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THE IFBB NIGHT OF CHAMPIONS – MAY 22, 2003
WOMEN'S BODYBUILDING REPORT

By Bill Dobbins

A YEAR OF CHANGE

Last year Wayne Demilia included women as part of Night of Champions for the first time (not counting unsanctioned participation by women many years ago).  The men competed on Saturday night but "Ladies Night" was held on Friday and included female bodybuilding, figure and fitness.  Given how expensive it is to produce events in New York City, this two-day competition was evidently not profitable.  In any event, this year there was only a Saturday contest that included both male and female bodybuilders.  No fitness or figure, to the relief of many.

There is often controversy associated with IFBB bodybuilding contests.  This year this was even more the case as the IFBB announced that Wayne Demilia, head of the IFBB Pro Division and promoter of Night of Champions and the Olympia Weekend as well, would no longer be associated with the federation after the conclusion of this event and that Jim Manion would be taking his place.  We were also advised of considerable change in the promotion of the Olympia in Las Vegas and this information is available on the IFBB Pro Division website.

Everyone was waiting all weekend for the other shoe to drop, for some kind of announcement or statement from Demilia.  But no such announcement was forthcoming.  It was interesting to note, however, that many of the IFBB officials who would normally be on hand for this event – Jim Manion and Rob Wilkins, for example – had decided not to attend.

The repercussions of these changes are yet to be fully understood.  The only immediate result was that Jan Tan cancelled her Classic for 2004 claiming that she would not be able to get all the pro contracts signed and returned on time since that had been the responsibility of Demilia.

THE VENUE

As in 2003, the competition was held at the City Center in midtown Manhattan.  This is a first rate venue with excellent lighting – and no attempt was made to make the lighting particularly "theatrical" so we could actually see what the bodybuilders looked like.  Covering the show remains somewhat problematical because of archaic New York union rules.  I've belonged to three unions or trade guilds, so I'm hardly anti-labor.  But when stagehands expect a share of the profit of any commercial exploitation of the work of working photojounalists you can understand why this kind of union contract (if not unions like this in general) have been gradually fading out of the picture.

WEIGHT DIVISIONS

The women's bodybuilding contest was held in two weight classes.  While the field did not include the kind of depth you see at the Arnold or the Olympia, there were several top-ranked women in the competition.  At the top of this list was Yaxeni Oriquen, perennially a top-five finisher both in Columbus and Las Vegas and a bodybuilder who could easily win either at some point in the future.  Certainly, the women were in excellent shape and the audience definitely got its money's worth.

THE LIGHTWEIGHTS

A number of federation officials and physique magazine publishers have been saying for the past few years how impressed they have been with how attractive pro women lineups have become.  This speaks more for a change in their perception than in the women competing, but their endorsement is welcome nonetheless.  Certainly nobody had any reason to complain about the lightweight class at the Night of Champions 2003.

Vilma Caez won the class and she has never looked better.  Vilma is one of those female bodybuilders who has all the hard muscle you could ask for, has both an aesthetic body and attractive face, plus comes across as sexy without the kind of deliberate attempt at erotic appeal that can seem sleazy in many cases.  Vilma has certainly never looked better than she did in NY.  She got mostly first place votes from the judges but this placing was not unanimous.  Some of the judges (a couple who placed her 3rd in some rounds and one who gave her a 4th) demonstrates why it is necessary to have a large panel of judges and throw out the high and low scores. 

It also shows why the IFBB continues to keep the scoring of individual judges secret, since it would be difficult to justify how some them should remain qualified to remain as judges based on performance.  But it remains true that judges tend to get away with deviations in judging women that would not be as easily tolerated by the federation if it happened judging pro men.

Marjo Lehtonen placed second and continues to look good in pro contests and no doubt can look forward to more future success.  Third was Toni Norman, who could probably use a little more solid mass in order to be competitive in shows like the Arnold or the Olympia but has a highly aesthetic physique, was in great shape and comes across great on stage.

Gayle Moher placed 4th and was in excellent shape as well.  Nonetheless, the judges who gave her first place votes should take another look at Vilma Caez and perhaps take a refresher course in what bodybuilding is all about – whether involving competition among men or women. 

The only major disappointment in the lightweight class was Fannie Barrios.  Of all the contests Fannie has entered in the past few years this is the first in which she didn't step on stage in really great shape.   But even top pro champions like Ronnie Coleman and Iris Kyle show up occasionally not looking their best for competition.  It's just that difficult to do.  But her ability to improve contest after contest has been one of Fannie's great advantages so hopefully she will get back on track for her next appearance.

THE HEAVYWEIGHTS

Yaxeni Oriquen is big, shapely and one of the best female bodybuilders in the world.  So when she enters a contest in which she is not opposed by such quality opponents as Lenda Murray or Iris Kyle, she would really have to be out of shape not to win.  She wasn't and she did.   Yaxeni has everything she needs to win at the highest levels except a certain degree of ÒpolishÓ – quality of refinement.  This may be something as simple as coming in a few pounds lighter (especially standing next to Lenda or Iris).  But nothing additional was necessary to be a clear winner in this contest.

(Except on the scoresheets of certain judges, one of whom had Yaxeni 11th in round one and 7th in the compulsory posing round!!!  How badly do you have to screw up as a judge in order to get fired?  Maybe the new version of the Pro Division will police it's judges more strictly, but don't hold your breath.)

