If you’ve been to the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio, around the first week of March over the past few years, it’s no secret that Iris Kyle has been a familiar face and physique at the Ms. International. So familiar, in fact, that she has won the coveted Arnold Classic title with stunning regularity. And this year on March 4th, Iris Kyle marched to her sixth Ms. International title making her the most successful bodybuilder – male or female – in the history of the event.
In this 2011 edition of the Ms. International, Kyle once again met the challenge of all comers – this time in a field of 13 contestants which included longtime nemesis Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia and a contingent that was loaded with muscular and structural diversity. For Kyle, the victory had to be a sweet one considering the shadowy future women’s bodybuilding has been saddled with during the months leading up to this season opener. And for Kyle, who was entering her 11th Ms. International contest, her six victories stand as a monument to her ability to withstand the pressures the sport seems to carry with it. Historically, Iris Kyle experienced a rocky start at this event. In 1999 she made her pro debut at the Ms. International after winning the 1998 NPC USA overall title. She promptly and unceremoniously found herself in 15th place. The lesson learned was sobering, and as she walked off stage at that event, she spoke just two words back stage, “Never again”. She more than kept her word. But the desired victories she had her heart set on at the Ms. International, would still be years away. In 2000 she placed third as a heavyweight. 2001 and 2002 saw a pair of runner-up heavyweight finishes that continued to keep her short of the top prize money. The 2003 season saw Kyle enter only the Ms. Olympia where she once again encountered another runner-up finish to Lenda Murray. But 2004 brought momentous change. Kyle won her first Ms. International title and followed up with another victory at the Ms. Olympia. And after once again passing on the Ms. International to concentrate on the Ms. Olympia in 2005, Kyle’s return to Columbus in 2006 brought her second Ms. I win. The 2007 Ms. I was her third. And since 2009, Kyle has added three more wins in succession. A total that now stands at a mind-numbing six.
This year, Kyle momentarily left the door open slightly during the prejudging as she appeared somewhat off her usual chiseled preparation. But that watery look was only momentary, as she bounced back at the evening show looking sharp at 160 pounds and ready to claim another victory. Her return to that level of sharpness was a blessing, as virtually every other competitor who had their eye on chasing her down, came back in the evening with a better conditioning level than that at the prejudging. Even Kyle made changes in her look from morning to evening with two distinctly different hairstyles. Any way you shake it, Iris Kyle has a certifiable stranglehold on this contest title and it will take a supreme effort to knock her off that perch. Once again, Kyle pocketed $25,000 for her unanimous victory and she continues to strengthen the reality that she is bodybuilding’s most successful female.
As the unanimous runner-up finisher, Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia – the contest’s largest competitor at 5-8, 175 pounds - accepted her check for $13,000 gracefully while it was no doubt a bitter pill to swallow. Oriquen-Garcia is an equally legendary personage in women’s bodybuilding compared to Iris Kyle, but simply in a different, yet very impressive way.
This year’s Ms. International marked the 46th time Oriquen-Garcia has taken the stage at a pro event. That’s forty-six! Forty-six contest preps! Further, she was competing in a record 14th consecutive Ms. International dating back to 1998. And like Kyle, s
he suffered some rocky placements before she got on track. In her debut at the Ms. International, Oriquen-Garcia placed 14th. A year later she dropped to 18th. But she persevered and by 2002 she won her first Ms. International, and won again 2003. She added a third Ms. I title in 2005, and won her fourth in 2008. Her second-place finish this year is the second year in a row she has finish on the heels of Iris Kyle. In fact, Oriquen-Garcia is the only competitor to win a Ms. International title other than Iris Kyle since 2004. Her four victories at the Ms. I and a Ms. Olympia title in 2005 make
her a very special competitor in the ranks of female bodybuilding, to say nothing of the remarkable staying power she has shown over the past 17 years as a pro.
Swiss Miss Alina Popa stormed into the third-place position with a super-structure that can spell trouble in the future if she continues to improve with time. Placing eighth at the Ms. International last year many observers were favorably impressed with her striking overall muscular shapes and balanced physique. At 5-6 and weighing a well-distributed 163 pounds, Popa’s 2008 overall victory at the IFBB World Amateur Championships pointed to the fact that she possessed all the tools to handle the move to high placings at
the pro level. That fact has now come true, and when the time comes when she realizes that a
passive approach to a posedown can coast dearly in the final analysis, she will find she has the capacity to challenge for the top spot. Popa’s prize winnings totaled $8,000 for her third-place spot, and her final tally told the story of just how close this battle for the third-place finish was.
