Showing posts with label IFBB. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IFBB. Show all posts

Thursday, December 22, 2011

2012 Fitness International Invite List

It's OUT!!!! The 2012 Arnold list has just been released, with 17 names for the Fitness International! Did you favorites make it on there?

2012 Fitness International (17)
Michelle Blank
Jodi Boam
Myriam Capes
Regiane Da Silva
Tina Durkin
Allison Ethier
Adela Garcia
Oksana Grishina
Tanji Johnson
Diana Monteiro
Julie Palmer
Kayde Puckett
Camala Rodriguez
Daniella Ruban
Kizzy Vaines
Sheri Vucick
Bethany Wagner

There will be more Arnold-related posts as we get closer to the big event. Until then, congrats to everyone that made the list! 2012 Arnold...here we come!! 

Friday, October 21, 2011

Mindi O'Brien Retires from Fitness

Fitness lost one of its top competitors today, as Mindi O'Brien announced via Youtube today that she is retiring from fitness competition. It sucks to leave a sport or anything you love for so long due to an injury. She's had a great career spanning 14 years, with great routines and what some people call one of the best physiques in fitness history, capped off by her trademark arms that would give any female bodybuilder a run for their money. Some of her highlights include competing in 6 straight Fitness Olympias (although she was qualified for 7, but skipped out of this year's show due to injury) and 5 straight Arnold Classics. She would finish her career at the first-ever Arnold Classic Europe, placing 6th.

Photo credit: RxMuscle.com


Here's a video of Mindi during her trip to Spain (including her fitness routine and posing round) and announcing her retirement from fitness:


What does the future hold for her? We're unsure, but we think she will stick around in the fitness industry in some form or capacity. We over at Save Women's Fitness Now congratulate Mindi on an incredible journey, and we wish her the best of luck in the next chapter of her life!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Tanji Johnson Wins Arnold Classic Europe Fitness

Photo credit: Rx Muscle


History was made this weekend at the first-ever Arnold Classic Europe took place. Tanji Johnson, one of the top competitors in fitness and according to many a future Fitness Olympia and/or Fitness International champion, will forever be in the history books as the first-ever Arnold Classic Europe Fitness champion. Bethany Cisternino took 2nd, Regiane DeSilva took 3rd place. Here are the full results as well as scorecard for this historic event:

1. Tanji Johnson
2. Bethany Cisternino
3. Regiane DeSilva
4. Myriam Capes
5. Tina Durkin
6. Mindi O'Brien
7. Diana Monteiro
8. Kayde Puckett

Photo cradit: IFBBPro.com


Congrats to Tanji on the win, and to everyone that competed at the Arnold Classic Europe! You all made history this weekend!

Saturday, October 1, 2011

IFBB Advisory Rule about Competition Contracts and No-Show at Finals

This was released last week, from the IFBB:

Credit: IFBBPro.com

Let's start with the athlete competition contract ruling. There are those that take their time and want to see who else is competing and maybe they will wait until the very last minute to send in a contract. With this new ruling, that will be reduced dramatically as competitors MUST submit their contracts no later than a month (30 days) before the competition they plan to enter. And if they DO wait, they gotta pay up to the tune of 200 dollars. So make up your mind early, folks, and go ahead and submit those contracts.

As far as the no-show at finals are concerned, good ruling on that as well. If you make it, don't bail out unless you have a legitimate excuse. If you're literally feeling like you're gonna pass out, then you clearly excused from the finals. Your health is more important than a trophy and a spot at the Olympia. But if you're skipping to be skipping, you better hope it's a VERY GOOD excuse, because it's gonna cost ya $1,000. And until it's paid off, you will be kept from competing elsewhere.

While I personally love these rulings, some of you might not. What are YOUR thoughts on the new IFBB rulings? Post them below.

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for October 2011: Kayde Puckett

This month's IFBB Fitness Spotlight belongs to one of the newer competitors in IFBB, Kayde Puckett!

