Europa Promoter Unhappy With IFBB Pro Female Bodybuilders

Co-Promoter Betty Pariso

The promoters of the IFBB Europa Super show sent this eye-opening email out, discussing various concerns related to the behaviour of IFBB pro female bodybuilders who competed in the 2008 Europa Pro.

August 20, 2008

BW Editor's note:  It is odd that the web cast company required the promoters to jump through so many hoops in order to include the female bodybuilders.  Someone is vastly overrepresenting the costs of putting on a web cast -- essentially all you need is access, a web site, a laptop, and a camera.  It's not as expensive as shooting in HD like Repetrope.  The only major expenses should be paying for labor - announcers, technicians, etc, plus the access to the event which comes from being a blanket annual sponsor to all NPC events.  That doesn't negate the concern over athlete attitudes, but the promoters should get a greater level of cooperation from the web cast provider in the future - that shouldn't be an excuse for adjusting the show schedule.

We're not necessarily fans of having these conversations out in the open, these things should be discussed privately whenever possible, but since it is out there we have an obligation to publish it.  Thanks to the promoters for an enjoyable event.

The promoters of the IFBB Europa Super show sent this eye-opening email out, discussing various concerns related to the behaviour of IFBB pro female bodybuilders who competed in the 2008 Europa Pro. It came from promoters Ed Pariso and his wife Betty Pariso, a veteran IFBB pro bodybuilder and IFBB female bodybuilding rep.  The following is intended to be a direct quote: 

First let me say the only constant complaints I received at the Europa Super Show were from the Pro Women Bodybuilders.

The Show was too long:
The FBB's complained the show was too long. It was the largest show in the history for the IFBB. If you want to get it over fast, go to some of those smaller Pro Shows. With a record setting 127 in the Show, it is not fair to rush someone's time on stage just to get the show over. You would not want that done when it is your turn to stand on stage. So you had to sit around..big deal... it's a record setting show that included Women's BB on this big stage, at a big event and Web Cast around the World.

2 Day Show
The only way BB.COM would accommodate Women BB into the Web Cast, was to have it with the Men's show over 2 days. So Ed & I go to bat for the FBB and get this extra production expense to get this included in the Web Cast and get the Women more exposure, and all we got from the FBB was griping. Lets be clear....57 Pro Men, 38 Pro Figure and 16 Pro Fitness, all had to do the same thing, compete over 2 days.. and not one complaint, ...we only got attitude from the FBB's.

The FINALS opening
We had planned a big opening performance with all 127 Pro Athletes on stage at one time to be filmed live around the World. Unbelievable only 3 FBB showed up, and 2 Pro's had actually told Ed they were not coming back for that "crap". So we put something in place to showcase the FBB and show them in a different light to the world, and they don't show up, just because they are inconvenienced and had to show up early... and sit around for a while. What really surprised me was to tell a promoter to his face , they were not coming back for that "crap". These were 2 women that took home some of our prize money.

Special Awards
We had over 10 Special Awards for the Women BB and not one stayed around till after the Show finals to pick up any of these special awards. The Pro Fitness, Pro Figure and Pro Men all stayed around and showed up, but not one FBB was there, all the Trophies were still on the table when we cleaned up.

No Overall & 2 Weight Classes
We felt the show is about getting your Olympia qualification, 2 weight classes and getting the Women on the Web Cast. We are the only event that featured the Women on a live Web Cast, and because of camera time and cost we were limited on what time allotment we could have. Another factor was we did not want to dilute the prize money. I fought hard for weight classes, which is what the women wanted, in the end it has proved to me as a Promoter to be a problem not worth it. We get no additional competitors that a single class show gets, and just more angry FBB backstage.

Hotel Photography
We even had complaints about the Hotel not being photograph friendly. We had complaints from the Hotel that the FBB were standing on the waterfall in a thong at the Hotel check-in area doing a photo shoot, and also parading around in their posing suits in the elevators, without cover ups. Not all, but some photographers and FBB showed a complete lack of respect to the Hotel and the other Hotel guests. This showed a complete lack of class and does nothing to helped the image of FBB.

What was amazing to me is I would have thought the Men would be the ones to complain, but all we got from them was praise. The fitness women who actually sat around just as long, understood that big shows...especially record setting big shows take time.

Let me say that for the 2 or 3 FBB that did support us...thank you. All in all I am very disappointed in the way we were treated, talked to and disrespected by the FBB's. Part of what the Pro FBB's do not get is this was all done this way to encourage BB.COM to include Women BB in the World Web Cast. In the end Ed & I were trying to make the show special for the FBB, and include them in everything we could to get the additional exposure that the women are always asking for....and all we got was "attitude" from the bodybuilding women.

Putting on Women's Bodybuilding is at best a very, very hard sell for a Promoter, but for the Women Bodybuilders to make it even harder, does not make sense. This proves to me the Pro FBB have no clue on the reality of Women's Bodybuilding, and the decline in the amount of shows and the lack of Promoters that support our sport.

As the IFBB Women's Rep, Promoter, and a constant supporter of Women's Bodybuilding, after the show was over I felt disappointed and disrespected from only one group...my own peers.

PS.  By the way our e-mails are flooded with praise from Vendors, Guests, other Athletes, and IFBB officials that this event has become one of the biggest, fun & most successful events in the World.

Because of this overwhelming success from the Corporate Sponsors that attended the EXPO, we have already locked in our NEW 2nd EXPO in Orlando (Europa Show of Champions).

Betty Pariso
Vision Star Entertainment Inc - President
2009 Europa Super Show-Dallas
2009 Europa Show of Champions-Orlando