FigureRX Contest Report: 2007 North American Figure Championships

August 31st and September 1st, 2007
By Stephen Bierer

The 2007 North American Figure Championships arguably represented the best show ever put on by promoter Gary Udit. The figure talent from top to bottom was nothing short of remarkable, especially when you consider that a dozen of the top national competitors in each height class stayed home!! As expected, the deep and talented pool of athletes from Canada had an impact on the placings, although in ways that were not necessarily expected.

At Team Figure RX, we were pleased by our attempts to elevate coverage for this show, so much so that we now intend to branch out and cover all of the IFBB professional figure contests for the rest of the year as well as step up our support on the Canadian scene in 2008. Over 2,000 people accessed the web site and checked out our North Americans thread over the weekend (you can find the forum Here). We have decided to go with a “forum” format for each show which we feel is the best way to get fast and accurate information out to competitors, family members, friends and fans. Within each show forum thread you will find competitor lists, show information, instant updates, event photos, and finally full information after the show including our downloadable score sheets. The web side of our company is non-profit, and we truly exist to elevate the figure and fitness industry along with our Team FigureRX athletes as much as possible, so if anyone has suggestions on how we can improve our coverage comments are welcome at any time.

Click here for the RX Magazine September Issue
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Visit Team FigureRX NPC Figure Star Danielle Rouleau at http://www.DanielleRouleau.com!!!

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www.FigureRX.com

We were happy with the direction of the judging in Open Figure Class A (up to and including 5'2”) with only one or two notable exceptions. The athletes in the top five of this class all deserved to be there, starting with Tennessee newcomer Brandi Binkley. One of the fun things about this sport is that no matter how many photos you study or research you do there is an occasional surprise. Brandi is a personal trainer at LEAN Studios in the Nashville area, and she has a bright future in the sport if she decides to compete next year.

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------------Brandi Binkley------------------------Candice Houston------------------------Tiffany Procopio

Candice Houston deservedly moved up from 11th at the USA's to 2nd place here, on another day she might have been carrying too much mass but in this class she fit in. Her calves are outstanding and the way her upper body flares out above her tight waist is muscle maturity at its best. Tiffany Procopio from Maryland has had the physique tools and conditioning to move up for a while, but this time she was able to alter her posing and presentation to appear much sleeker and she was rewarded with a 3rd place finish. Debra Lavette scored her top placing in a national contest (4th), and showed remarkable consistency in her one piece and two piece. Debra has great muscle with her best look coming from the front, and on her side poses she looks best when she bends her arm and is able to sweep her hair out of the way to show off her delts.

With her physique and looks, Lauren Burnett is a future star who came in a little too soft to place higher at North Americans. She shouldn't come in too much harder, but this was her best finish at the national level other than collegiate and if she comes in a bit more conditioned she will place even higher. Canadian Maranda Lessard, who was new to us, has remarkable quad development but their sheer size takes away from her overall symmetry. We like Gemma Santos' quad separation and midsection, but she has an unorthodox posing style that can be a distraction. Carin Hawkins is a FigureRX favorite and her lower body looked great, but her upper body was flat for this show. Carin could win a pro card at any time in 2008, if she is able to dial everything in and present her total package. Mary Cencich needs to come in a little tighter around her upper quads and hips to move up.

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------------Debra Lavette------------------------Lauren Burnett------------------------Maranda Lessard

This class was so deep from top to bottom that it's hard not to mention everyone, but if this is a preview Class A may be one of the most competitive in 2008. If you add the dozen talented competitors who were not here (most of whom will be included in the FigureRX Mega Media Guide for 2008) to the mix we're potentially looking at a large log-jam at the top. We highly recommend to the NPC that the cutoff point of 5'2” be adjusted (just as 5'6” should be increased for the tall class) so more competitors are spread out within the medium classes.

A few athletes who ended up at the bottom could have been in the top fifteen, starting with Beni Lopez from San Antonio. We want to give special recognition to her because she has an incredible physique from top to bottom. It's simply a question of where that package fits on any given day, and if it would be better suited for bodybuilding. We hope that she will stay with figure, work on her posing a little bit, increase her bling, and then hit the stage to make an impact next year.

