The 2014 bodyb
uilding season started with three former Alabama State Champions joining forces with Team SteelWorld founded in 1999 by IFBB Pro Mike Horn and Jan Horn of Mobile, Alabama. The amazing thing is that all three are in the same weight class at 198 lbs. and all three bodybuilders are from one gym, in Mobile, Alabama. The gym is a private personal training center, appropriately called Personal Training & Nutrition, Inc., a facility where no memberships are sold!
Christian Simmons (far left) started as a skinny kid, but as we here so often hear, he strived for big muscles to keep from being picked on. Christian went from lifting weights to powerlifting, breaking several World Records along the way, including a 1036 lbs. squat. At age 29, he started bodybuilding and formed Team Solid.
As many competition teams do, their teams work together with Mike and Jan to take it to the next level. Christian went on to win the 2013 Alabama State Championships.
Enrico "Anthony" Caporaso (middle) started bodybuilding for a different reason; he used it as therapy. He found Team SteelWorld on Facebook through a good friend Justin Toomey who trains with Mike and Jan. In his second competition, he won the Alabama State Championships after becoming part of Team SteelWorld in 2009.
Michael Howard (far right) had started in bodybuilding by competing in the NPC SteelWorld competition in Mobile. When IFBB Pro Mike Horn saw his potential, he had placed 4th. He was told by Mike "If you let me do your diet, you will win the Alabama State Championships." Michael accepted and became the 2012 Alabama State Champion.
All three of these competitors were guest posers at the 2014 NPC SteelWorld. Mike and Jan like to give local competitors recognition and exposure. No one except the Horns knew at the beginning of the year that these three were all going to do the 2014 IFBB North American Championships. Mike and Jan have always loved Gary Udit and support him by sending competitors every year.
To help guide the three champion
s, they sent the 2010 Alabama State Champion, Robert Calin, along with IFBB Pro and Olympia competitor, Fran Menez, both Team SteelWorld competitors. It was amazing to see these three young men compete at this level.
Christian placed the highest in the top 10, Michael place 13th, and Anthony placed 17th. As Mike and Jan say, "The competition is against yourself to give 100%; the WIN comes at the end of every day, not with a trophy at the end of the diet."
When the three were asked how similar their diets were, they said, "All of Mike's competitors take protein, Aqualyze, and Fiberlyze from Species Nutrition and we read Ironman Magazine and Rx Muscle. That's all we’re saying. Mike doesn't like us going over our diets with others. LOL!”
