MS FIGURE OLYMPIA

   Las Vegas, Nevada, September 27:  With the Ms. Olympia bodybuilding title in the capable grasp of Iris Kyle after her victory on Friday night, it was left to decide who would wear the Ms. Olympia Fitness and Figure crowns.

   With $60,000 in prize money at stake for the fitness competitors, and another $48,000 offered to the top six in the figure sweepstakes, it turned out that the best Vegas wager went to anyone who placed a bet on a competitor named Jennifer.

With the fitness contingent topping out at 14 contestants, the field was filled with a group of veteran competitors who had pretty much made the top six placings a closed shop at the Ms. Olympia over the past few years.

  Making the competition more intriguing was the fact that defending Ms. Olympia Adela Garcia was out of action with a leg injury leaving the top spot up for grabs.  And among those who were most eager to snap up the prestigious laurels that come with the title, a red hot Tracey Greenwood, perennial top-five placers Tanji Johnson, Julie Palmer and Kim Scheideler, and a former claimant to the Ms. O crown - Jenny Hendershott - all looked ready to lock horns in the quest for the coveted crown.

   By the end of the first round Jen Hendershott and Julie Palmer stepped out to an early lead and were just one point apart. They were followed by Tracey Greenwood and Kim Scheideler waging a two-point differential battle of their own.

   In the second round Julie Palmer took the lead at the halfway point with a unanimous vote of the judges. They were obviously captivated by how she looked in her outfits. Hendershott stood second by a total of six points.

   With two critical fitness routine rounds to go, Hendershott and a group of additional high flyers that included Tanji Johnson, Tracey Greenwood, and Kim Scheideler put the hammer down in the chase for the title as all either overtook or at least pulled even with Palmer.  The evening's final routine (which has always been a strong suit for Jenny Hendershott) proved predictable. Hendershott was a unanimous choice of the judges, followed by Johnson, Scheideler, and Greenwood in that order.

   In winning, Hendershott claimed her second Ms. Olympia fitness title (her first was in 2005), and the accompanying $23,000 in prize money.  A veteran of fitness contests since her amateur days in 1997, Hendershott has now competed in nine Ms. Olympia contests dating back to her debut appearance in 2000 when she placed second.  Since then, she has become one of the sport's best known personalities and has never placed outside the top four at any of her past entries at the Ms. O.

   With consistant scoring across the four rounds of judging, Tracey Greenwood finished second to Hendershott and collected a tidy $14,500.  Another veteran of seven trips to the Ms. Olympia, Greenwood made this contest the exclamation mark on a season long sprint to the Ms. O with three straight victories at the Houston Pro Fitness, Europa Super Show, and Atlantic City Pro Fitness.  To her credit she managed to hold her top-level conditioning and finish strong without encountering injuries that may have compromised her performance at the Ms. O. Her runner-up finish here was Greenwood's highest-ever at the Ms. Olympia, and had to be especially pleasing considering she had placed fifth in both 2006 and 2007.  The improved placement was well-deserved.

   Third-place finisher Kim Scheideler slipped a notch from her last two Ms. Olympia runner-up finishes.   A solid competitor, Scheideler, like Greenwood, earned her finish with consistent scores in all four rounds. In fact, Scheideler's scores were the most consistent of any competitor in this event, and it earned her the bronze medal and a check for $9,500.

   With weaker scores in the routine rounds, Julie Palmer slipped to fourth, but in the bigger picture her finish was one of her best efforts ever and was markedly better than the two previous years at the Ms. Olympia (2006 and 2007) where she placed sixth in each.  For her efforts, Palmer pocketed $6,500.

   Fifth went to Tanji Johnson whose scores were the antithesis of Palmer's. Scoring lower in the one and two-piece rounds, Johnson solidified her spot among the top five finishers with clean, mistake-free routines.  Her take home pay was $4,500.

   Rounding out the top six was flashy Brazilian-born Regiane DaSilva. A dazzling performer, her scores don't reflect her quality - a reality that may be due in large part to her size compared to the rest of the fitness field.  DaSilva is both taller and heavier than her Ms. O counterparts, but she maintains the ability to power her way through fitness routines having been a world class aerobics competitor in the mid-90's.  Now living in Germany, DaSilva was the 2005 IFBB World Amateur Fitness champion, but her placing here enabled her to take home her first check at the Ms. Olympia totaling $2,000 - a considerable step up from her 13^th-place showing at the Ms. O in 2007.

MS FITNESS OLYMPIA

With newly-crowned Jennifer Hendershott clutching her gold medal and the winner's cash prize for winning the Ms. Olympia Fitness crown on Friday night, another Jennifer was about to stake her claim to a similar title in the Ms. Olympia Figure competition.

   In a field of contestants that was roughly twice the size of the Fitness event, 26 competitors, most of whom call the United States home, also hailed from Cuba, Serbia, Lithuania, Turkey and Canada.

   More interesting, however, was the fact that for those who follow Figure contests closely, especially this prestigious event, one might be wondering if it is quickly becoming ‘the incredible shrinking Ms. Olympia'.

   Although the total number of contestants at the Ms. Olympia Figure Championships has quickly grown at an annual rate and is now closing in on 30 entrants, conversely, the physical stature of its winners is getting unmistakably smaller.  It's true.

   With the Ms. Olympia Figure first inaugurated in 2003, the event has only six years of history to fall back on.  But in that six year period, only three different women have captured the crown.  In the first three years, New Jersey's Davana Medina swept to a trio of victories.  Then Californian Jenny Lynn scooped up a pair of wins in 2006 and 2007.