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------------Beni Lopez--------------------------Tina Cross-Arabia------------------------Rosa de la Cruz

Tina Cross-Arabia always presents some great curves with especially outstanding hamstrings and glutes, while two competitors from Mexico (Maria Figueroa and Rosa de la Cruz) brought a heavy amount of muscle and were overlooked. Traci Hall has beautiful legs but could improve her upper body size and conditioning, while Eva Lee deserves to at least move up to the middle of the pack.

Candice Houston from Nevada took a well deserved unanimous win in the Masters Figure Class A division. Michelle Dennis came in with an etched physique and was rewarded with a 2nd place finish just ahead of Californian Jennifer DeJoya. Among this group, we would have placed Debra Lavette and Traci Hall higher and elevated Beni Lopez into the top seven.

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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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www.FigureRX.com

Open Figure Class B (over 5'2” and up to and including 5'4”) was all about Tampa personal trainer Amy Thompson, who looked stunningly perfect from every angle in her second show of the year. Amy is a model of efficiency, when she competes she shows up at her best. In her only previous show this year she won her class at Junior Nationals in Chicago, and at the North Americans she won her class, the overall, and an IFBB pro card. We can't wait to feature her in our 2007 figure pro card class article in FigureRX Magazine.

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--------------------------------------------------------Amy Thompson

California Bea Fox actually won the one piece round, but we like her best in her two piece because of her solid midsection. Bea also has a close to perfect figure shape, making this class very competitive. Team Performance Ready athlete Anna Laratta is stunningly beautiful whether you see her on stage or in the lobby, but like many of the athletes from Colorado she needs to decide if she wants to add a little bit more upper body size in the off-season. Anna's look fit in well at North Americans but was not as favored at contests early in the season. New Hampshire's Chrissy Burton was not quite as tight as she came in when placing 2nd at the USA's, but she is one of the best posers in the class and has a great upper body.

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--------------Bea Fox---------------------------------Anna Laratta---------------------------Chrissy Burton

At FigureRX we like it a lot when a competitor looks her best and then is rewarded with her best placing of the year, and that was the case with Columbus native Ginger Redeker. Her showing in Cleveland should be a great spring board for her contests in 2008. The other Canadian competitor who impressed us the most was Ontario's Nancy DiNino. We know that Nancy is a star on the promotional and content side of the fitness industry, but at this show she hit the stage looking the best that we have ever seen her as a competitor and received a 2nd place finish in her one piece.

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-----------Ginger Redeker--------------------------Nancy DiNino---------------------------Sousan Collias

Texan Priscilla Barrera and Sousan Collias from West Virginia are both diamonds in the rough, marketable athletes who have a lot of potential that needs to be refined for the national stage. Stacy Adams, a FigureRX favorite who came in at close to her personal best, needs to bring her upper arms up a little bit to match her delt development for next year. We felt that Stacy's presentation was as beautiful in Cleveland as it has ever been but she was unfortunately overlooked by the judges. Amazingly enough we are at a loss for words to explain Emily Nicholson's fall from 3rd place in Las Vegas to 15th here. We felt her physique and conditioning were similar at both contests.

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-----------Priscilla Barrera--------------------------Stacy Adams---------------------------Ann Pratt

Ann Laratta won the Masters Figure Class B division, and among this group Ann Pratt was very impressive in her two piece with her etched midsection and she could have moved up. Ann was hurt somewhat, however, by the color and pattern of her one piece suit, which created an illusion of width. Nancy DiNino placed first in the one piece round.

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Sometimes we like close battles, but at other times it's fun to sit back and watch a competitor dominate. In Open Figure Class C (over 5'4” and up to and including 5'6”) the dominant athlete was Tiffany Rabon from South Carolina. Tiffany scored perfect fives (top score from all judges) in both the one piece and two piece rounds, and to put that in perspective, not only did no other athlete get a five in the entire contest but the next best score was a seven awarded to overall winner Amy Thompson. Tiffany has been on the cusp of great things all year and she made some minor tweaks to her posing suit and tightened up her hamstrings. We would have awarded a pro card to Tiffany and placed her second overall to Amy.

