms of size and symmetry she's got the best of both worlds.

Cathy LeFrancois

AMAZING legs, and her presentation/overall look is better than a lot o the others, brought great conditioning and her A-game, hard but feminine at the same time.

Debi Laszewski

CRAZY legs, back could use a little more density and thickness, legs are definitely the stand out bodypart.

Betty Viana Adkins

Great V-taper, legs could be more muscular.


  • 1st Callout - Alina, Yaxeni, Iris, Debi, Betty
  • 2nd Callout - Jeanie, Tina, Cathy, Dayana
  • 3rd Callout - Rita, Antoinette, Sarah, Maria

Fitness

No fitness routines today (because they switched the rules a little), but there WAS the swimsuit round. 50% of the score is now from a competitors' routine, which is different than past years where it used to be worth less (and the physique round worth more).

This makes it slightly more difficult to determine a winner because it will depend more on what the judges are looking for from a competitor's routine versus their physique.

The favorites in this category are Adela Garcia, Tanji Johnson (who's always consistent with what she brings) and Oksana Grishina (the new judging criteria gives her an advantage because her routines are always fantastic).

Tina Durkin

Beautiful, great package.

Adela Garcia

Nice suit, not as hard as she's been before (they might've asked her to tone it down, as she's now softer and more feminine).

Camala Rodriguez

A dark horse that might sneak in, great physique.

Myriam Capes

Her 4th place at the Olympia last year was the highest any Canadian athlete has placed in the fitness division, her physique looks more complete since she brought her legs up.

Regiane Da Silva

Good lines, always consistent.

Allison Ethier

Very soft from behind, she could use more conditioning all around.

Bethany Wagner

Tiny waist, but they may say her upper body is too big.

Sylvia Tremblay

Looks amazing, nice presentation.

Nicole Duncan

Way too soft, but looking forward to her routine.

Tanji Johnson

VERY lean, gorgeous, nailed her conditioning. Her presentation was great!

Trish Warren

Consistent with the package she brought to the Olympia, which was a good one.

Erin Riley

A little on the smaller side, nothing stand out, presentation was just ok.

Daniela O'Mara

Her hair overpowers her physique a little (as funny as that sounds), tiny upper body. She has really good stage presence.

Oksana Grishina

Beautiful physique, perfect lines, nice legs, little more vascular than the other girls.

  • 1st Callout- Adela, Tanji, Trish
  • 2nd Callout - Bethany, Oksana, Pamela, Tina, Regianne
  • 3rd Callout - Myriam, Alison, Sylvia, Erin, Daniella, Nicole
  • 4th Callout - Adela, Camela, Trish, Tanji, Bethany