Contest Preview - 2008 IFBB New York Pro Figure

FigureRX Online Magazine Volume 7

The New York Pro Figure Championships will be held at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center in lower Manhattan on September 5th and 6th, in conjunction with one of the largest amateur shows in the country, the NPC Team Universe. That puts this contest in the unique position of almost being overshadowed by an NPC show that offers up 12 figure pro cards, more than twice as many available at any other national level show. The IFBB figure pro show is being staged in the middle of the busiest time of the year, with the Europa in the rear view mirror, the nearby Atlantic City Pro the following week, and the Olympia only a month away. Turnover among figure competitors is high, with only three athletes who were here in 2007 choosing to compete in 2008. Last year promoters found themselves on the defensive with air conditioning problems in the building and a last-minute change in host hotels, but have rectified those issues by moving the contest from the summer to early fall.

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Participation levels at the New York Pro are up slightly this year (25 competitors at press time, more than the 21 last year) - which is a trend across the board in the industry. There is no professional male bodybuilding contest to take the spotlight away from the star female athletes, like at the Europa and Atlantic City. And there are several Olympia-qualified champions in this lineup, at least one major comeback, and several highly anticipated professional debuts! We'll also see a major international flavor at this event, with ten athletes who earned their IFBB cards outside of the United States.

In some ways Arkansas mom Michelle Flake was on the cutting edge of the transition from last year's figure judging criteria, because she represents this year's officially preferred standards yet she won both the Sacramento Pro and Kentucky Muscle Pro in November of 2007. Michelle has only won every show that she has entered since placing 17th at the 2006 Olympia, and this is a warm-up for her return to the Olympia stage next month. Enough within the sport of figure has changed since she last competed in November, so she is by no means a sure thing, but we would be surprised if Michelle placed outside the top three in New York.

Editor's Note: With Michelle Flake and Hazal Nelson now out of the mix, the dynamics have changed since this article was published. We now think that up to three new athletes may qualify for the Olympia which makes this extra exciting!

Talented competitor Krissy Chin has had a hectic year which included a cross-country relocation, but she put it all together on stage at the Houston Pro in early July and then in Jacksonville - placing fourth and just missing a trip to the Olympia. And that Jacksonville finish was behind three mega-stars of the industry, making it one of the toughest lineups of the year. Krissy has improved her delt-back-waist ratios somehow and is exhibiting just the right amount of hardness. We strongly believe that she belongs on the Las Vegas stage, but the competition in New York has several proven top-three finishers so it won't be easy. It never is. But with three opportunities in three weeks, she'll have some chances and will either be in the money or close everywhere she competes. We're hoping that Krissy ends the suspense early and grabs a qualification here, so she can cruise in Atlantic City and mentally prepare for the Olympia.

Huge congratulations go out to Jelena Abbou who qualified for the Olympia at the Europa! Jelena was one of the seven pro figure competitors to watch in 2007, but she never fully broke through and frustration set in after last November's Kentucky Muscle Pro. Add to that the post-show declaration by GetBig's Isaac Hinds that she just didn't have a look that the judges would ever appreciate, and the Olympia qualification must now be extra sweet. In 2008 she was chosen as one of the most underrated athletes at the pro level, but she is underrated no more. Jelena's physique has always been incredible, and we feel that she hit a championship level last year, but the one major improvement that we can detect since then is to her posing stance. She's now pulling her delts back more and consequently rotating her arms slightly to the right, which has helped to further accentuate her lines. Otherwise her photos speak for themselves - and we think she'll get a ton of notice and respect at the Olympia. Here at the New York Pro she should land safely in the top six.

In our opinion, Allison-Jones Williams is one of the most improved pro figure athletes of the year to date. Allison's legs have always been astounding, but she has made noticeable changes to her back and has found a way to use a combination of conditioning and coloring to bring out more definition in her midsection while on stage, which has been critical to rounding out her physique and allowing her to break into the top ten in Pittsburgh and in Jacksonville. As she continues to perform consistently she could have a breakthrough moment at any time, and we think she has a real chance at her first top six placing in New York.

BW Writer Scott Abel - Metabolic Damage Among Figure Competitors

When word of the changes in judging criteria was disseminated after the Arnold this year, Rochester's Hazal Nelson immediately came to mind as one of the expected beneficiaries. Hazal brings a more voluptuous look that emphasizes the importance of her overall shape, but when she hit the stage earlier in 2008 she had taken "soft" a bit too far and was subsequently penalized by the judges. Well that all changed down in Texas at the Europa, where in our opinion she presented just the right combination of shape and hardness. Hazal even had some significant tricep pop in her side poses, which we always like to see, as she earned 2nd place and a trip to the Olympia! We're thrilled with the transition and expect her to do very well in New York.

