Tonight I lost $100 on the black jack table in under 3minutes and found out that my first venture in pre-contest predications was an epic failure. Despite all my placings being off, I was dead accurate about one thing: The 2009 Figure Olympia marked an ushering in of new faces and definitive statements of figure's new look (check out the complete CONTEST PHOTO GALLERY). 2008 Fitness O Champ Jen Gates was not back to defend her crown (she's on maternity leave). Likewise, two others competitors from the '08 Top-5 were gone as well. This made 2009 the most wide open Figure "O" since the inaugural competition in 2003. Head Judge Sandy Williamson has been leading the charge for the softer, less muscular, look and tonight's champion, Nicole Wilkins-Lee is the new archetype of the modern day Figure Champ. Let's take a look at the Top 6 and see who got what tonight in Vegas.
In sixth, first year competitor Erin Stern made a great Olympia debut by landing in the money on her first try. Tall, statuesque, and muscular, Erin has all the tools to win this show someday. Erin's biggest flaw tonight might have been too much conditioning. From behind, her back and glutes were harder and more separated than all the others that placed ahead of her.
Fifth place went to Amy Fry who compared well with Stern. Both are tall, with tiny waists; the only difference being Amy's experience and slightly softer condition. Amy has a pile of IFBB Top-3 finishes and she works the stage with a confidence that Erin doesn't have possess. Amy also did a great job of avoiding the critique of being too hard; her glutes and back were devoid of fat, but still had round, full muscle bellies.
Barely missing the top-3 was fourth place finisher Kristal Richardson who gets the title of good at everything and great at nothing. Her physique flows nicely, her condition is tight, but far from extreme, and she works the stage well. She never jumped out of the lineup to demand a top callout, but with each comparison she moved up and fit perfectly into the top 5.
Third place went to ecstatic Heather Mae French. After placing ninth last year, Heather went on to win two shows in 2009 (IFBB California and IFBB Houston) and establish herself as a favorite coming into this contest. Her physique left nothing to criticize; she did the hard work to back up the hype. The only knock against Heather is that she's short and sometimes doesn't compare favorably against the taller girls with more dramatic frames. Heather Mae was well conditioned with the perfect amount of muscle to complement her stunning looks. To quote John Romano, she had a great "package" tonight and could have easily won the show.
First runner up ,Gina Aliotti,is surely in counseling for bridesmaid syndrome after getting her third straight Olympia second place finish. This was supposed to be her year and all the signs pointed to this being Gina's show to lose. It appears that Gina tried to come in a little softer than we're used to seeing her and this disrupted her shape and symmetry. In trying to achieve a new look, Gina stopped playing to her strengths and suffered for it. Regardless, she carries herself on stage as the embodiment of poise and presentation and looked every part Ms. Figure "O" so she can't be counted out for next year.
Edging out Gina for the win was second year IFBB Pro Nicole Wilkins-Lee. After turning pro in both fitness and figure, it took a figure victory at the Europa Super Show for Nicole to direct her full focus to figure. Nicole has a nearly perfect structure and a very natural beauty and stage presence. Her condition could have been tighter tonight, but it wasn't far enough off to detract from her shape. Kudos to Nicole for making the most of her gifts. At the young age of 25, the title could be hers for a long time to come.
There was a changing of the guard tonight in the Orleans arena as the faces of figure took the top spots and some of the veteran and familiar faces gracefully faded or just didn't show up. And with the new names came a new look that prefers shape, symmetry, and softer conditioning.
That's a wrap from Vegas, for more details check out the:
