Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, August 31: It's been 30 years since the first North American Championship was held back in 1982. That year an up-and-coming star named Cory Everson became this event's first winner. Since then, the IFBB North American Championships has established an illustrious tradition that has gone on the produce an additional pair of Ms. Olympia winners in Lenda Murray and Kim Chizevsky as well as many outstanding pro competitors who have represented Canada, Mexico and the USA in the past three decades.
Staged this year at the Sheraton Station Square Hotel in downtown Pittsburgh, it is the first time this contest has been held in the Steel City and the first time outside Cleveland, Ohio, where the contest had been held over the previous eight years.
Here, the women took center stage for the two-day event with the first day promoted as 'Fabulous Female Friday'. And with a full slate of divisions offered in bodybuilding, physique, fitness, figure, and bikini with hundreds of women competing, it was indeed, a pretty fabulous day as qualification for pro status was offered in every division.
Bodybuilding's Open Division
With a field of 24 contestants in the open class and several entrants deciding to take a double dip crossing over to the masters (over 35) class, it was Tammy Jones who exacted an textbook muscular whooping on the field to win the heavyweight and overall IFBB North American titles in convincing fashion. And convincing may be an understatement.
For Jones, her victory here was as emotional as it was exhilarating. Her journey to this triumph was not always easy, and her success this night made the experience that much more meaningful – even if she seemed at a loss for words to explain it.
Without a sports background to use as a base to begin her bodybuilding efforts (unless you count participation in her high school marching band), Jones conquered a battle with anorexia, among other distractions to reach 2002 when she entered her first local contest in Florida. That initial NPC Gulf Coast contest (where she won the overall title), served as motivation enough to continue on. And continue on she did, even if the path she was to experience was far from a walk down a rosy path of consistent contest successes. On the contrary, hers was a roller coaster ride of placings that spanned the score sheets from top to bottom. Perhaps unknowingly, those results merely served to strengthen her resolve. Along the way, Jones was an overall winner at the NPC All South Championships in 2005 and was also an overall champion at the 2008 NPC Florida Championships. But there were also reality checks. In 2006 and 2007 she entered the NPC Nationals and finished 13th and 12th respectively. The 2008 competitive seaso
n also marked the first time Jones entered the IFBB North American Championships. Her fourth place showing there was encouraging. But in 2009 in her second entry at this event she plummeted to 13th. Jones waited until last year to once again enter the North American, this time she found herself in the runner-up spot in a good heavyweight field. Through all these years, Jones had always presented a well-balanced physique with plenty of genetically gifted muscle shapes and she was edging ever closer to a top finish at a major event.
That brings us to this year's North American. Although Jones has not described her entry this year as 'unfinished business', that has often been the description competitors have used to explain the motivation to move up from the bridesmaid position to the top spot at a given contest. And in this instance, Tammy Jones was all business. As Dave Palumbo described her in the RXMuscle play-by-play, “She should win the open overall tonight. Great taper. Freaky huge delts. Conditioning is spot on. Great tan.....very polished. Glutes are striated. Crazy side leg. Wacky back lat spread. She can do damage in the pros.” It could also be added that she has great biceps, and a set of excellent calves that help balance her lower and upper bodies. In short she was complete, and looked like a competitor who was ready to take the next step to the pro level. Normally weighing between 155 and 160 pounds on stage, the 33-year-old Jones would seem to have a solid chance to do the 'damage' Palumbo describes, and at her current age (which is relatively young by pro bodybuilding standards) time, of course, will tell. As a Floridian winning the North American this year, it hasn't happened often. In fact, the last time a contestant from Florida won the North American Championships was when a pair of Sunshine staters named Joanne McCartney and Gillian Hodge won successive overall titles in 1987 and 1988 respectively. For Tammy Jones, it was a pretty good way to bring to a close her first decade as a competitive bodybuilder.
With 12 contestants in the heavyweight class, the Sunshine State managed to keep the pressure on when fellow Floridian Nuriye Evans grabbed the runner-up spot. A former equestrian competitor for 14 years, Evans rode a 22-week contest prep to her best-ever level of condition. At 5-9 she presented an imposing overall look with impressive thighs as a highlight to her physique. As Dave Palumbo mentioned, she probably had the best structure in the class. And crazy quads. A good indication of how far she has come in her improvement can be traced back to last year's NPC Nationals where she placed a distant 15th in the HW class. Assuming she continues on this path of progress, those days of placing 15th may now be in the rear view mirror.
Canadian veteran competitor Amanda Aivaliotis has found the IFBB North American Championships to be a friendly haven for her contest exploits in the past. Seventeen years ago she entered the 1995 North American and finished third in the HW class. Then last year she returned to this event and placed third in the light-heavyweight class. They say some things never change, but Aivaliotis has managed to battle the aging process with excellent results and again this year she finished in familiar territory – third place, this time as a HW. The beauty of Aivaliotis' effort this year is that she doubled up and crossed over to the masters division winning the HW class. It was her first contest victory since the mid-90's while competing in her home province of Ontario.
Fourth went to New Jersey's Lauren LaPlante-Rottman. A frequent contestant at the NPC Masters Nationals where she has placed as high as third in the HW class, LaPlante-Rottman made a major jump in her improvement at this event after placing a distant 12th at the 2009 North American Championships.
Californian Victoria Dominquez claimed the fifth position moving up one spot from her sixth-place HW finishes at both the 2010 and 2011 North American Championships. Earlier this year Dominquez was the runner-up HW at the NPC USA.
