It is official. After November 5th, the 202lbs and Under Contest will be gone. Done. Caput. But, a new contest will begin, one that is 10 pounds higher for the pros.

The new division started in 2007 at the Europa Super Show in Dallas with the first contest – the 210lbs and under, designed for the smaller bodybuilder who felt he could not compete against some of the mass monsters. Silvio Samuel won this contest, with a weight of just under 210 pounds, dominating the contest, with Tricky Jackson second.

Shortly afterwards, the rules were changed. The weight changed from 210 pounds to 202 pounds, in part because they wanted the smaller bodybuilders to have a chance. And it worked… or did it?

On May 10th, the IFBB Professional League issued a new change to the 202lbs and Under Contest. Starting on November 5th, 2011 (the Sacramento Pro Contest), it will be going from 202lbs and under to 212 lbs and under.

So were the bodybuilders surprised? Some where, especially the smaller bodybuilders who are now concerned they are going to compete against some of the more heavier pros who want to be freakier but not lose those last few pounds. We will definately hear more about this new rule in the coming weeks.

Supplement Giant of Lakewood, Colorado announces Grand Re-Opening Celebration with Special Guests:

Forrest Griffin (UFC Fighter – courtesy of BSN)
Hidetada Yamagishi (IFBB Pro Bodybuilder – courtesy of Gaspari)
Alicia Marie (IFBB Pro Bikini Model – courtesy of BSN)

There will be free prizes (Over $500), Supplements, T-Shirts and Samples ALL DAY long, with various booths, incuding BSN, Gaspari, Dymatize, iSatori, Muscle Fortress, Axis Labs, MAN Sports, Optimum Nutrition & ABB.

For more information you can reach us at: 303-935-5516 or you can stop by our location.

Date & Time: Saturday May 7th, 10AM-5PM

Where:

Supplement Giant is located at:
98 Wadsworth Blvd #126
Lakewood, CO 80226
(Behind Chili’s and Starbucks)

Our good friend Rico Barakat is having a grand opening at his newest GNC store right in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvannia on Friday, May 6th from 2pm to 6pm. He is going to be giving away free samples plus have some of the biggest stars in our industry at the store including:

Jay Cutler – Mr. Olympia 1st
Branch Warren – Arnold Classic 1st
Phil Heath – Second runner up Mr. O
Adela Garcia – Fitness Olympia 1st
Sonia Gonzales – Bikini Olympia 1st

The address is 6401 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (in The Village Of Eastside)

Looks like Cedric McMillian is going to take this with ease. Marcus Haley has improved to possibly take second place, with Evgeny Mishin taking third. Close contenders are Michael Liberatore and Lee Banks for the top five.

Here is how it looks to a number of people at the contest.

1. Cedric McMillan (USA)
2. Marcus Haley (USA)
3. Evgeny Mishin (Russia)
4. Michael Liberatore (USA)
5. Lee Banks (USA)
6. Robert Piotrkowicz (Poland)

For IFBB Pro Figure, it looks to be

1) Cheryl Brown (USA)
2) Candice Keene (USA)
3) Gennifer Strobo (USA)
4) Kristen Nagrani (USA)
5) Petra Mertl (Czech)

For IFBB Pro Bikini, it looks to be

1) Nathalia Melo (USA)
2) Jamie Baird (USA)
3) Dayna Maleton (USA)
4) Kristy Robbins (USA)
5) Vanessa Campbell (Puerto Rico)

But anything can happen for the finals, and as we have seen lots of times, it does. Also, this is just our opinion and doesnt reflect each of the judges.

Wow – the 2011 Olympia Weekend prize money is increasing to $825,000. That is incredible, especially during these tough times, that the greatest bodybuilding contest weekend of the year is bringing more prize money to its athletes. $825,000. Not bad at all!

The breakdown is as follows.

Mr. Olympia – $600,000 prize money. The top IFBB mens pro bodybuilding contest of the year just keeps on getting better, with Jay Cutler coming back to defend his title against Phil Heath and a ton of others who just may surprise everyone. Can Jay sustain the title? Nothing is for sure.

Mr. Olympia 202lb Showdown – $25,000 prize money. This is Kevin English’ show to win, and with David Henry out (overseas with the United States Army on a tour of duty), we can’t wait to see who else is going to rise up and challenge the winner.

Ms. Olympia – $60,000 prize money. With women’s bodybuilding, only the Ms Olympia continues to provide an incredible amount of money for some of the most disciplined competitors out there. Here in Las Vegas, the best of the best will be showcased.

Fitness Olympia – $60,000 prize money. Some of the best and toughest competitors will be here in Las Vegas to showcase their fitness routines, which now is 2/3’s of the score. So the ones that dazzle and delight the audience with there incredible routines just may win it all!

Figure Olympia – $60,000 prize money. Battle is brewing here! Defending champion Erin Stern against current Arnold winner Nicole Wilkins is going to be quite interesting. But who knows, maybe someone else just may step up, and take the title away.

Bikini Olympia – $20,000. Last year was the first year of this new division, and Sonia Gonzales took the title. However, Sonia lost to Nicole Nagrani at this years Bikini International, so it is going to be a great contest as to who will come out on top. Put in Nathalia Melo, Amanda Latona and Jaime Baird, and you never know what may happen.

Congratulations to Lee Banks for signing with Champion Nutrition.

Champion Nutrition recently announced the signing of IFBB Pro Bodybuilder Lee Banks to its “Team Champion” group of amateur and professional athletes! Lee, inspired by his late father, Lee Andrew Banks, experimented with lifting weights at the age of 16 and after many years of dedicated training he competed for the first time at the age of 30 entering the All Star Bodybuilding Championships in Jacksonville, Florida.

After success at the local level, Lee’s drive to him to the national stage where he gathered two third place and three second place finishes before turning pro in 2010 by winning the overall title in the NPC North American’s. Lee is training right now getting ready for the 2011 Europa Pro in Orlando at the end of April and the New York Pro in New York City in May. Please welcome Lee once again to the Champion Team!

Betancourt Nutrition is excited to announce the addition of Brandon Ray, the 2010 NPC Nationals Light Heavy-weight champion and exemplar of the 202 lb aesthetic physique to it’s team. Jorge Betancourt, the teen bodybuilding legend who possessed one of the most aesthetic structures of his time has seen great potential in Brandon and his ability to help bring the classic physique back to the forefront of professional bodybuilding.

Jorge Betancourt says, “Brandon can help bring back to bodybuilding the physique that everyone can envy, the type of physique that this sport needs to maintain its credibility so it can continue to thrive.” Brandon is ready to take the 202lb class and the rest of the bodybuilding world by storm and realize his potential with the help of Betancourt Nutrition. “I’ve been gaining knowledge and hearing about how much potential I have from some of the most experienced and successful bodybuilders in the industry” says Brandon.

“I love the direction that this company is headed in and the innovative mark they are leaving in the sports nutrition industry. It’s motivating to know that the Betancourt Team feels that I reflect the image of their company and I’m excited to see where my career and my partnership with Betancourt Nutrition can take me.