Miss Olympia women. Miss Olympia
The Ms. Olympia tournament dates back to 1980 and is a women's bodybuilding competition created by Joe Weider and held every year by the IFBB.
For twenty years, Ms. Olympia was held as an independent tournament, and starting in 2000, the International Federation of Professional Bodybuilding decided to combine the two Mr. and Ms. Olympia tournaments into one, within sports show– Olympia Weekend.
Ms. Olympia has undergone several dramatic changes throughout its history. Until 2000, women competed in a single universal weight category, which was subsequently divided into two: light - up to 61 kg (up to 135 pounds) and heavier - over 61 kg. But since 2004, the IFBB nevertheless returned to a single weight category, which still exists today.
Miss Olympia 1980
The honor of holding the title of the first Miss Olympia went to athlete from Texas Rachel McLish. Rachel McLish was born on June 21, 1955, and at the time of participation in the tournament she was exactly 25 years old. Rachel's opponent was a girl from Michigan, Auby Paulick, who won her first professional tournament shortly before Ms. Olympia.
It is worth noting that Rachel McLish, after her victory, was honored to be featured in the film “Pump Iron 2: The Women.”
For her outstanding services to bodybuilding, Rachel McLish was inducted into the IFBB Hall of Fame in 1999.
Miss Olympia 1981
In 1982, Rachel McLish failed to defend the title of Miss Olympia and she lost it to athlete Kike Elomaa, born on July 25, 1955 in Finland, the city of Lokalahti. Kike Elomaa would compete two more times at Ms. Olympia in 1982 and 83, where she would take 3rd and 5th place, respectively.
Today, Kike Elomaa is a current member of the Finnish Parliament.
Miss Olympia 1982
The 1982 final featured two competitors, Rachel McLish and Carla Dunlap. Both girls are perfectly prepared and each has experience and titles behind them, but only one won, or rather regained the title - Rachel McLish.
Miss Olympia 1983
The '83 Olympia gave history a new tournament winner, Carla Dunlap, originally from Newwark, New Jersey. Carla Dunlap's professional debut took place in 1979 at the Best In The World tournament, where the girl took 5th place.
It is worth noting that Carla Dunlap's track record is impressive, her sports career ended only in 1993 at the Miss International tournament. Having taken 13th place there, Carla Dunlap decided to end her career.
Throughout her competitive career, Carla Dunlap has climbed to the Miss Olympia stage six times, but only won once.
Miss Olympia 1984-1989
The 1984 Olympia will be remembered by all bodybuilding and fitness fans for the rest of their lives. It was from this Olympia that the unsurpassed Cory Everson, winner of the six-time title of Miss Olympia, began her victorious march. Many experts repeatedly compare the achievements of Cory Everson with her famous colleague Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Cory Everson rose to fame so quickly that until 1989 she had no equal. You can find photos of Cory Everson in our photo archive and see the fitness and bodybuilding star with your own eyes.
For her outstanding achievements in the development of bodybuilding and fitness, Cory Everson was honored to be inducted into the IFBB Hall of Fame in 1999, into the Muscle Beach Venice Body Building Hall of Fame on September 5, 2005, and in 2008. into the National Fitness Hall of Fame.
Miss Olympia 1990-1995
The 1990 tournament was marked by several important events. Firstly, the star and winner of six Miss Olympia titles, Corrie Everson, has left the starry firmament. Secondly, the dark-skinned beauty Lenda Murray, who was also destined to become an eight-time title winner, ascended the tournament platform.
The girl was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1962. The owner of a dozen eminent titles, Lenda Murray held first place until 1995, not allowing anyone to come close to first place. She ended her career in 2004 at the Miss Olympia tournament, where she took third place in the heavyweight category.
It is also worth noting that Lenda Murray climbed onto the Miss Olympia stage 11 times in a row, year after year!!!
In 1990 came crucial moment in the tournament rules. Latest victories Lenda Murray showed that women cease to be feminine for the sake of large and colossal muscle volumes. It was decided to divide all the contestants into two categories: light and heavy. Such changes were supposed to bring aesthetics back into sports.
Miss Olympia 1996-1999
Following Lenda Murray's six-year run, a new bodybuilding icon, Kim Chizevsky-Nicholls, hailing from Charleston, Illinois, has arrived on the scene.
Before Ms. Olympia, Kim Chizevsky had already had a series of brilliant victories at famous tournaments such as Ms. International, North American Championship and NPC Continental USA.
Miss Olympia 2000
Since 2000, the tournament has been slightly modernized by creating two categories of female bodybuilders - heavy and light. It turned out that the tournament was won by two athletes in different categories.