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--------------------------------------------------------Tiffany Rabon

Tiffany's scores were even more impressive once you consider the quality of the rest of the class and that it was the largest of the night. Amanda Quinlan came in at an all time best with superb leg and abdominal conditioning and she was rewarded with a 5th place finish in her two piece. We think that there are ways that Amanda can appear softer and move up the charts without sacrificing her conditioning, by altering some of the sharper lines created by her upper body stance. Danielle Kifer has all of the tools and a gorgeous physique with especially stellar delts, but was slightly off on her upper leg conditioning during the one piece pre-judging. She bounced back considerably the next day and placed 3rd in her two piece, and we know there is a pro card in her future. Canadian Natalie Waples is a beautiful example of a certain type of physique and presentation, but she plans to spend the next year preparing her body for the international stage and we're glad to see she was encouraged with a top five placing in her first time out.

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------------Amanda Quinlan------------------------Danielle Kifer---------------------------Natalie Waples

Danielle Edmonds dropped from 2nd in Las Vegas to 5th here, probably because the North Americans tend to favor a little less muscular look. She put together a very solid 2007 season, finishing in the top five in all but one of the five national level shows she entered. Ohio's Stephanie Blocker came in looking better than ever in her two piece, but she was hurt by the cut of her one piece suit which made her torso look straight up and down. Terri Jett might have looked a little too solid for the judges particularly in her quads and midsection, while Betty Napier shows off a great leg and glute shape.

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------------Danielle Edmonds------------------------Erin Parrish---------------------------Dawn Parker

We're somewhat at a loss to explain Erin Parrish's placings, other than the obvious penalty for too much muscle. She has tried coming in softer at some shows and harder at others, and was holding a little water during the second pre-judging, but at some point her tremendous marketability should be the x-factor that propels her into the top five. We're hopeful that Erin does not have to sacrifice too much muscle and conditioning in order to get there. New Yorker Dawn Parker also carries some good size while Charity Tinsley sported one of the best back and hamstring combinations of the show. Alma Olvera from Mexico has excellent quads but needs to work on her posing and overall symmetry.

We feel strongly that several competitors placing at or near the bottom were badly overlooked, including Tina Todd, Ginger Hutchinson and Bree Marsh. Ginger is from North Carolina and has the total package. Her photos speak for themselves and we look forward to seeing her on stage again next year. We suspect that Bree just fell under the radar at her national debut, but she is a future star and given the time we have no doubt that her placings will improve.

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------------Ginger Hutchinson------------------------Bree Marsh---------------------------Janet West

Natalie Calland took second place behind Jan Horn in Masters Figure Class C. Natalie is another consistent performer with a solid physique, but she still needs to work on her makeup as her face tends to look darker on stage than her body. We thought that Janet West had the best physique of this group and should have placed higher, while Shari Yates was somewhat penalized this time out for her quad conditioning. Finally, Noreene Castillo nailed her stage presentation and was rewarded with a third call-out in her two piece.
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In Open Figure Class D (over 5'6”), Nancy Georges came in even better than expected – in fact she looked so good we are ready to declare her as one of the few competitors who has the genetics to step on stage and go toe to toe with Valerie Waugaman. Any look at Nancy's physique begins with her side abdominals which are visible and tight, moving down to a remarkable quad sweep, tiny knee joints and great calves. Her inner back is one of the best on stage, to go along with capped shoulders and those same small joints in her arms. Nancy was at her best for this show, and we suspect that the judges may have had in the back of their minds that they could award her a pro card in the master's division while placing her second in the open division. When athletes like Nancy do well it's good for the overall direction of the sport, and she did get that pro card on her birthday by winning the masters overall title. We would not be surprised if she somehow finds her way to the Figure Olympia stage this year! Nancy will be making her pro debut at the Tournament of Champions in two weeks, information on that show can be found Here.