Photo credit: Muscular Development

Kayde is from Northern Virginia, now residing in North Carolina! While her parents wanted her to do dancing and piano, she wanted to do martial arts when she was little. Her parents decided to let her do martial arts, and from there was the beginning of what would be the start of a great fitness career ahead of her. It was during her martial arts days that led her to discover weight training. She began to pick up weights at age 14 ana hasn't looked back since. That and her martial arts training (which she continued through college) paved the way for her to become a fitness competitor.

When she moved to Raleigh, I was unable to find a martial arts school that would fit her needs. It turned out to be a blessing in disquise as she focues more on weight training anf found fitness in the process. When she saw her first fitness show, she was instantly hooked. She began to train for fitness in April 2008, and a year after that, at the NPC Team Universe in 2009, she won the overall fitness title and her pro card, and she's now an IFBB Pro.

Kayde will be making history this month as she will participate in the first-ever Arnold Classic Europe. With her successful track record, the sky's the limit for what she can accomplish in the IFBB fitness division.

Photo credit: Lift Studios/Isaac Hinds


COMPETITION HISTORY:

10th Place - Europa Show of Champions, Orlando, FL (April, 2010)
8th Place - NY Pro Fitness Classic, New York, NY (April, 2010)
14th Place - Fitness International, Columbus, OH (March, 2010) - Pro Debut
7th Place - IFBB World Championships, Como, Italy (October, 2009)
1st Place Tall Class and Overall(Earned IFBB Pro Card) - NPC Team Universe and National Fitness Championships, New York, NY(September 2009)
3rd Place - NPC Jr. Nat's, Chicago, IL(June 2009)
4th Place - NPC Jr. USA's, Charleston, SC(May 2009)
1st Place - Carolina Clash, Kannapolis, NC(Oct 2008)
2nd Place - SC Excalibur, Charleston, SC(Aug 2008)

For more on Kayde, visit her website at http://www.kaydepuckett.com/.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

New Olympia Qualifications for 2012 and Beyond

For those unaware, the 2012 Olympia is aiming to be more elite with some new changes. Here's the official IFBB Advisory Notice on Olympia qualifications, beginning next year:

Photo credit: IFBB Pro

When you stop to think about it, it's a great way to make the Olympia more special then it already is. Yes, this does mean there will be LESS competitors on the Olympia stage from this point forward, but the Olympia is supposed to represent the absolute BEST of this industry, right? I have no problem with it. Besides, For those divisions that might lack a few competitors, invites could be issued. So placing in the top 3 in ANY competition is still important, as it can do a long way in possibly seeing yourself on the Olympia stage beginning next year and the years to come. Also, there's men's and women's physique that's going to be part of the Olympia soon. The rest of this year's shows are NOT affected by this rule. This will take place at the start of the 2012 season.

I'll admit, when I first heard about these changes, I wasn't too keen on them in terms of women's fitness is concerned, as there are not as many shows for fitness as there are for figure and bikini. But after reading this, my worries died down...for now, at least. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how much this will truly affect women's fitness.

What are YOUR thoughts on the new Olympia qualifications? Do you think this will positively or negatively affect women's fitness? Post your thoughts below or send a Tweet to us at SaveFitnessNow.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

2011 Olympia Webcast Details

The good folks at Bodybuilding.com will once again be providing a free webcast of the Olympia, taking place this weekend. Here's the direct link to the Olympia webcast:

http://streaming.bodybuilding.com/2011-olympia-webcast/

Mr Olympia prejudging, Ms Olympia Finals, Fitness Olympia Finals & Bikini Olympia Finals will take place on Friday evening. with the finals of Mr Olympia & Figure Olympia taking place on Saturday evening.Women's prejudging will not be live via Webcast, however the prejudging is usually taped by Bodybuilding.com, so they will probably post the video a few days after the Olympia has concluded.


Wednesday, September 7, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for September 2011: Adela Garcia

With the Olympia this month, the IFBB Fitness Spotlight for September 2011 was a no-brainer. This month's IFBB Spotlight goes to one of the most successful IFBB fitness champions in history: Adela Garcia!