This year's lightweight Ms. Olympia was Andrulla Blanchette, originally from London, England. And victory in heavyweight The winner was the famous Valentina Chepiga, our compatriot from Kharkov.
Miss Olympia 2001
The championship took place in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. In the lightweight division, Juliette Bergmann from the Netherlands won, and in the heavyweight division, Iris Kyle entered the battle arena, for whom fate has prepared many interesting tournaments in the future.
Miss Olympia 2002-2003
The composition of the winners of the 2002 tournament has changed by only half. In the lightweight division, Juliette Bergmann defended her title, and in the heavyweight division, Lenda Murray made her mark. The same pair of girls staged battles at the next final of the competition in 2003.
Miss Olympia 2004
In the lightweight category, the victory was won by an athlete originally from Haiti, but who moved to Canada - Dayana Cadeau. By the way, Diana Kadu has the same nickname as the champion Phill Heath - gifted. The girl participated in IFBB competitions until 2011, and took 16th place at the last Olympia. Dayana Cadeau has appeared on the Olympia platform more than 12 times!!!
In the heavyweight division, Ukrainian Valentina Chepiga took the prize money, which we are extremely happy about.
Miss Olympia 2005
Following established traditions, the tournament was held in Las Vegas, Nevada. After several years of double victories, the organizers of the competition decided to return to a single category, which was won by Yaxeni Oriquen-Garcia from Venezuela. The girl has incredible experience of competitions and a fantastic 17 appearances on the Olympia podium!!! Yaxeni Oriquen took first place only once, but many times she came to 2-3 places.
Miss Olympia 2006-2014
We have repeatedly witnessed the birth of a legend, and now 2006 gave us another legend, the standard of female bodybuilding that people still look up to today, and this is 2015. Iris Kyle has been honored to be Miss Olympia more than 9 times.
Iris Kyle made her debut in 1999 at the Ms International IFBB Championship. With a height of 180 cm and a weight of 71-73 (in season), the girl competes in the heavyweight division. But given the fact that there is now only one category, Iris Kyle is considered the absolute champion.
We look forward to the 2015 Ms. Olympia, where it will be clear whether Iris Kyle will once again take the title or whether we will witness the birth of a new legend.
Finally, the results of the Ms. Championship are known. Olympia bikini category. This year there have been major changes in the top 5 finalists. Two-time Miss Olympia Ashley Kaltwasser was unable to retain her title this year. Unfortunately, she didn't even make it into the top 3. The first place and the title of Miss Olympia this year went to...
Finally, the results of the Ms. Championship are known. Olympia bikini category. This year there have been major changes in the top 5 finalists. Two-time Miss Olympia Ashley Kaltwasser was unable to retain her title this year. Unfortunately, she didn't even make it into the top 3. First place and the title of Miss Olympia this year went to the incomparable Courtney King. None of the participants could create worthy competition for her. Her closest rival was 4 points behind Courtney.
The main confrontation of the evening took place between Angelica Texeira and India Paulino. With a difference of only one point, Angelica Texeira took second place. India Paulino is in third. But fourth place went to Ashley Kaltwasser.
Results “Ms. Olympia 2016" women's category "Fitness Bikini":
From June 9 to 11, 2017, in the city of Marbella, Spain, the famous health and sports center Palacio de Congresos Adolfo Suarez with a capacity of one and a half thousand spectators, the third Olympia Amateur Spain 2017 tournament was held. IFBB athletes gathered for the competition to perform in six divisions: Bodybuilding , Bodybuilding Classic, Men's Physique, Muscular Men's Physique, Bodyfitness and Bikini-Fitness. All winners received tournament awards, and the overall winners received an IFBB Pro Card. Among the ten contenders in the WOMEN’S BIKINI-FITNESS OVER 172 cm category, Muscovite Natalya Lugovskikh, who had an extremely successful competitive season, was registered and wrote the following about her mood before Spain:
Attitude, self-confidence, fortitude - this is what is important in sports. In general, only we make our lives and decide what will happen next. There are no boundaries, stops, fears, nothing is impossible. There can only be a lack of real desire. And this is an excuse! Your world is in your hands! Make it the way you like and be happy.