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------------------------------------------------------Nancy Georges

That's not meant to be a slight to Class D winner Jessica Steffens, who we have mentioned several times in the past and who went home with a class win, a second place finish overall and an IFBB pro card. After the dearth of pro cards in the tall class during the first half of the season, and the huge number of competitors waiting in the wings, FigureRX was thrilled to see two of the three card winners come out of Class D. Jessica showed up at North Americans with an ideal overall shape but without excessive hardness – a winning formula at this show last year and apparently this year as well. We would have preferred a little more definition in her midsection, but she looked tight and presented the right amount of quad size and separation.

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------------Jessica Steffens------------------------Kristen Crigler---------------------------Kim Tilden

We were pleasantly surprised by Northern Virginian Kristen Crigler, even though we knew she had incredible potential it is still remarkable to see her improvements in the past few weeks and for anyone to place 3rd at the North Americans in their first national level show is quite an accomplishment. Stephanie McDonald held the momentum that she built up in Las Vegas, while NPC Los Angeles champion Melissa Deal took her rightful place in the top five on the national stage for the first time. We would have liked to see Kim Tilden from Ontario place higher and would have included her in the first call outs for both rounds, she was one of the top two Canadian competitors of the weekend. Kim has a great background and we hope to feature her in RX Magazine at some point.

Holly Powell's legs came in looking great for this show, but for next season we'd like to see her work on her stance to project more shoulder and upper body width and symmetry. In the past we have underestimated Christine Aguilar from Arizona, but she has quietly put together a remarkably consistent year with several top ten finishes since her class win at the Emerald Cup. Pennsylvania's Sarah Wernert has tremendous potential, which is why we would like to see her dramatically improve her presentation – posing suit style and flash, jewelry, and a different hair style, to go along with her excellent tan and conditioning.

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------------Sarah Wernert--------------------------Elise Prucha-----------------------------Lori Staats

Christina Dzieduszycki was not as on as she was at Canadian Nationals, but she still deserved to place much higher here. Avis Ware looks good in a front stance but from the side it becomes apparent that she is carrying a bit too much muscle for this type of show and for her body type. New Yorker Elise Prucha's midsection is superb and she placed better in her two piece, but the fact that such a talented athlete finished 15th here is an indication of the quality of this show and height class. Alia Anor is a new (to us) competitor from Florida, and she has a lot of the raw tools but needs to improve her overall conditioning and deal with some tanning smudges that were distracting. Lori Staats has a gorgeous defined and symmetrical physique with good presentation, and she could place significantly higher on any given day, depending on the show. At North Americans she was likely marked down for her leg muscularity and separation.

Nancy Georges dominated Masters Figure Class D on her way to the overall title. Holly Powell, Christine Aguilar and Elise Prucha were very evenly matched while Lori Staats should have placed considerably higher.

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Check out the official web site of Team FigureRX athlete and NPC Figure Star Allison Moyer
at http://www.allifit.com/. Her web site features access to exclusive photos and videos
along with her personal online training diary!

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the banners look awesome stephen ... good work:)

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www.DanielleRouleau.com

Congrats to all of the ladies who participated in the North American...this was by far, the most fun I had at a show all season. I am already looking foward to next season! Good job Tiffany P. (open, A class)...you bought your A game!!!

I hope everyone has a great, productive off season!

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Debra Lavette
ON/ABB Sponsored Athlete

Our coverage of the IFBB North Americans is now complete. Thank you everyone!!

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Great Coverage of the show, Stephen. Thanx for all the kind words. I totally enjoyed my first natonal level show.
Congrats to all the girls! To Nancy, Way to go Girl!!!! What a B-day present

AWESOME coverage!!!

Thanks for the mention. Not only was this my best placing, it was the best time I've ever had at a show. Jennifer De Joya, Tiffany Procopio and Carin Hawkins are great competitors and fun girls...it was great hanging out with them.

p.s. I couldn't agree with you more...I need to bend my arm on my side pose! Thanks for noticing...I'll definitely remember that next season!

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Debra Lavette
ON/ABB Sponsored Athlete