Photo credit: Muscular Development


Adela is arguably THE top fitness competitor in the world today, and for good reason. She's competed (AND WON) many titles, including multiple Fitness Internationals and Fitness Olympias.She was born in Cabrera, Dominican Republic and raised in San Juan Puerto Rico along with two older brothers. For those wondering, yes, she was a tomboy. Growing up active, she tried anything and everything you could think of in sports, including volleyball, softball, and basketball. This wasn't a sport, but there was a time that she (along with her brothers) putting forks in electrical outlets to see if they could see their skeletons!! Crazy, huh?! Despite all of that, there was one sport she never officially participated in, and it's the main sport that is credited a lot for fitness competitions: gymnastics.  She wanted to take gymnastics classes, but financial issues kept her from doing so. So what did she do? She tried cartwheels and back-walkovers at home and kept myself busy playing games with my two brothers.

At the age of 17, she was introduced to weight training. In college, she joined the Army’s ROTC program,  After being in the ROTC for a couple of years, she decided to take a trip throughout the states to learn English. While I visited California, I remember a couple of people suggesting that I try to compete in a fitness show. She was a bit skeptical because she did not have any type of dance background to compete. She declined that time and moved back to Puerto Rico in 1995. During that time, she taught aerobics classes and did some personal training at the gym on a military base. It was there where she saw a poster for the NPC Armed Forces Fitness Championships in North Carolina. She entered that contest and ended up placing second and was immediately hooked from that point on. She would compete in more local and nationals shows until 1999, where she took the overall fitness title at th 1999 USA Fitness Championship and earned my IFBB pro card. And the rest, as they say, is history.

There have been many great fitness competitors to come and go, but Adela has proven time and time again that she's among the all-time greats, and she hopes to cement her place in history at the 2001 Olympia, as she will be looking to win her 6th Fitness Olympia title, a feat no other fitness competitor has ever accomplished. When you think of fitness, bottom line, there's no one who solidifies the sport more than Adela Garcia.

Photo credit: Fitness Rx


COMPETITION HISTORY:

2011
Arnold Classic-first place

2010
Fitness Olympia-first place
Arnold Classic-first place

2009
Fitness Olympia-first place
Europa Super Show-third place

2007
Fitness Olympia-first place
Houston Pro Figure-third place
Arnold Classic-third place

2006
Fitness Olympia-first place
Arnold Classic-first place

2005

Sacramento Pro Fitness-first place
Fitness Olympia-third place
Arnold Classic-second place

2004
Fitness Olympia-first place
Arnold Classic-first place

2003
IFBB New York City Pro Fitness-Overall
IFBB Fitness International-second place

2002
IFBB GNC Show Of Strength Fitness-second place
IFBB Fitness Olympia-fourth place
IFBB Pittsburgh Pro Fitness-Overall
IFBB Atlantic States Pro Fitness-Overall
IFBB New York City Pro Fitness-Overall
IFBB Fitness International-fourth place

2001
IFBB Fitness Olympia-fourth place
IFBB Pittsburgh Pro Fitness-third place
IFBB Fitness International-third place

2000
IFBB Jan Tana Classic Pro Fitness-second place
IFBB Fitness Olympia-fifth place
IFBB Pittsburgh Pro Fitness-fifth place
IFBB Atlantic City Pro Fitness-sixth place
IFBB Fitness International-eighth place

1999
NPC USA Fitness Championships-Overall (IFBB Professional Qualifier)

1998
NPC Junior National Fitness Championships-second place short class
IFBB North American Fitness Championships-sixth place short class
NPC National Fitness Championships-eighth place short class
NPC USA Fitness Championships-ninth place short class

1996
NPC Pennsylvania Fitness Championships-fourth place
NPC National Fitness Championships-twelfth place

1995
NPC Europa Sports Fitness Championships-second place

For more on Adela, visit her website at http://www.adelafitness.com.  



Monday, August 1, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for August 2011: Trish Warren

This month's IFBB Fitness Spotlight goes to one half of the arguably THE top IFBB couple in the game today and a future mother, Trish Warren!