Now, Indiana's Jennifer Gates has stepped up to claim the sixth Ms. O figure title in rapid fashion.

   But here's the kicker.  Davana Medina was 5-7, 130 pounds.  Jenny Lynn was smaller at 5-5, 125 pounds.  But Gates is markedly more diminutive by comparison to her predecessors at a compact 5-1, 110 pounds.

   Regardless of her size, Gates showed a solid level of physical balance and sound structure in terms of the judges' current desire for what they she in a champion at the highest level.  And she got the nod over a large field that was loaded with very attractive and physically beautiful women.

  For Gates, her ascent to the Olympia title was rapid, once she entered the pro ranks.  In 2006 Gates wasn't even on the radar as a pro.  In fact, Gates began her competitive efforts as a bodybuilder winning the 2001 NPC Indiana overall title.  By 2004 she had made the switch to Figure contests and in 2007 she won the overall NPC Junior National Figure title to qualify for the pro ranks.  But she was only just getting started. She made her debut at the 2007 New York Pro Figure show and placed third (a finish that qualified her for the Ms. Olympia).  She then quickly entered the Motor City Pro Figure event and won. With a full head of steam she entered the Ms. Olympia last year and finished fourth - a great rookie year by anyone's estimation.

   In March of this year, Gates picked up where she left off in 2007 by placing second at the Ms. International in March. Then with a victory at the recent Atlantic City Pro Figure just two weeks before the Ms. O, it was stated in the Muscular Development Atlantic City coverage that after winning that event, "..........she has shown that she is ready to chase down Gina Aliotti, Sonia Adcock and any other challengers who might have designs on a top-three placing at the Ms. O in two weeks".   And that's exactly what she did in no uncertain terms. 

   After placing second to Gina Aliotti at the 2008 Ms. International in late February, Gates focused on prepping for an all-out run at the Ms. O title, and the results were exactly what she had hoped for, although they may have been difficult for her to grasp upon the announcement of her victory.  Nevertheless, Jennifer Gates is the new Ms. Olympia Figure champion with a physique that is no doubt already being glued to refrigerator doors across the country.

   As the newest Ms. Olympia Figure champion, Gates earned a check for $20,000.

   Runner-up for the second year in succession was Californian Gina Aliotti.  A 24-year-old with a beautifully structured physique, Aliotti fell just six points short of Gates' winning margin.  A heavy favorite going into this event due to her victory at the Ms. International, the San Diegan had also topped the field at the Tournament of Champions in Anaheim as a prep for the Olympia event. At her tender age, Aliotti will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.

   Her prize winnings totaled $10,000 for her silver medal finish.

   Third went to Lithuanian Zivile Raudoniene.  A sparkling beauty who has consistently shown extraordinary potential since her amateur days competing at the IFBB World Amateur Bodyfitness Championships, she can now be considered a leading candidate to vie for a future Ms. Olympia title.  Showing great bodylines and a bullet-proof structure that displayed virtually no flaws, Raudoniene finished just two points behind silver medalist Aliotti.  Earning the bronze medal here, Raudoniene became only the second female from Lithuania to win a medal at the Ms. Olympia level, and the first since Natalia Murnikoviene won back-to-back bronze medals in bodybuilding at the Ms. O in 1995 and '96.  As a lead-up to this year's Olympia, Raudoniene (who had made her Olympia debut last year finishing a distant 12^th), was a winner at both the New York Pro Figure and  Houston Pro Figure in 2007.  This year she once again won the New York Pro event and was stunning in her stage presence for this year's show.  Without question she was the most improved competitor at the 2008 Ms.Olympia, and she possesses the ability to push both Gates and Aliotti for the top spot in the future.

   Raudoniene's winnings came to $8,000.

   The fourth position went to former two-time Olympia Figure champion Jenny Lynn.  As one of the most successful Figure competitors in the brief history of these competitions, Lynn has competed in a total of five Ms. Olympia contests before this year and never finished outside the top three - until now.  But this year was different. Lynn appeared somewhat distracted on stage, and showing far less of the striking stage presence that brought her three straight victories at the Ms. International, two Olympia wins, and at least five other pro events dating back to 2003. This time, she was missing the ‘wow factor' that had always brought attention to her meticulous preparation for an event of this level. In placing fourth she still pocketed $4,500 in prize money, but with new talent coming along yearly, this Jenny - of all the Jennys - will need to take a closer look at how she approaches competitions in the future.

   Fifth went to former Ms. International champion Mary Elizabeth Lado.  Finishing in the same position she captured at the 2006 Ms. Olympia, the statuesque Cajun beauty looked better prepared for this year's event after sinking to 10^th in last year's Ms. O.  Lado used a victory at the 2008 Jacksonville Pro Figure event to re-qualify for the Ms. Olympia, and she collected $3,500 for her fifth-place finish here.

  The sixth and final money-winning position went to tiny Californian Sonia Adcock.  After making her Ms. Olympia debut last year with a strong third place finish, Adcock added a pair of victories at the Pittsburgh Pro and California Pro figure events for good measure.  Adcock has established herself as a major player in the Figure dash for top placings as she has also notched a third at the 2007 Ms. International to go with a fifth at that event in 2008.  So, her placing at this event was the first time she has been outside the top five since she turned pro in 2006, but, as is the case with Gina Aliotti, Adcock has many more years of potential top placings in her future assuming she continues to improve and fill out her overall structure.

   Adcock's winnings totaled $2,000.