NPC USA: Overalls in female bodybuilding was screwed!

[BEAST 8692]

could you ever see this sort of thing tolerated in male bbing?

i remember reading about juliet bergman being a judge at the arnold classic years ago and there was an allegation that she may have awarded flex wheeler a higher score because of his looks. there was somewhat of an uproar just from that and this was despite the fact that flex was clearly the best guy up there.

the subjects of this thread would be the equal in bbing terms to comparing mr ohio with jay cutler. the difference is that great and it's not like the girl on the left is likely to have taken any less drugs than the other.

what if a bunch of women off the street were judging the mr o and awarded some better looking but average sized no name over ronnie coleman because they thought ronnie was 'gross'. can you imagine the uproar?

female bbers, from natural competitors to mass monsters, dedicate and sacrifice much blood, sweat and tears for their passion. at the very least they have the right to be judged fairly and not treated like sex objects.

as for the spectators, well, if i wanted to see a beauty pageant i would attend one. i would be pissed if i attend a bbing conest and some morons acting as judges turned it into a second rate pageant.

[tweeter]

what defines 'too much of a "drug" look for female bodybuilding' though?

i can see the need to set a standard, but were those standards clearly defined prior to the contest?

by the way, i don't think you know what you're talking about with 'better lines'. from a bbing perspective the bber on the right actually has better lines.

Well its all just relative as far as saying what is too anabolic looking for a female bodybuilder; I am just giving my opinion. This pic shows why I think the girl on the left has better lines. Maybe "lines" isn't the right word, I am basically talking about taper.

[Tre]

Both women looked terrific - the decision could've gone either way.

Congrats to both for their class wins and to Jennifer for becoming pro-eligible. 

[Hedgehog]

Not to take anything away from Jennifer (left), but I was surprised that Michelle (right) did not win the overall, and I think that alot of people were.  Michelle's backside is tough to beat.

BIG congrats to Jennifer though....maybe it is a statement of some sort about the future direction of FBB, who knows.  What will be interesting is whether or not this kind of statement is made consistently by the judges across all of the competitions. 

I think it was a good ruling, and I hope it will be consistent. It could pave the way for good physiques winning the shows.

[ripitupbaby]

I think it was a good ruling, and I hope it will be consistent. It could pave the way for good physiques winning the shows.

Consistency is the key...something hard to come by in such a subjective "sport."
So far at the amateur shows this year, things are looking pretty good.  We've had the following overall winners:

JR USAs Lightweight (no pro card)
JR Nationals Heavyweight (no pro card)
Master's Nationals Light Heavyweight (PRO CARD)
USA's Middleweight (PRO CARD)

[genex]

Yeah it was definitely a lot of calls in the show that had people in the crowd fired up.  The heavyweights was a tough class as was the LHWs.  Hans wrote up the bodybuilding part of the contest report and noted a lot of the crowd reactions:
 http://tour.ftvideo.com/showgal.php?g=content/genex/contests/2007/usa/4621/7_1&s=6

[Laura Lee]

Yeah it was definitely a lot of calls in the show that had people in the crowd fired up.  The heavyweights was a tough class as was the LHWs.  Hans wrote up the bodybuilding part of the contest report and noted a lot of the crowd reactions:
 http://tour.ftvideo.com/showgal.php?g=content/genex/contests/2007/usa/4621/7_1&s=6

Gene, how ya doin?  Did you get down to the Southern States?  I didn't see ya around.  When are you hitting FLA again?  ProShow?

[Luv2Hurt]

girl on the right should have won (did she?)

look at the differences in the backs

And the glutes!

[ripitupbaby]

Yeah it was definitely a lot of calls in the show that had people in the crowd fired up.  The heavyweights was a tough class as was the LHWs.  Hans wrote up the bodybuilding part of the contest report and noted a lot of the crowd reactions:
 http://tour.ftvideo.com/showgal.php?g=content/genex/contests/2007/usa/4621/7_1&s=6

Great report Gene...you guys do a fantastic job with the contest coverage.  And I love this pic of Sheila...she is an amazing poser and has a fantastic physique!   

[rudylrichards]

i remember reading about juliet bergman being a judge at the arnold classic years ago and there was an allegation that she may have awarded flex wheeler a higher score because of his looks. there was somewhat of an uproar just from that and this was despite the fact that flex was clearly the best guy up there.

  Actually this was at the O in '93 against Dorian.  Even flex raised Dorian's hand before the 2nd place announcement.   It was outrageous to have anyone in 1st that yr besides Dorian.  I think Juliet was removed from the judging panel or asked to resign or resigned from the pressure of that vote.

I'd have voted for the girl on the right but could see why the judges voted for the girl on the left. It's that age old dilema in women's bb mass or shape.       

[delta9mda]

the younger one is the clear winner. The older gal is not as cut.

from the front

[az]

Well the judging is over. The question is how will she fair on a pro stage.

[Noel Fuller]

Michelle had this hands down.

[ripitupbaby]

Michelle had this hands down.

Hi Noel.   

[Noel Fuller]

Hi rip 

[siouxcountry]

Michelle will be competing at the Nationals in just a few weeks.

[ripitupbaby]

Hi rip 

Welcome to the board, I hope you stick around.   

Michelle will be competing at the Nationals in just a few weeks.

I need to get a thread going about Nationals, it's gonna be a great show!

[siouxcountry]

Welcome to the board, I hope you stick around.   

I need to get a thread going about Nationals, it's gonna be a great show!

Indeed it will be! 

[Noel Fuller]

I will say that the other girl looked good..not taking anything away from her but in all reality she needs 7 pounds to compete in the pros while Michelle would be a top 5 placer right now. Sure they look comparable from the fron but I know why you didnt use a side or back pick to prove your point. This is bodybuilding not whats best for the sport or what poeple may think will be more marketable. Were judges not marketing directors. We should be voting for the best built body onstage...period.

[AZbodybuilder]

the younger one is the clear winner. The older gal is not as cut.

Not as cut wtf ? You have to be kidding !

[The BEAST]

I agree.  This is a bodybuilding competition not a beauty contest.  They don't judge the men on how much drugs they put into their body and there are plenty that you can see have changed (facially) due to the drugs. 

I completely disagree.  If we EVER want female bodybuilding to become more mainstream judging calls like this HAVE to be made.  I am friends with many bbers...big and small...and my opinion isn't popular with the bigger girls.  I appreciate the hard work that they have put in, but I think there have to be limits as to what is acceptable and that is the judges call.  There are no clear cut rules but imo bodybuilding, especially female bodybuilding is about body structure, lines and beauty.  Being able to find a balance between these three...some very huge women have managed to do this, Sarah Dunlap, Candy Canary, Lisa Aukland, Isabelle Turell...

That day Jennifer Sedia looked great and the judges made a statement-maybe it isn't what some of the more hardcore fans would like but I think in the long run it is a safer and more realistic look at where female bbing should go. 

I would love to see more physiques like Lisa Bickels, Cindy Phillips and Debbie Bramwell...

just my opinion.