Photo credit: FLEX Online


Trish would describe herself as the "small town country girl with dreams as big as the Texas sky". She was on a cheerleading scholarship, which she did for a couple of year, and then decided to enter fitness competitions. She joined a small gym and hired a trainer and began my journey to being a top fitness star. That gym would be the very place she would met a man named Branch Warren. Little did anyone expect what would go down after that for BOTH Trish and Branch.

Trish would go on to win her very first competition, the Ronnie Coleman Classic in 1999, and from that point on, she was hooked. She would win her pro card in 2002 at NPC Nationals, and from there on she would go on to compete in many events, including the Arnold and Olympia. Along the way, she has refined her routines and her physique to be one of the best in the world. In fact, Trish is currently the number THREE fitness competitor on the planet, right behind Adela Garcia and Tanji Johnson. Her journey to being THE best will have to take a backseat, though, and for VERY good reason. Announced last month (July), Trish and Branch are expecting their first child together!! Congrats to the Warren family! I have no doubt in my mind that when the time's right, Trish will return to the stage and pick up right where she left off; aiming to win the Fitness Olympia and/or Fitness International title and prove to the world that she is the best.

Photo credit: Muscular Development



COMPETITION HISTORY:
1999 Ronnie Coleman Classic 1st
2002 Jr. Nationals 1st and Overall
2002 Nationals Earned Pro Card
2008 NY Pro Fitness 2nd (qualifed for 1st Olympia)
2008 Houston Pro 10th
2008 Fitness Olympia 9th
2009 Arnold Classic Fitness International 7th
2009 NY Pro Fitness 2nd
2009 Fitness Olympia 10th
2010 Arnold Classic Fitness International 4th
2010 New York Pro Fitness 2nd
2010 Fitness Olympia 3rd
2011 Arnold Classic Fitness International 3rd

For more on Trish, visit her website at http://www.trishwarrenfitness.com

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Jenny Worth Returns to Her Roots This Weekend!



For those attending the NPC Southern States Championships this weekend (July 8-9) are in for one heck of a treat. Jenny Worth will be guest performing at the show! For the first time since having her child, she will be back on stage to perform a fitness routine.

According to Jenny, she's doing it for the love of the sport that's made her a star in the first place, women's fitness, and with this performance, she hopes to put women's fitness back on the map and hope to get people talking about Jenny again. During her interview with FitGems Nation earlier this year, she mentioned that she wouldn't mind returning to compete when she felt the time was right. Could this guest appearance be the beginning of a comeback for the 2001 Fitness International champion? I wouldn't put it past her, as many people have said that she's among the best to never win the Fitness Olympia title. That will remain to be see whether she returns to competition, but it will be great for those attending the Southern States to see an IFBB Fitness legend on stage.

The show will start at 7PM Eastern time, with her appearance taking place around 9pm July 8th. Below is the location of the show and where and who to contact for tickets and more information about the Southern States:
WAR MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM
800 NE 8th Street
FT. LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA
TICKETS AND INFO: contact
PETER W. POTTER, USA SPORTS PROMOTIONS OF FL
phone: 954.763.2718 - email: usasports@juno.com

We wish Jenny the best of luck in her return to the stage and hopes this could lead to bigger things in the future! For more on Jenny, visit her website at http://www.jennyworthfitness.com and visit her Yahoo fan club at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jenny_worth, and "like" Jenny Worth Fitness on Facebook.

Thursday, June 30, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for July 2011: Myriam Capes

This month's fitness spotlight belongs to the highest ranking fitness competitor in Canada, Myriam "Mimi" Capes!

Photo credit: Flex Online


Myriam is a IFBB Fitness Pro from Canada. She began her fitness career at the tender age of 17. Before becoming a fitness star, she was a gymnast. Mimi would obtained her pro card in 2006. Her first year as a pro, she would qualify to compete in the 2007 Fitness Olympia. She would finish 18th of 19th in the competition. While that's near the bottom of the list, being able to compete in the Olympia in your first year as a pro is an accomplishment in an accomplishment in itself.

