FigureRX Contest Preview: 2007 Fitness Olympia
September 23rd, 2007
By Stephen Bierer, Beth Horn and Erin Riley
Special thanks to expert photographer Terry Goodlad for allowing the use of his photos for purposes of our contest previews, so we can show each of the competitors looking her best. Please visit two of the classiest web sites in the fitness and figure industry, Bodysport and Hardbodeez.
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In most college and professional sports there are franchises that seem to be good each and every year - the New England Patriots and the New York Yankees come to mind. When they win several years in a row, or take a few titles over a certain time period, we start to talk about dynasties. At the top, the sport of fitness is very similar - except that we seem to have three separate yet connected dynasties going on at the same time. The same three names appear at the top of the score sheets for the Olympia and the Arnold every year - barring injury. We're not complaining, that can make us look pretty smart with our predictions!! The only problem is that there is a second tier of great athletes who have trouble breaking into that inner circle. So let's get started ... can anybody new break into the top three?
FigureRX Olympia Featured Athlete - Myriam Capes
Amy Fry was our featured competitor for the 2007 Figure Olympia, and we have selected Canadian (or should we say Quebecois
) athlete
Myriam Capes to put in our FigureRX spotlight for the 2007 Fitness Olympia. We'll be covering the Canadian scene heavily next year, with tons of unbelievable athletes north of the border who do not get nearly enough attention. We think Myriam has a shot at the top ten in her debut, and in the process will turn a lot of heads.
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----------------------------------------------Myriam Capes
Myriam brings a slightly different look to the stage, the classic gymnast physique, and she is solid everywhere. The routine rounds are where she really makes her mark - the show she puts on is extremely powerful and entertaining. Word from the north is that she just explodes off the floor and the stage in Las Vegas is going to get a workout! Check out a sampling of her routine here:
LINK
It should come as no surprise that Myriam (who just turned 23 years old) competed as a gymnast for 12 years at the national level before hitting the weights. She began to compete five years ago at a regional show in Montreal and won the award for best routine. Once she started to hit the gym regularly she also became a trainer to put herself through school, where she graduated with a degree that qualifies her to enter the police academy. At the moment, however, she has decided to focus on her fitness career instead and we know she will be successful!!
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----------------------------------------------Myriam Capes
Not able to make it to the Olympia? Check out the live web cast
here.
The Contenders (Top Three Potential)
New Jersey native
Kim Klein has been our favorite to win every fitness competition for the past couple of years, and we finally ended up being correct at the 2007 Arnold when she took the title with scores of 5 and 6 in the physique rounds (first place) and 10 and 10 in the routine rounds (second place). The score nuances are very important when analyzing the three closely matched competitors at the top, which is why we mention them here. We couldn't have been happier to see her win, but we had to groan a little bit when she was talking to the Governator and explained that she had stripped some muscle to do so; that's not a good message to teach to the young'uns!! But we understand that she had to do it, and at the same time we're relieved that she has retained her perfect quads and one of the best physiques in either fitness or figure.
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-------------------------------------------------Kim Klein
At the Olympia in 2006 there was a minor mishap at the end of her routine during the night show (see the video below) but we don't think that cost her anything because she placed second due to her physique round placings relative to Adela Garcia. Kim also placed second to Adela at the 2006 Arnold.
Are we biased because of Kim's physique? Maybe. And there is also that framed and autographed picture of her up in our Chicago offices. Not to mention that Kim is also one of the nicest competitors that you will meet, facilitating all the NPC competitors through their stage movements and answering questions by e-mail to help out members of
Team FigureRX. We're obviously pulling hard for Kim to finally take the Olympia crown this year.
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-------------------------------------------------Kim Klein
Did we mention that we unanimously love Kim?
Before you go to Las Vegas, check out the video of her 2006 evening show routine here:
LINK
And we also endorse some recent video of Kim preparing for the Olympia:
LINK
Jen Hendershott took second at the 2007 Arnold when it was widely hinted that she was planning to retire. This amazing athlete has received a perfect score in her short routine for the last four major shows she has entered, but she faltered slightly in the physique rounds as well as the long program at last year's Olympia. This year, in a split decision within
Team FigureRX, we think she'll rebound with the idea of going out with a bang, and deliver one of her high energy, entertaining routines to take second place. In the physique rounds, Jen comes in tight and hard but we think that Kim will win in the posing suit rounds by enough to edge Jen out for the overall title.