We have never, ever seen Californian Huong Arcinas look anything less than spectacular on stage, which is why she was named one of the eight figure pros to watch in 2008. She even somehow came out looking stunning amidst the terrible stage lighting at the California Pro, where she was a whisker away from making it to the 2008 Olympia. Look for Huong to be squarely in the mix in New York and to battle Krissy for what may be only one available qualification. As a reminder, the rules state that if all of the top three finishers are already qualified (for example, if Michelle, Jelena and Hazal finish in the top three) then the fourth place athlete will be headed to Las Vegas.

One of our favorites, Tivisay Briceno, is finally getting a little love from the judges and placed 6th at the Europa, her fourth pro show since May. She has plans to compete here and in Atlantic City, where she has an excellent shot at the masters title. One of the three athletes who competed here last year is Jeanette Kolonias, who finished 9th and has never placed lower than that in her four pro shows (other than the Olympia). Jeanette was third at last year's nearby Jan Tana, and we think she'll be competitive in Manhattan.

There are five IFBB professional figure debuts at this show. Central American and Caribbean champion Carol King begins a string of three competitions in three weeks, and those who don't know her will be impressed by her legs and overall physique. Jacqui Jarrett from New Zealand is a 2007 card winner and former bodybuilder who also plans to complete the trifecta, competing in New York, Atlantic City, and in Anaheim. She'll join Australians Arina Manta and Donna Jones on the New York stage.

Two major red-hot debuts are expected to add a lot of quality muscle to the proceedings and we have been anticipating them for a while. Serena Cooper won her much-deserved IFBB card at the 2006 Canadian Nationals in the medium-tall class, and we love her look from head to toe. The Saskatchewan native has a streamlined but muscular physique, with beautiful delts, long muscle bellies, and small joints - in other words, ideal for figure. Another athlete who blew us away on the amateur stage and who will finally be making it to pro competition is Boulder, Colorado's Tana Clough. Tana won her card by placing second overall to Jennifer Gates at Junior Nationals last year, and she's another beautiful "total package" athlete who can modify the call-outs at any event. We look forward to seeing how Serena and Tana have transformed themselves during their layoffs and expect solid professional debuts from both.

We don't have to wonder about JulieAnn Kulla, however, because she just won the overall title at the Junior Nationals in Chicago in June. There's no doubt that this Minnesotan has a pro-ready physique, and several athletes who won cards this year (like Teresa Gillian) have already blazed a path of instant success. To say that JulieAnn has ideal figure genetics would be an understatement and we would not be surprised to see her finish anywhere in this lineup, even in the top three. She has the potential to be the "rookie of the year" in the IFBB pro ranks and her first step would be grabbing an Olympia qualification somewhere.

Brazil's Larissa Reis is in a physique category all by herself - in some judging environments, or at various times in the history of the sport, she would be presenting the ideal competitive package. Larissa is drop-dead gorgeous and beautifully muscled, but what really makes her stand out is her symmetry and conditioning. We'll have some more to say in a series of editorials on the direction of pro figure this year, but Larissa is a textbook example of the fundamental differences that exist between "figure quad separation" and "bodybuilder quad separation," or figure delt vascularity and the bodybuilding version. There are major differences and if you look at the long, sleek shape of Larissa legs combined with her small knee joints you will see some of them. Her joints aren't just small but they are also sharp, giving her muscles even more of a high-quality, angular look. So needless to say Larissa is one of our favorites in the pro ranks - we even like the way she rolls, with fellow Brazilian and pro bodybuilder Monica Martin. Serious muscle combined with serious symmetry and beauty, but not likely to be recognized highly enough in New York.

One of the most anticipated comebacks in the pro ranks will be Erica Fuerst's. Erica has taken a considerable amount of time off and delayed her May 2008 return because of an injury, but this is one comeback that's worth waiting for. We'll let Bodybuilding Weekly's feature tell you more. Florida's Marcy Porter presented her best package to date in Jacksonville last month, and will be gunning for a top-ten placing in this tough lineup, while one of our top ten underrated athletes, Karen Mullarkey, presents what we think is a gorgeous physique and presentation and we will be pulling hard for her to move up.

To see the rest of the great athletes competing at this show please go to the main coverage page and click on the "BW" icon next to each name. The "BW" always takes you to photos and a contest history for each competitor.

Editor's Note: After press time it was learned that Michelle Flake will not be competing here or at the Olympia because of an injury. We wish her a speedy recovery.

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