In her first year, she brought am impressive physique to the stage, but it was obvious things were gonna have to change a bit in order to make a major impact in IFBB Fitness. The following year, she refined her physique to a more streamlined, judge-pleasing look, and her routines became more and more entertaining. She also went from blonde to jet black hair, which took a lot of people by surprise at the time, but from what I've heard, she made the right choice. In 2009, things began to take shape for her as she returned to the Olympia and placed 6th, a FAR cry from 18th place. She would follow that up with her first Arnold in 2010, placing 8th at the Fitness International. Her 4th place finish at this past Olympia, along with her 5th place finish as this year's Arnold makes her the highest ranking Canadian fitness competitor of all time. Many feel it's only a matter of time before she nabbed her first pro fitness win, and it wouldn't surprise anyone if she becomes a future Fitness Olympia and/or Fitness International champion. She has the routine, physique, personality, and drive to make it happen.

Photo credit: Flex Online


COMPETITION HISTORY

2011 IFBB Toronto Pro Super Show-2nd
2011 IFBB Fitness International-5th
2010 IFBB Olympia-4th
2010 IFBB Europa Super Show-2nd
2010 IFBB Europa Show of Champions-3rd
2010 IFBB Fitness International-8th
2009 IFBB Olympia-6th
2009 IFBB Europa Super Show & Supplement Expo-2nd
2009 IFBB Europa Show of Champions-2nd
2009 IFBB New York Pro Fitness-5th
2008 IFBB Atlantic City Pro-4th
2008 IFBB 15th Annual Sports/Fitness Weekend & Europa IFBB Super Show-7th
2008 IFBB Houston Pro Bodybuilding, Fitness & Figure Contest-13th
2008 IFBB New York Pro Fitness-9th
2007 IFBB Olympia-18th
2007 IFBB Santa Susanna Bodybuilding And Figure Contest-2nd
2007 IFBB Europa Super Show-NP

To visit her website, check it out at http://www.myriamcapes.ca/.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Tonya Burkhardt to do "24 Hours of Booty"

Photo credit: IFBB Pro


I got this email from Tonya Burkhardt, and I wanted to share this with all of you. Please help out Tonya however you can.

I accepted the challenge once again of participating in 24 Hours of Booty. 24 Hours of Booty conducts annual 24 hour cycling events, which increase public awareness and support for cancer research and programs, while raising funds to support the LANCE ARMSTRONG FOUNDATION and local cancer organizations. I rode 123 miles last year and am still planning on riding post surgery and rehab this year.

I am asking you to help by supporting my fundraising efforts with a donation. Your tax-deductible gift will make a real difference in the cancer community. It is faster and easier than ever to support me as a 24 Hours of Booty participant - you can make your donation online by simply clicking on the link at the bottom of this message. If you would prefer, you can also send your tax-deductible contribution to the address listed below.

Any amount you can give, great or small, helps in the fight against cancer. I greatly appreciate your support and will keep you posted on my progress! Thank you so much!


Click here to visit Tonya's personal page.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for June 2011: Nicole Duncan

This month's IFBB Fitness Spotlight goes to all-around Southern girl Nicole Duncan!

Photo credit: Arnold Sports Festival website


Energetic, amazing, innovative. Those words come to mind when one thinks of Nicole Duncan. Nicole is one of the most energetic fitness competitors on the scene today, and one of the most talented as well. A Georgia girl through and through, she She became the 2006 NPC National Fitness Champion, which catapulted her to the rankings of the IFBB.

Ever since she won her pro card, she has climbed steadily into the top of the IFBB Fitness division. She has a great physique, but what she's best known for is her amazing energy during her routines. In fact, shortly after the passing of Michael Jackson in 2009 (may he Rest in Peace), she decided to incorporate a few of MJ's moves into her routine, and from everyone I've talked to, there were showstoppers.

Earlier this year, I actually had the chance to see Nicole in person during Wrestlemania 27. She was about a week or so out from competing at the New York Pro Fitness at the time. She was very sweet to everyone and yet made sure no one got out of line (hey, wrestling fans aren't the most gentle people on Earth. I should know. I'm one of them. LOL).

Truly one of the leader's in today's women's fitness division, this former Atlanta Falcon cheerleader is doing her best to entertain the crowd through her fitness routines, and it shows. Look for her to continue her path to becoming one of the best in IFBB women's fitness history.

Photo credit: Fitness Rx Magazine


COMPETITIVE HISTORY:

2011 IFBB New York Pro Fitness-8th
2011 IFBB Fitness International-10th
2010 IFBB Fort Lauderdale Pro Fitness-2nd
2010 IFBB Fitness Olympia-9th
2010 IFBB Europa Show of Champions Fitness-8th
2010 IFBB Fitness International-10th
2009 IFBB Ft. Lauderdale Pro Fitness-2nd
2009 IFBB Fitness Olympia-8th
2009 IFBB Atlantic City Fitness-4th
2009 IFBB Europa Super Show Fitness-3rd
2009 IFBB Fitness International-14th
2008 IFBB Fitness Olympia-11th
2008 IFBB Europa IFBB Super Show Fitness-3rd
2008 IFBB Houston Pro Fitness-5th
2008 IFBB New York Pro Fitness-4th
2007 IFBB Palm Beach Pro/Am Fitness-7th
2007 IFBB Europa Super Show Fitness-10th
2007 IFBB New York Pro Fitness-7th

For more on Nicole, visit her website at http://www.fitnicole.com, and follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/FitNicInc.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Mindi O'Brien to Make Fitness Return at Toronto Pro Supershow!

As announced on Muscle Insider (http://www.muscle-insider.com/content/mindi-obrien-compete-toronto-pro-supershow) Siouxcountry (http://www.siouxcountry.com/showthread.php?t=15891), IFBB Pro Mindi O'Brien is returning to the fitness stage for the first time since the 2009 Olympia! And what better way to make her fitness comeback than at in her home country of Canada at the IFBB Tornoto Pro Supershow on June 17-18! For those that don't know, Mindi reinjured her back by cracking her L4-5 vertebra during the 2009 Fitness Olympia, and recently returned to the stage for a bit as a figure competitor. Now this summer, she will be returning to her home in fitness, and it's only fitting that she does it in front of her friends, family, and fellow competitors. We at Save Women's Fitness Now wish Mindi nothing but the best of luck to her in her fitness return!

Mindi from 2008 Olympia
Photo credit: Muscular Development


Here a video of her 2009 Arnold routine, by Team Andro:

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Regaine Nails a Victory in Germany (2011 FIBO Power Pro Fitness Results)

The clear favorite going into this competition was Tanji Johnson, but due to passport problems, she could not make it to Germany, leaving Camala Rodriquez as frontrunner for the FIBO Power Pro Fitness, just coming off of a win the past weekend in New York. But two other fitness competitors had different ideas in mind. Regaine Da Silva emerged from the pact to pull off a big victory, her first pro win (I think) of her career, giving her big momentum heading into this year's Olympia and showing that she's no fluke in fitness. Diana Monteiro, in her pro debut, took runner-up honors and will join Regaine and Camala (who placed 3rd) in the 2011 Fitness Olympia. A great showing of talent overseas, and everyone that competed needs to be commented for their efforts. Congrats to you all!

RESULTS:
1. Regiane DaSilva
2. Diana Monteiro
3. Camala Rodriguez
4. Liudmila Somkina
5. Minna Pajulahti
6. Stacy McDowell
7. Ryall Graber-Vasani

SCORECARD:

Monday, April 11, 2011

Camala Shines in the Big Apple (2011 IFBB New York Fitness Results)

Congrats to Camala Rodriquez on winning the IFBB New York Pro Fitness this past weekend. She was among the favorites to win the event, and she didn't disappoint, nailing a perfect score in the physique round and was first in the routine round. Bethany Wagner continued her accent in the fitness rankings with a 2nd place finish and Michelle Blank make the most of her debut with a great 3rd place finish, thus putting her in the 2011 Fitness Olympia, along with Camala and Bethany. Save Fitness Now blog contributor and fan page administrator Stacy Wright made a huge splash as well in her pro debut with first callout in the physique round and an entertaining routine in the routine round. Victoria Larvie, fellow fan page administrator, placed 11th in a tough field of competitors. We at Save Women's Fitness Now are extremely proud of every single fitness competitor, especially the turnout for the pros this year. It's clear that women's pro fitness is alive and well in the Big Apple! :)