Eva Havelkova Czechia
Pavlina Stouracova Czechia
Mari Pukk Estonia – 2nd category
Stefanie Gold Germany
Ira Moor Germany
Ioana Sulea Romania
Natalya Lugovskih Russia
Barbara Bagnuolo San Marino – 2nd category
Ramona Andrei San Marino
Jovana Aleksic Serbia
On the stage of the Spanish Olympia, Natalya looked extremely advantageous with her developed proportions and original posing; our athlete’s updated hair color also came in handy. The judges unanimously put the entire harmonious image in first place with a six-point gap over the closest competitor from the Czech Republic, as Lugovskikh herself wrote about on her Instagram account:
Protocols from yesterday! 5 points out of 5 minimum possible. I have unanimous first place! O??? I can explain how the points are calculated) There are 9 judges on the panel, they place the athletes in places. From first to last place. Next, when calculating, the 2 highest and 2 lowest scores are removed, and the remaining 5 are added up. 5 points means that all 5 judges put me in first place. It also happened in Europe. And in Russia. Well, now we are already in the Congress Hall and waiting for the absolute! Cheer for Russia! I'm Miss Olympia! Me first!!! Like this! Go towards your goal so that everyone gets out of your way! I love everyone!
For the title absolute champion in the Fitness Bikini category, Natalya compared with the eight winners of her height subcategories and again the judges were favorable to the work of the Lugovskys - she is ahead of the Ukrainian from Lviv Oksana Brigidir (winner of WOMEN’S BIKINI-FITNESS UP TO 169 cm) by eight points, this made her the leader of the Spanish absolute. To which the athlete expressed her feelings in the following words:
I"m an Absolute Winner, Miss Olympia Amateur! I"m so happy! I am the Absolute Olympia winner! Miss Olympia 2017! Thank you to fate, to myself and my loved ones who support me, endure, love and wait for me!
The final protocols of Natalia Lugovskikh’s height category and absolute comparison are below in the photographs.
Ms. Olympia is a professional bodybuilding competition for women organized by the IFBB (International Federation of Bodybuilding). The competition was first held in 1980, and since then the championship has been held annually.
Thanks to the creation of one of the most prestigious competitions, female bodybuilding has become recognized nationally and international view a sport that every year involves everything larger number girls who want to improve their appearance and improve their health.
The competition was organized by George Snyder. Applicants for participation had to send their photographs and resumes, based on which girls were selected for the competition. The focus was on candidates who could later be used as models for the fitness industry.
The first Miss Olympia was Rachel McLeish, whose graceful but at the same time muscular physique, combined with a charming smile, brought her the honorary title. The following year, Kaik Elomaa took the crown from her. However, Rachel did not give up and continued to train hard, which gave tangible results: in 1982, she again conquered the judges and regained her title.
Development of the competition and selection criteria for participants
In 1982, George Snyder lost the rights to host Ms. Olympia, and from that moment on, there was no one to select participants based on their photographs. Now it was possible to get to the championship by winning several less significant competitions.
With the development of the sport, the level of the competitors has also increased. Previously, judges assessed the external characteristics of the participants, achieved through training. Since 1983, more attention began to be paid directly to the muscles that the girls demonstrated at the championship.
The popularity of women's bodybuilding, which had become a huge industry, attracted NBC, which broadcast Ms. Olympia on its channel for several years in the mid-1980s. This fact suggests that interest in this sport remained at a high level.
In 1990, the Women's Pro World, a women's world professional bodybuilding competition, was discontinued. Typically, girls qualified for the Miss Olympia competition after winning championships at a lower level. With the liquidation of Women’s pro World, there was only one competition left that opened the way for participants to Olympia - Miss World (Ms. International). Thus, International Federation bodybuilding decided to select contestants based on their professional cards, and not victories in various competitions.
The competition was first broadcast live in 1991. A year later, the judges developed new criteria for selecting participants. Now preference was given to femininity and beauty female body and body features, rather than big muscles. Lenda Murray embodied new image"Miss Olympia" and became the winner this season.
However, numerous complaints from participants and fans about innovations in the rules forced the judges to reconsider their decision regarding the selection criteria. Along with the aesthetic side, they also became important physical form girls and their muscles.
Since 2000, Ms. Olympia began to be held at the same time as Mr. Olympia, as a mandatory part of the Olympic week. During the same period, the division of contestants into weight categories took place for the first time.
The brightest winners
In the 80s and 90s, Corey Everson and Lenda Murray dominated the scene. Over the course of these years, each of the contestants became the owner of the Miss Olympia title six times.
In 1996, the title was won by Kim Czyzewski, who held the title for four years. There was constant controversy surrounding her, and the question of the aesthetics of women's bodybuilding was discussed, since this contestant had incredibly developed muscles, similar to men's.
In 2002 and 2003, Lenda Murray won again, returning to the stage after long break. She managed to break all records in women's bodybuilding.
