It has only been a month since Physique Olympia champion Juliana Malacarne notched her name as the first winner of the Physique International at the Arnold Classic, but the real competitive rush to qualify for this year's Physique Olympia began in earnest at Jack and Ann Titone's St. Louis Pro on April 4th at the St. Charles Convention Center. A total of 23 contestants from 15 states and 3 foreign countries jumped at the chance to etch their name as the first Physique Olympia qualifier in the 2015 season.
In the third year of including the WPD pros at the St. Louis event, the contest has steadily grown. At the inaugural event in 2012, Sara Hurdle won the division. Then last year, Jennifer Robinson won in a field of 18. And to more directly illustrate how this division has grown, only three competitors from last year's contest returned to help fill the field of 23.
So, with $3,500 in prize money and points to be earned by four runner-up finishers towards the Olympia Qualification Points Series, the race was on.
A VERY HOT AUTUMN
There are some important elements that go into making a first-time appearance in any given division where the display of a physique is being judged. First, bring a set of genetics to show you picked your parents very carefully. Then come into an event in absolute top shape and be stage savvy. Project an undeniable level of stage persona, while attempting to make a strong first impression. The rest is up to the judges and how you fit in on a given day at a given contest.
All the above mentioned was used expertly by Autumn Swansen who was competing in her pro debut as a Physique competitor. With prior pro experience as a Fitness competitor, and qualifying for the pro ranks by winning her class at the NPC Junior Nationals in 2010 (as Autumn Edwards before she married), Swansen knows all about being stage savvy and how to project to an audience.
Unfortunately, a 10th-place finish at the Wings of Strength Chicago Pro last year pointed to the fact that she probably wasn't going to be the next coming of Oksana Grishina. No matter. She made the switch to Physique and voila, she's simply dynamite in the new 'container' she's walking around in. From head to toe she was firing on all cylinders, and the judges made a unanimous decision to select her 'best of show'.
One observer even went so far as to point out that in his opinion, "she was hotter than Georgia asphalt in July". At 5-6, she was terrifically well-balanced and her muscle shapes… well, the genetics are on her side. Now qualified for the Olympia in September, she will be one of the new breed to challenge those who have already been on the Olympia stage. Her prize winnings for first place was $2,000 - a sum she can put aside to use in her prep for Las Vegas.
And speaking of making a strong impression, Kentucky's Sheronica Henton made her pro debut a strong one finishing second. The 5-3, 26-year old qualified for the pro ranks by placing second in her class at the IFBB North Americans last year. A former NPC Georgia Physique champion in 2013, Henton has international experience with past amateur Figure contests in England, Germany and France due to her mother serving in the US Army. Showing a notably athletic appearance structurally, her overall look has much to do with her running track while attending Georgia Southern University. With many more contests between now and the Olympia in September she has now earned 4 points towards Olympia qualification and she will need to enter again if making the stage at the Physique Olympia is her intended goal. For second place Henton accepted a check for $1,000.
Finishing third was Florida dynamo Danielle Reardon. A familiar face and physique on the internet, 'lil monstar' (as she is known) was the runner-up at this contest last year. Here, she fell just one point shy of that same placing.
Reardon, who competed in the Physique division four times last year after winning her class at the NPC Nationals in 2012, is a work in progress and can be very successful with perseverance. Realizing her potential in the immediate future can guide her to the Physique Olympia, and with patience she can be at that level for a very long time. A notable example of that potential is the fact that at this event she finished in front of two competitors (Leila Thompson and Jennifer Robinson) who competed at last year's Olympia. Age is on her side. Her third place finish earned her $500.
Competing for the first time since placing 16th at the 2014 Physique Olympia, North Carolina's Leila Thompson landed fourth at this event. Earning her pro status in winning the 2013 NPC Junior USA, Thompson has been a poster girl for enduring a rollercoaster of contest finishes as a pro. Making her pro debut in 2013 with a 12th-place finish at the Wings of Strength Chicago Pro, she entered four contests in 2014. Her placings ran from second place at the Greater Gulf States, 16th at the Optimum Classic, and returning to the Wings Chicago show to win that event and qualify for the Olympia where she placed 16th.
In a way, her fourth-place finish here fits well between the two extremes she has faced in the past. Her quality as a Physique competitor is undeniable and the coming months will serve to show whether she can return to Las Vegas in September. Like all five of the top placers at this contest, Thompson was in terrific overall condition.
The highly competitive nature of this contest was further illustrated by Brazilian Loana Muttoni's fifth-place finish. The placing was hard earned as her point total of 23 matched Leila Thompson. Having competed as far back as 2006 at the IFBB World Amateur Championships, Muttoni was also an IFBB South American Figure champion in 2009. But the Physique division looks like the best fit for her competitive desires. Picking up where she left off last November at the Ferrigno Legacy contest where she placed third, Muttoni also matched the fifth-place showing she earned at the Titans Grand Prix, while at the same time showing a consistency of placements with a sixth-place spot at the Ultimate Warriors Pro.
In every event Muttoni has entered, she has been at the top range of conditioning. Her ridged level of hardness has caused some to feel it is over the criteria standards, but so far in the past two years she has only finished outside the top ten on two occasions. The best explanation of that fact is that she possesses an outstanding overall structural balance that is easy on the eyes of the judges. Clearly, she will need to perform a balancing act to blend her qualities into an Olympia level physique, but she surely has the capabilities.
As of this contest, 9 women have already qualified for this year's Physique Olympia - five from the 2014 Olympia and the four winners of the four post-Olympia contests in the last months of 2014. There were 23 competitors in last year's Olympia, but the slots for this year will begin to fill up fast. The race is definitely on.
Final Results
1- Autumn Swansen, Illinois 5
2- Sheronica Henton, Kentucky 12
3- Danielle Reardon, Florida 13
4- Leila Thompson, North Carolina 23
5- Loana Muttoni, Brazil 23
6- Marga Overby, Washington 32
7- Lise Thexton, Canada 35
8- Jennifer Robinson, Tennessee 37
9- Candrea Judd Adams, Georgia 48
10- Tammy Patnode, New York 50
11- Andrea Lenihan, Kansas 58
12- Crystal Rieke, North Carolina 58
13- Nicole Carter, Barbados 63
14- Natalie Rae Wolfe, Michigan 66
15- Cea Anna Kerr, Canada 78
16- Lynn Reif, South Carolina 79
16- Heather Barbee, Tennessee 79
17- Amanda Limas, Nebraska 80
17- Lisa Lopez, Virginia 80
17- Maritza Martinez, Ohio 80
17- Dona Pohl, Texas 80
17- Kimberley Raber, Illinois 80
17- Mica Schneider, Ohio 80
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