IFBB New York Pro Fitness Results:
1. Camala Rodriguez
2. Bethany Wagner
3. Michelle Blank
4. Kristina Rojas
5. Jodi Boam
6. Stacy Wright
7. Carrie Simmons
8. Nicole Duncan
9. Hollie Stewart
10. Sylvia Tremblay
11. Victoria Larvie
12. Allison Ethier
13. Ryall Garber-Vasani
14. Tamee Marie
15. Stacy McDowell
16. Venus Nguyen
17. Melissa Frederick

Friday, April 1, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for April 2011: Oksana Grishina

This month's IFBB Fitness Spotlight goes to one of the most amazing fitness competitors our there today, Oksana Grishina!

Photo credit: Muscular Development

There are fitness competitors....and there are fitness ARTISTS. When one thinks of Oksana Grishina, you can't help but think of the team "artist". In every fitness competition she's ever entered, she's entered as a fan favorite. People anxiously await her turn to the stage at every competition she's ever entered. Very few competitors can grab the attention of the audience like Oksana. On top of her jaw-dropping routines, she has an incredibly built physique to go along with her routines, making her one of the most complete fitness competitors in the world today.

Oksana is from Kaliningrad, Russia. When her father was assigned to Riga, Latvia, she took gymnastics at an early age by her mother as a way to unleash her energy. It worked and she was hooked on it ever since. Fitness was and is a big part of her life. She went a University in Kaliningrad and earned a degree as a specialist in Physical Training and Sports. During that time, she organized her own ballet entitled “Antares”.  I also worked as a choreographer with children at the Tchaikovsky School of Music and Art in Kaliningrad.

At that time, there were no gyms in Kaliningrad. When the first gym opened in 2002, a friend suggested that she work as a fitness and aerobics instructor. From there, trainers mentioned that she should try fitness. It didn't take long to see that fitness competitions were for her. In 2005 and 2006, Oksana was awarded the title of “Best Non-Olympic Sportswoman of the Year” in the Kaliningrad Region, while winning fitness competitions on the international stage at the European and World Championships, finally earning her IFBB pro card to compete in the 2007 Olympia.

She now lives in the United States for over three years and now live in California. She's still a personal trainer, fitness consultant and fitness model, as well as play the piano and act in her spare time, which has been a big part of her fitness routines. It's only a matter of time before the judges wake up and realize how amazing of a talent they have with Oksana.

 
Photo credit: Fitness Rx Magazine


COMPETITION HISTORY
1993 “Master of Sports of Russia” in Rhythmic Gymnastics
2000 Kaliningrad State University Diploma DVS, Specialist in Physical Training and sports; Teacher
2004 “Master of Sports of Russia” in Bodybuilding
2004 “Master of Sports of Russia of International Class” in Bodybuilding
2004-6 Russian Championship, Overall Fitness Champion
2005-6 Awarded Best Non-Olympic Sportswoman of the Year in the Kaliningrad Region
2005 European Championship, Overall Fitness Champion
2006 World Championship, Overall Fitness Champion
2007 All Star Pro Fitness, 3rd Place
2007 Europa Super Show, Fitness, 16th Place
2007 IFBB Olympia, Fitness, 7th Place
2008 New York Pro Fitness Classic, Fitness, 7th Place
2008 Arnold Classic, Fitness, 10th Place
2009 Arnold Classic, Fitness, 9th Place
2010 Phoenix Pro, Fitness, 4th Place
2010 Arnold Classic, Fitness, 5th Place
2010 IFBB Olympia, Fitness Division, 5th Place
2011 Arhold Classic, Fitness, 8th Place

For more on Oksana, go to her website at http://www.oksanagrishina.com.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

2011 Fitness International (Full Results)

Here are the full results of the 2011 Fitness International. Adela Garcia won her 4th Fitness International title, amid a bit of controversy, according to some. More will be spoken about this later on this week. Congrats to all the competitors!