In 2004, the new Olympia conqueror from the heavyweight category, Iris Kyle, took on the crown. However, at the next competition, the title was taken away from her by athlete Yaxeni Orikjen. However, this did not stop Iris, who managed not only to regain the title by winning in 2005, but also significantly increased her achievements, taking the throne to this day and becoming a seven-time Ms. Olympia.
Hello to everyone who cannot imagine their life without “iron sports”! Probably, none of you will be surprised by the fact that in Gym Not only boys, but also girls go. And it’s even less surprising that they train not only for the sake of beautiful figure, but also with real love for the process itself.
Therefore, the emergence of the Miss Olympia competition was a natural pattern, because women also strived to achieve the ideal and win the title of the best of the best. But why does this competition cause a lot of controversy both in the sports community and among people far from sports?
Why do the contestants leave no one indifferent? And who are they - the girls with the title of Miss Olympia? This is what we will try to figure out today.
All about Olympia:
Women's Olympia - where it all began
The competition, of course, did not arise immediately and not out of nowhere. By the time the first competition took place in 1980, women's bodybuilding was gradually becoming more popular.
The first competition, which was designed to determine the best in this sports discipline, was Miss Universe. It took place back in 1965. But only with the advent of the female version of the Olympia in 1980 can we consider that women in bodybuilding were given a 100% green light.
The first competition was organized by George Snyder, who personally selected the contestants. In order to be included, girls had to send their photographs, as well as a resume with information about themselves. The main selection criterion for Snyder was then whether the contestant could be used as a model in her fitness industry.
Women's bodybuilding - then and now
The first competition took place in 1980, and already in 1990 the organizers decided to adjust some of the rules. So, after Linda Murray’s victory, experts were concerned that the contestants were building up large muscle volumes to the detriment of their beauty.
Therefore, it was decided to divide the participants into two weight categories- heavy and light. With this, the organizers decided to return the aesthetics of the female body to iron sport. However, in 2004 this decision was canceled.
In 2000, it was decided to somewhat combine the two largest tournaments - Ms. and Mr. Olympia. Now they are held as part of an entire show called Olympia Weekend.
Now girls can compete among themselves in three categories - bodybuilding, fitness and fitness bikini.
Judging female bodybuilding competitors is based on the quality of their muscles and posing - just like men - but also looks at the overall figure. It should not be massive, that is, too reminiscent of a man’s.
The fitness category requires not only harmonious body proportions, but also choreography and acrobatics skills. Here the contestants' entrance is divided into three stages - exiting in a bikini, performing free program and the final exit.
It is videos from the last two categories that most often end up in the top requests at the end of the competition.
Last 2016, the title of winner in the fitness bikini category was given to Courtney King, who is one of the youngest participants - she has been competing since she was 17 years old.
Who are they - the contestants with the Olympia title?
Of course, such competitions were created for a reason - after all, even before the advent of Miss Olympia, women were engaged in “iron sports” at professional level. Therefore, there was simply no shortage of people willing to become participants. So who are they - the girls who won the Olympia title?
Photos of the winners can be found on the Internet, but for now I suggest getting acquainted with the winners and some facts from their biography:
The achievements of all these women impress not only a person far from sports, but also those who devote their lives to training in the gym. And at the same time it frightens a lot of people appearance female athletes whose muscles are developed according to the male type. This is the controversial point regarding female bodybuilding.
Are women's bodybuilding competitions necessary?
Despite the fact that girls came to the “iron sport” back in the seventies, which, you see, was quite a long time ago, the debate still continues on the topic of whether it is necessary at all modern woman bodybuilding itself.
Of course, such disputes arose for one reason - girls train hard, and as a result, their muscles are built according to the “male” type. But if we turn to physiology, there are no differences in the structure of male and female muscles.
The same muscles, and, therefore, the same inclinations. It’s just that the result looks a little strange to most, because we are used to seeing a woman as small and fragile. Therefore, a certain dissonance of perception arises.
On the other hand, we live in the 21st century, where there is no longer a division into “women’s and men’s” activities, hobbies, and professions. And if a woman is attracted to this sport, then why not? Especially considering the fact that this is still a sport that will make her physically more resilient and stronger.
After all, previously the “weaker sex” did not play sports or participate in competitions. And the absence physical activity only contributed to earlier aging of the body.
Now there is a trend where interest in female bodybuilding is decreasing. It is beginning to give way to such categories as fitness bikini, body fitness - here you will not see “pumped” female figures. Participants in such competitions, according to many, have found a golden mean - they combine strength, beauty and femininity.
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