Written by Giles Thomas
08 September 2012

NORDIC_PRO_ROELLY_INS

“Who would Finnish first in Finland?” By Giles Thomas

The last qualifier before the Olympia was a tense last chance for potential Olympian’s to earn the final qualifying berth for Las Vegas this September 27-30th. With both open men’s and pro figure classes, this first Finnish pro show since the 1998 post-Olympia Finland Grand Prix boasted an impressive 18 countries participating. Who would shock? Who would impress? A veteran or newcomer? American or Euro-Freak? Read on my MD brothers and sisters…or if you prefer scroll down to watch the wrap-up video featuring myself and Shawn Ray!

CLICK HERE FOR NORDIC PRO CONTEST PHOTOS & FULL RESULTS

5th – Todd Jewell – A great rookie year for the current NPC Nationals champion! What he’s achieved gains-wise in 9 months is nothing short of astonishing. He had more upper body mass and was by far the biggest and widest man on stage here. He combines great conditioning, such nice aesthetics for such a big, big man, and impressive presentation to match his Herculean physique. Todd will be moving up and up in these coming years, a future top 6 Olympian, that you can take to the bank Mr. Jewell!

4th – Baitos Abbaspour - Like Jewell, he had a very strong first year as a new IFBB Pro, including two top 5 placings in the beginning of the first season earlier this year in Germany and Spain, and now a with a VERY strong finish here today. You could argue he deserved top 3 here. A squeeze of water less in his night showing, and you’d have a very strong argument for second here. Open or 212, he was 211 pounds here today; Baitos has a very good pro career ahead of him. Remember the name, as he is a potential top 6 open Olympian or even 212 Olympia champion.

3rd – Ronnie Rockell - Noted normally as Mr. Consistent, that was not so evident here in Finland. Already qualified for the Olympia at the Arnold Europe last October, maybe Ronnie was coming in looking 4 weeks out because he IS 4 weeks out from the Olympia? Or maybe one of our most balanced pros was here to pick up some dollars, seeing as it was in his back yard? Question is, will he be ready for Vegas and crack the top six or even the top ten, or has the standard moved on up this year? It’s hard to say.

2nd – Robert Piotrkowicz – A very deserved finish for one of the most consistently conditioned competitors out there today. One of the officials said about Robert that he brought size, condition, and symmetry. What more could we ask? With the one drawback of last year’s stomach distension now a thing of the past, I can see him moving up another level in 2013.

1st – Roelly Winklaar – Certainly third time’s the charm for now two-time pro champion Roelly, the beast from Holland! Being backstage with Roelly at the Dallas pro just 3 weeks before, I couldn’t help but feel the shared disappointment for the man who many felt would jump up to another level of pro stardom after a very successful 2011 off-season. But, like all true champions, they bounce back, and boy did Roelly do that here. Fuller, harder and infinitely more confident than his recent two top four finishes in the USA. Can the Roelly steam train continue to pick up momentum and go for a sprint finish to make top ten or maybe even top five in Vegas in just three short weeks? This will no doubt seem like an eternity for the ever diligent Roelly, supported by his team, and most loyal of supports Sibil ‘Grandma’ Peeters? We shall see at the end of this month!

TEAM MD's Shawn Ray and Giles Thomas provide expert analysis from the IFBB Nordic Pro in Finland.  No two guys are better suited for this report: Shawn was holding down the emcee stand while Giles led MD's Live Play-by-Play!  Find out what they think about Roelly Winklaar's win and how they saw the rest including Ronny Rockel,  Robert Piotrkowicz, Todd Jewell, and more.  Here it is:

Comment