Betty Pariso placed second and she continues to be a wonder of pro competition for women.  Betty is closer to 50 years old than to 40 and she can be depended on to come in looks as ripped as women in the lineup who are 10 or 15 years younger than she is.   A few years ago she learned to improve her overall look by paying more attention to things like make up and hair style.  Plus her posing is always fun and entertaining.  Now that she's a successful promoter let's hope this doesn't prevent her from making the effort necessary to keep competing in top pro events.

Heather Foster, a perennial New York favorite, place third and was also in excellent shape.  Lisa Aukland was 4th and should be able to do even better in the future.  Lisa is another bodybuilders who needs an increase in her overall "refinement" and quality.  She is also a strength and that may be her weakness.  Doing heavy lifting for strength events tends to thicken the physique in ways that are not compatible with bodybuilding excellence.  All women who try to go back and forth between strength and physique events should take note.

I'd like to make one special note of Maria Calo.  Maria has a muscle mass and density, plus outstanding muscle shape, that qualifies her as a Òfemale Hercules.Ó  In the past she has not managed to create a kind of overall look and appearance that allowed her to do well in pro bodybuilding competition.   But she was the best she's ever been on stage in NY.  She was lean (at 145 pounds she weighed 10 pounds less than Heather Foster!) and shapely, her hair and make up were well done but I suspect the judges tended to overlook her.  Judges in bodybuilding, it has been observed before, tend to see competitors in a "rear view mirror" – once they have a certain view of an individual, good or bad, it takes a lot to get their attention and change their mind.

But given a judging panel where one judge gives the winner of the whole contest 11th place in one round, it's really not that surprising that Maria Calo might have been somewhat overlooked.  In any event, she wasn't totally dismissed, since they did give her 6th.  She can take hope from the fact that apparently somebody was paying attention.

THE OVERALL

The reason the IFBB introduced weight classes into pro women's competition (and should do the same with the men) was evidently in the overall posedown with Yaxeni standing next to Vilma Caez.  Both looked terrific but the difference in body size was just too much.   Yaxeni outweighed Vilma by almost 40 pounds!  The IFBB doesn't publish overall posedown scores but Yaxeni may well have gotten a unanimous vote from the judges (except maybe that one who had her 7th and 11th earlier in the day).  

All the more reason for having weight classes.  Hopefully having three of them instead of two in the future.  That is, if the contest promoters can spare a little stage time from having dozens of fitness routines and endless quarter turns by the figure women. 

OBSERVATIONS

Posing – Some of the women are getting better at hitting and holding poses but there is still too much dancing, attempts to be "feminine" and a reluctance to hit and hold posing long enough for the judges and audience to see them and the photographers to get good shots.  As I've said before, if a pose is held long enough for good photography it means that EVERYONE ELSE has a chance to appreciate them as well.  By the way, this also includes interesting transition poses as well.  A lot of women use interesting transition poses simply as a way of going to one conventional, mandatory-type pose to another.  But it is the more create and interesting poses that best get the attention of the judges and the audience.

Strategy - To begin with, when you have a limited amount of time for your posing routine, don't waste it.  Don't slowly walk out on stage before you start your routine.  Begin in the middle and get to work.  Don't walk to each side of the stage and pose for the people in those areas of the theater.  They are not doing the judging!  The judges are right there in the middle.  And don't bore them. They've already seen  your compulsory poses.  Try to figure out posing variations that get their attention.  (Anyone who has a chance to see the video of Lenda Murray posing at the 2003 Ms. Olympia should do so.  It was highly unconventional, with few recognizable poses at all, but tremendously compelling.)

Getting Applause - It's a waste of effort to walk around the stage gesturing for the audience to give you applause. If they are not applauding it is because you are not exciting them enough by your physique, what kind of shape you are in or how dynamic your posing is. The one thing you can control during a contest is your posing. If you want applause, give the audience some reason to get enthusiastic. Don't just go through the motions. Watch how hard Ronnie Coleman works at strirring up the audience - and he's the best in the sport. Should you be doing less?

Posedowns – How many times does the purpose of a posedown need to be explained before a lot of female bodybuilders understand?  The idea is to challenge the competitors you are trying to beat.  Not to wander around the stage by yourself posing for your fans.  This is a judged round of competition, not a posing exhibition.  Watch how the men do it.  Get next to the competitors you are trying to defeat and hit your best shots.  Get some excitement going.  Show some effort and enthusiasm.  A boring posedown brings down the energy of the whole event and is not good for competitors, the promoters or the federation.  So suck it up and fight for your placing.

Publicity – Publicity isn't enough to win you a contest but it helps insure the judges will pay attention to you and it can make a big difference in how much money you make.  Entering major contests and looking good is an essential element of publicity.  But the next important thing is to get lots of good photos done.  Get them in magazines when you can and on your own website.  Have quality prints made and bring them to expos such as the ones at the Arnold and the Olympia.  Only a handful of people see you in a show.  Most only know what you look like and how good you are by seeing you in photos.  If you want to know what happens when you don't shoot photos, look at the career of Iris Kyle.  She hardly shoots any pictures and in spite of winning at the highest levels disappears between contests.  All that effort and so little to show for it.

 

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