We're also pleased that Jen is creating a fitness team along with fellow competitor
Latisha Wilder. The talent pool of up-and-coming fitness athletes has never been better and more marketable and we need leaders to help develop them. Check out a retro video (2003 Olympia) of Jen's routine, back in the days when human props were allowed:
LINK
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-------------------------------------------Jen Hendershott
We're going to move a new athlete into contender status for the top three, just to shake things up!
Tracey Greenwood has been incredibly consistent over the years and since we usually have figure on the brain we're wowed by her almost perfect physique and her ultra-hard conditioning. In the past couple of years Tracey has actually held her own in the routine rounds, but she has placed lower than she should have in the physique rounds. We place her body second only to Kim Klein's and if she can close the gap in those rounds she has an outside shot at the top three.
Tracey placed 4th at the 2006 Arnold but from a scoring standpoint has never been close to the top three, so we are going out on a limb for this one. She was 6th at the 2007 Arnold and 5th at the 2006 Olympia. Take a look at Tracey's night show fitness routine from last year's Olympia:
LINK
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------------------------------------------Tracey Greenwood
Last year's champion,
Adela Garcia, won't make it easy on anyone else to snatch her crown. She showed us all how versatile and talented she is by actually qualifying for the Figure Olympia this year as well! Adela won the physique rounds at the last three Olympia's, but it has not been unanimous since way back in 2004 when
Kelly Ryan was still on stage. In the battle of the three titans, Adela finished 3rd at the 2007 Arnold, 1st at the 2006 Arnold, and 2nd at the 2005 Arnold by only two points after being penalized in the two-piece round.
Based on her recent videos Adela appears to be ready to challenge for the top here! We know she is already well conditioned (we love her physique, especially her back) and she is one of the fitness stars who could finish anwhere between 1st and 4th based on judging nuances and her performances in the routine rounds.
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----------------------------------------------Adela Garcia
The Second Tier (Top Seven Potential)
The battle for the next few spots will be very intense, it's very unpredictable between places 4th through 10th. We think that there will be several athletes vying for the top seven - starting with fitness ambassador
Tanji Johnson who looked really good last weekend at the Tournament of Champions. Tanji has been moving up the charts each year and she placed 4th at the 2006 Olympia and the 2007 Arnold, mainly on the strength of her routines. Tanji is also the 2007 All Star Pro Fitness champion. Take a look at her routine video from the 2006 All Star Classic:
LINK
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----------------------------------------------Tanji Johnson
Missouri girl
Angela Semsch placed 8th on the big stage last year, and 10th at the Arnold with consistent scores across the board. Whether she moves into the top seven or not, we really like the creativity of her routines! A lot of competitors tend to use similar music styles and elements, but Angie incorporates some real dance moves and she does a great job with our favorite strength move - hand stand pushups! She's also underrated in the physique rounds, with especially outstanding legs and back development. If Angie can perform like she did at the Palm Beach Pro she should move up. Here's a video of Angie in action at the 2007 New York Pro:
LINK
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---------------------------------------------Angela Semsch
You only have to read a couple contest reports at FigureRX to know how much we like
Julie Lohre! She is long overdue on this (and the Arnold) stage, but some things are worth waiting for and she's rising the ranks the right way with a very balanced performance between her physique and routines. We expect her to do very well in her Olympia debut. Julie is also a truly wonderful person, and thanks to her for assisting TeamRX athlete
Erin Riley during her pro debut a couple of weeks ago!
Thanks to Rick for providing several recent videos of Julie's routines.
2007 All Star 45 second routine:
LINK
2007 All Star 2 minute routine:
LINK
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-----------------------------------------------Julie Lohre
Ohio native
Julie Palmer puts on an excellent NPC show each year that bears her name, and she excelled in the physique rounds at last year's Olympia while placing 6th and then she moved up to 5th place at the Arnold. Her ability to move up will depend on her routines. Julie won the championship at the 2006 Palm Beach Pro, and she always shows up in great shape with shredded quads.