With Alina Popa scoring 34 points to earn the third place finish, lurking just two points behind Popa was Debi Laszewski at 36. Popa’s accomplishment is noteworthy due to the fact that Laszewski has been on a contest tear the last two years and finished third at both the Ms. I and Ms. O in 2010. Laszewski is another of the today’s elite competitors who had a rocky start when she made her pro debut at the 2008 Ms. International placing 12th. She has more than made up for that blip on the pro radar screen ever since. Here, Laszewski was simply out-gunned structurally by the larger and well-structured Popa. Giving away three inches in height and nearly 20 pounds in bodyweight, Laszewski found herself cast in the role of giant killer and she only fell short by a scant two points. For her efforts, Laszewski accepted a check for $5,000.
Fifth went to Betty Adkins. A fan favorite, especially for those who appreciate aesthetic muscular structures, Adkins distributed a curvy 155 pounds on her 5-4 frame. Somewhat unheralded during her pro career where she has competed 15 times, not everyone realizes she has two pro contests on a resume that includes six trips to the Ms. Olympia and finishing second to Iris 
Kyle in 2008. In addition, Adkins was competing in her fifth
Ms. I and was the runner-up to Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia in 2005. Many of the sport’s cognoscenti are merely waiting for Adkins to put all the puzzle parts together creating a physique that has the capacity to run the table at any contest including the Ms. O. She’s been close, and Iris Kyle would be the last competitor to overlook Adkins’ potential to create havoc in the top placings.
Rounding out the top six was another stellar fan favorite – Cathy Lefrancois. At 5-2, 135 pounds, the feisty Canadian was the smallest contestant at this event, yet still finds a way to make her presence felt. With a strong level of conditioning and poetically choreographed posing routines, Lefrancois is always a pleasure to watch. Without question, Lefrancois has seen it all at the Ms. I after a 19th-place finish at the 1999 Ms.
International - a low point in her pro career. She was dead last at that event. But three years later she won the lightweight class at the Ms. I and was locked in a posedown for the overall with eventual winner Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia in 2003. Due to her continued youthful appearance, few realize Lefrancois has been competing in the pro ranks for 15 years and has competed in nearly 30 pro contests including three Ms. Olympias. A veteran by any yardstick, Lefrancois was competing in her 10th Ms. International this year
and her ability to crack the top six still shows she has the goods to hang with the big girls. With the addition of the future women’s physique division, her career may see several more years of competitive placements.
Outside the top six saw Jeannie Paparone
claim the seventh spot, with Texan Tina Chandler equaling her eighth-place 2010 Ms. Olympia finish at this event. On points, Paparone topped Chandler by just one point – 81 to 82. Ninth went to Dayana Cadeau. Competing in her 11th Ms. I. Cadeau has seemingly been in a free-fall finishing sixth in 2010, fifth in 2009, and second in 2008. A two-time Ms. I lightweight winner, Cadeau is structurally blessed but has had difficulty re-capturing the right formula to put herself in contention where she has been many times in the past. Tenth went to Argentina’s Maria Rita Bello. Put simply, few if any could recall a competitor at the pro level that displayed such a high level of visible muscle definition.
Ripped, shredded, and any other descriptive words used to describe a high level of muscular development fall short here. And as might be expected the responses to her effort to put forth the most muscular physique of which she was capable ranged from high praise to repulsion. One word that does fit her presence is that she was ‘unique’…to say the least. Making her pro debut at this event, it’s certain she didn’t go unnoticed.
Mexico’s Maria Segura checked in at 11th with a level of muscle density – especially in her quads – that few bodybuilders her size can match. Her low placing had more to do with what was perceived as a less than idyllic structure, but there was no denying she carried enough muscle to warrant her invitation to the event. Like Bello, Segura is a former winner of the Arnold Amateur Classic.
And in 12th, Texan Sarah Hayes was the latest USA overall champion to suffer the ‘welcome to the pro ranks sweetheart’ placing. Looking beautifully prepared and showing an outstanding back double biceps pose, judges had nowhere else to go with her in a field where she was simply out-muscled. The future and the direction of the women’s physique division may be just the ticket for this dynamic looking bodybuilder.
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