2011 FITNESS INTERNATIONAL

1. Adela Garcia
2. Tanji Johnson
3. Trish Warren
4. Camala Rodriguez
5. Myriam Capes
6. Bethany Wagner
7. Regiane Da Silva
8. Oksana Grishina
9. Tina Durkin
10. Nicole Duncan
11. Erin Riley
12. Daniela O'Mara
13. Allison Ethier
13. Sylvia Tremblay

Thursday, February 3, 2011

IFBB Fitness Spotlight for February 2011: Tanji Johnson

This month's IFBB Fitness Spotlight belongs to one of the best competitors in the world today, Tanji Johnson!

Photo credit: Iron Bizz
When you think of IFBB Fitness, you can't help but think about Tanji. Her passion for the sport is second to none, a true ambassador to the sport. She's always been an athletic person, competing in track and field and being captain of the dance team in high school and serving for her country as part of the United States Air Force Academy. She ended up graduating from the Academy with a B.S. in Humanities and a commission as an Air Force officer.

She started to compete in 1998, so she's been doing this for quite a while. This year will mark her making this year her 13 year in fitness, with her being a IFBB pro for 10 years! She has competed in numerous Arnold and Olympias, with last year being the closest she's ever been to winning the Fitness Olympia title. In addition to competing in fitness, she has formed a team and movement called Tanji Johnson's Save Fitness. She created this in hopes of helping resurrecting the fitness division, by holding seminars and training camps. She even went on to showcase her athletic prowess on national television, as she appeared on NBC's American Gladiators as "Stealth", who was short on words but not on talent. While she has accomplished a LOT in her career, I feel that the best is yet to come for this amazing individual.



Photo credit: Rebodybuilding.com

COMPETITION HISTORY:
2010 Fitness Olympia 2nd
2010 New York Pro Fitness 1st (6th Pro win)
2010 Fitness International 3th
2010 Arizona Pro Fitness 2nd
2009 Fitness Olympia 2nd
2009 Atlantic City Pro 2nd
2009 Fitness International 10th
2008 Fitness Olympia 5th
2007 Fitness Olympia 4th
2007 Europa Pro Fitness 2nd
2007 All Star Pro Fitness 1st (5th Pro win)
2007 Fitness International 4th
2006 Fitness Olympia 4th
2006 Europa Pro Fitness 1st (4th Pro win)
2006 All Star Pro Fitness 1st (3rd Pro win)
2005 Emerald Cup 1st (2nd Pro win)
2004 Fitness Olympia 8th
2004 Fitness International 9th
2002 Jan Tana Fitness Classic 2nd
2002 Toronto Fitness Classic 1st (First Pro Win)

For more on Tanji, visit her official website at http://tanjijohnson.com/OfficialSite/ and her Save Fitness site at http://www.savefitness.net/.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Fitness Week Kicks Off on Promoting Real Women Blog/Fan Page

Today began Fitness Week at the Promoting Women fan page and blog. Big ups to Jason Adams on creating this special week, as the fitness division is one of the most exciting parts about this business and they deserve as much recognition as they can get.

Jason kicked it off in a big way with an interview with the one and only Carol Semple:
http://promotingwomen.blogspot.com/2011/01/carol-semple-interview.html

Seriously, how big is that to get a former Fitness Olympia champion to kick off Fitness Week?! :)

He also posted a poem by fitness competitor Babette Mulford:
http://promotingwomen.blogspot.com/2011/01/poem-by-babette-mullford.html


To close out Day One, he posted a You Asked It segment with one of the youngest and most talented IFBB Fitness Pros in the world today, Victoria Larvie:
http://promotingwomen.blogspot.com/2011/01/you-asked-it-with-victoria-larvie.html

If you haven't join his fan page and are following his blog, you might need to start doing that. As I've mentioned in the past, Jason's a great person to know and is one of the guys who truly respects this industry. If you think the kickoff of Fitness Week was impressive, just wait until you see what happens over the next six days. You might get a special treat from yours truly "Hint Hint".

Anyways, hope you all enjoy Fitness Week on Promoting Real Women!!
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...