With just four competitors in the light-heavyweight class, Texan Terri Harris was a unanimous choice for the judges. A veteran competitor, Harris began competeing in 1996 and over the years compiled several overal titles including the NPC Louisiana state crown in 2000. Harris also won the MW class of the NPC Junior Nationals in 2002. A competitor in five previous NPC Nationals, Harris most recently won the LtHW clas of the masters 45+ class at the 2011 NPC Masters Nationals. This was Harris' first entry in the North American Championships and her overall victory in the masters division earned her IFBB pro card status.
Indiana's Kimberly Ferrell was the runner-up finisher out-flexing another Floridian, Sheri Enos, and Canadian Maria Mikola. Ferrell regained her runner-up 
LtHW finish at this contest last year. In past North American events Ferrell was also sixth at the 2007 contest as a LtHW, and second at the 2008 event as a MW. At 5-2, Ferrell normally competes between 135 and 140 pounds. As icing on her North American cake this year Ferrell also added a runner-up finish in the masters LtHW class bowing to eventual overall masters winner Terri Harris.
As the overall winner of the NPC Florida Championships in 2011, Sheri Enos made her first entry at the North American Championships a successful one finishing third in the open LtHW class, followed by another third-place finish in the masters LtHW's. Competing as far back as 2001, Enos was also the MW winner at the 2009 NPC Southern States in Florida.
With the most extensive contest experience in this class, Canadian Maria Mikola finished fourth in the open division and fourth in the masters group. Having competed previously in four IFBB World Amateur Championships representing Canada, she was also a two-time overall winner of the Canadian Natural National Championships to go with many entries at a variety of Canadian contests.
Five women flexed for the middleweight class crown with Canadian Carol Hanley getting the judges nod. Another frequent entrant at many Canadian events, Hanley used her well-conditioned overall look to claim the 2012 Canadian National MW title just weeks before the North American. Hanley also won the masters LtHW class.
Washington's Leann George finished second to Hanley, and duplicated that placing in the masters division. Having competed at the national level in the 
NPC USA, NPC Nationals and NPC Masters Nationals over the past six years, George's two runner-up finishes here are her highest finishes at the national level and add to her most recent overall victory at the 2012 NPC Oregon.
Finishing just behind Leann George was New Yorker Glenese Markes. A former figure competitor in 2007 and 2008, Markes has made the transition to bodybuilding a seamless one. A winner of the overall title at the 2012 New York Metropolitan Championships before an unfortunate disqualification at the NPC Team Universe, her structural gifts and muscle shapes lend themselves to her placing strongly in future national level events.
Fourth went to Canadian Heather King. A top level lightweight/middleweight in her native Canada having won the Canadian National LW title in 2006, King finished second in the MW class of the 2010 North American Championships.
Fifth-placer Cheryl Faust is close to becoming a historical anomaly in the middleweight class of the North American Championships. If Faust returns next year and places third she will complete a sweep of all the available top five placings in her competitive career at this event. In 2008 Faust won this class. In 2009 she finished second. Last year she placed fifth, and this year her fourth-place masters MW showing puts her on the doorstep of claiming all five positions. In the world of baseball it would be called 'hitting for the cycle'. The 'achievement' would probably not be something Faust would set as a goal or could even plan for – but if she does place third in 2013 (assuming she enters this event again), someone should have a special plaque on the trophy table!
With just three entrants in the lightweight division Patricia Watson was also another unanimous judging preference winning both the masters and open LW classes. Using the experience gained from a decade of past contest entries, many of her efforts have been of the first rate variety. In 2011, for example, she won the LW class at the NPC Team Universe, placed second at the NPC Nationals, and earned the fifth-place spot at the IFBB World Amateur Championships. This year she added a runner-up finish at the NPC USA.
The bridesmaid position in this class went to Michelle Evans. An entrant at the NPC Masters Nationals for the past two years, she finished sixth in 2011 and third this year.
Third to Evans was Karen Holliday who also competed in the 2011 and '12 Masters Nationals finishing fourth in the 45+ class in 2011 and fifth in the same class this year. Interestingly, Holliday managed to exact a bit of revenge when she ended up finishing second in the masters LW class in front of Evans. Go figure.
Open Results
PLACINGS - View all photos and results here>>
Heavyweight
1- Tammy Jones
2- Nuriye Evans
3- Amanda Aivaliotis
4- Lauren LaPlante Rottman
5- Victoria Dominquez
Light-Heavyweight
1- Terri Harris
2- Kimberly Ferrell
3- Sheri Enos
4- Maria Mikola
Middleweight
1- Carol Hanley
2- Leann George
3- Glenese Markes
4- Heather King
5- Cheryl Faust
Lightweight
1- Patricia Watson
2- Michelle Evans
3- Karen Holliday
Overall – TAMMY JONES
Earns Pro Status
M a s t e r s R e s u l t s
Heavyweight
1- Amanda Aivaliotis
2- Julie Peavey
3- Victoria Dominguez
4- Kate Cooper
5- Angela Rayburn
Light-Heavyweight
1-Terri Harris
2- Kimberly Ferrell
3- Sheri Enos
4- Maria Mikola
Middleweight
1- Carol Hanley
2- Heather King
3-Leann George
4-Cheryl Faust
5-Valerie Picarella
Lightweight
1- Patricia Watson
2- Karen Holliday
3- Michelle Evans
Overall – TERRI HARRIS
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