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----------------------------------------------Julie Palmer
Amazingly enough, there is only one Californian in the entire Fitness Olympia! To represent for her humongous state in the top seven,
Julie Shipley-Childs willl need to slam her routine like she did during the short program at the 2007 New York Pro because she sometimes gives up a few points in the physique rounds. We think she has a physique that's good enough for figure, especially with her tiny knee joints. Julie qualified for the Olympia by taking 7th place at the Arnold, where the top six were already qualified. She also placed 7th at last year's Olympia, and you can watch her routine from that show here:
LINK
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-----------------------------------------------Julie Childs
Russian athlete
Oksana Grishina is another gorgeous athlete who qualified based on her performance sweeping both routine rounds and placing 3rd overall at the 2007 All Star Pro. In a shrewd move, Body Well Nutrition snapped her up with a sponsorship soon thereafter. Oksana's routine is different than anything else we'll likely see on the Olympia stage, she offers a very theatrical and artistic approach that we (and the crowds, judging from the response) really appreciate.
It remains to be seen how the judges will react, as Oksana did not fare as well at the Europa but was scored highly in Arkansas. She has room to fill out her physique and score better in the posing suit rounds, and if she does her placing may surprise some people. Watch her creative routine (it has not changed much) from the 2006 World's:
LINK
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-------------------------------------------Oksana Grishina
Mindi O'Brien is an athlete who does very well at certain shows like the Europa and then seems to be overlooked in others. We do know that Mindi has one of our favorite physiques in fitness, and it's well known that her biceps are genetic marvels from their shape to the big vertical veins that make them some of the best in the world. She's also extremely supportive of up-and-coming competitors in Ontario and the rest of Canada. We think that Mindi has a shot at the top seven and should definitely be in the top ten.
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----------------------------------------------Mindi O'Brien
The Rest of the Field
This is a great group of competitors, and even those who we don't necessarily place as top seven contenders are some of the best female athletes in the world.
Of everyone on stage here this weekend,
Heidi Fletcher probably has the most to prove. Heidi (along with Adela Garcia) has a great sponsorship with Team GNC, and she placed last at the 2006 Olympia and withdrew from the 2007 Arnold due to injury. She came back with a vengeance at the New York Pro, finishing only two points behind
Tracey Greenwood to place 2nd for her "O" qualification. Heidi needs to build on that momentum, she has a high-flying routine (we could do without the controversial symbol on her costume a couple years ago) that needs to be at its best and she needs to show incredibly conditioned due to her thicker physique. If she can do all that she has a shot at the top ten.
Here is a video of Heidi at last year's Olympia:
LINK
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---------------------------------------------Heidi Fletcher
Regiana Da Silva from Germany placed 10th at last year's Olympia and 8th at the 2006 Arnold while scoring much higher in the routine rounds than the physique rounds. We think she has great calves and hamstrings. You can take a look at her routine from the 2006 All Star Classic here:
LINK
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--------------------------------------------Regiana Da Silva
Bethany Gainey is a competitor who could surprise. She has been improving her phyique at each show and she had an excellent two minute routine in Atlantic City. Bethany was also 9th at the New York Pro and 13th at the 2007 Arnold.
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--------------------------------------------Bethany Gainey
Stacy Simons qualified for the Olympia by placing 3rd at the New York Pro, which was an interesting show. She will have some of the best back development of the night. Check out her routine video (unknown origin) here:
LINK
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----------------------------------------------Stacy Simons
Rounding out the field will be three athletes who qualified in Europe,
Amy Huber at the Netherlands Pro and
Stephanie Worsfold and
Rosi Mena who joined the group this past weekend at the World's in Spain.
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------------------------------------------------Amy Huber
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-------------Stephanie Worsfold----------------------------------Rosi Mena
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Check out Team FigureRX Fitness Star and Author of "The Natural Way"
Beth Horn at
http://www.bethhorn.com/book.htm!!!
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