FigureRX Preview: 2007 USA Figure Championships

July 20th, 2007

For the second year in a row, the USA Figure Championships in Las Vegas will follow Team Universe on the calendar. We would prefer if this were reversed as it was in 2005, with the six pro cards in Vegas coming first creating an escalating number of pro cards handed out as the season progresses. The twelve deserving athletes who earned their cards in New York will now be out of the mix, which creates a more wide open battle at the USA’s especially in the middle height classes.

Forecasting the USA’s also means taking a close look at all the major NPC national qualifiers in the west coast states, because many athletes from the west and mountain regions take advantage of geography to enter their first major show here. There are also several recent NQ shows that have sent qualified competitors with solid physiques to the national level.

Jessica Wright	Jamie Reed	Nancy Georges

Figure Class F (over 5’6”) continues to be one of the most competitive divisions, with several athletes who should ultimately turn pro. Indiana’s Jessica Wright continued her string of remarkably consistent performances in New York with a 3rd place finish and also placed 2nd at the USA’s last year. We expect her to battle it out with FigureRX’s Jamie Reed, who finished 4th in New York and 8th here last year, veteran superstar Nancy Georges, and rapidly rising FigureRX star Ali Huston. Jamie has made significant improvements in her conditioning and presentation recently to go along with her top notch physique. Nancy, the 1991 Miss Fitness USA champion, has classic figure lines along with good muscularity and finished 3rd here last year. She also looked to be in great shape in March at the Arnold Amateur, and it is a testament to her competitiveness that she has chosen to compete here rather than grab what would probably be an easy IFBB card at the Master’s in Pittsburgh.

Ali Huston finished 6th at Junior Nationals but was somewhat overlooked in New York, which is sometimes the case during a competitor’s first visit to the Big Apple stage, but she still scored a top ten finish. As we went to press we heard from Misty Green that she is taking the rest of the year off and plans to do several shows in 2008. Her absence potentially opens up another slot for someone near the top.

Ali Huston	Mendi Sakamoto	Julianna Jade

Mendi Sakamoto, the NPC Oregon overall champion, has all the physique tools and a beautiful look, and she is one of our sleeper selections for the top five. Matching Nancy Georges’ height on stage will be 5’10” Washingtonian Julianna Jade. We also continue to like Team “Performance Ready” athlete Jessica Steffens, who will be looking to improve on 8th place in Chicago and 9th in New York.

Jessica Steffens	Ifeyinwa Nzerem	Jamie Justin

The 2007 California State Figure F champion, Ifeyinwa Nzerem, will get some looks in her debut. We’d also like to see two dramatically underrated competitors move up, Jamie Justin and Jessica Livingston. Jamie has been inexplicably overlooked for a number of shows recently. Stephanie McDonald and Heather Porter both have excellent potential but fall in the category of needing to put on a bit more size, while other competitors to mention include Contra Costa D champion Michelle Battista, Emerald Cup winner Christine Aguilar, and Oregonian Catherine Boshuizen. Catherine Andersen has good upper body vascularity and placed high in Chicago and New York, while Angela Steuber brings good leg development to the stage.

Lindsey Cope	Veronica Miller	Melissa Thalhamer

We can predict for Figure Class E (over 5’5” and up to and including 5’6”) that there will be no fitness competitors stepping in to surprise us like Nicole Wilkins did in New York! We are curious to see how many of the top finishers in New York will attempt to make last minute entries, however. This is an exciting class because of some newcomers, starting with Nevada State overall champion Lindsey Cope. Lindsey is simply a prodigy with gorgeous presentation and an amazing physique, and she is on a fast track to the top. It will be interesting to see how the judges react to her, because of her muscularity and hardness, but her physique is undoubtedly geared for figure and is a good example of the fundamental differences between a muscular figure competitor and a bodybuilder.

The surprise of the class at Junior Nationals, Louisianan Veronica Miller, skipped New York and will be back on stage at Las Vegas. A high placing by Veronica would also represent a positive direction for the sport. Melissa Thalhamer will be making her 2007 debut after her second place finish in Vegas last year. In the past she has come in somewhat softer than the other competitors, which has not necessarily hurt her, but we are interested to see what improvements she has made in the off-season. Arizona’s Alecia Rankovic looks to be making a move after competing in Class F and placing 13th in New York. Nola Trimble has had a disappointing season and will be looking to bounce back, while former Fitness American national champion Tanya Merryman returns to the stage and has a very impressive lower body. Denise Blackwell has a shot at the top ten, with the excellent quad development and conditioning that she has exhibited when competing in Louisiana.

Alecia Rankovic	Nola Trimble	Tanya Merryman

Among the FigureRX favorites, one of our sleeper picks for the top five would be Erin Parrish, a gorgeous Tennessee blonde who is almost a dead ringer for Jessica Paxson. Erin has a unique posing style that generates attention on stage, combined with excellent curves and muscularity. Our most improved competitor versus last year would be Shari Yates, who placed 6th in Chicago. And if you believe the adage that shoulders can never be too big or too capped for figure, then you will be sure to like Californian Angela Watson who will have some of the best delt development out there. We’re flying blind because we have no contest photos of Alaskan (and current Las Vegas inhabitant) Jennifer Reynolds, but she may be a factor based on the look we saw on her MySpace page. We also like Amanda Quinlan who is a last minute entrant. Finally, Maryland’s Suzanne Barlas immediately commands attention with her incredible midsection and cover girl beauty but needs to continue to work on her overall symmetry to improve upon her 10th place finish at this year’s Junior Nationals.

Erin Parrish	Angela Watson	Suzanne Barlas

Figure Class D (over 5’4” and up to and including 5’5”) was much improved in New York but many of the competitors there are either facing last minute entries or do not plan to compete in Las Vegas. April Fortier has to be a favorite, after just missing her pro card not once but twice in New York, placing 3rd in both figure and fitness. We have tremendous admiration for her competition schedule this year; she has competed in both fitness and figure at several events, and has all the tools for both. We think that April is on her way to a pro card and, if not here, than at Fitness Nationals in Dallas.

April Fortier	Jessica Troha	Jeri Corte-Smith

Jessica Troha, the 2007 California State overall champion, will be making her national debut and has a chance at the top five in a very unpredictable class. We hope that either Tiffany Rabon or Karyn Brantley will take a shot at a last minute entry here after doing well in New York, but the costs to compete in Vegas can be high if you don’t plan in advance. We do know that Texan Jeri Corte-Smith will be there, and she has a huge opportunity if she can come in looking as good as she did at the Junior USA’s, where she placed 5th.

Noreen Castillo	Danielle Kifer	Keri Lege

Other competitors to note include Danielle Kifer, another Louisianan making her 2007 debut, Noreen Castillo who has an exotic look, and Virginian Keri Lege. Tracy Gaurina will again be a factor at the top if she does not take a pro card at Masters, and look for Emerald Cup winner Karin Kimura to bounce back from her finish in New York. American Physiques’ Courtney Paul has potential, but we were unable to find adequate photos of her to make a full determination.

Erin Heath	DeSunka Dawson	Danyell Leavitt

We are hearing rumors that some of the height classes may be adjusted to smooth out the competitor lists, so some of the taller competitors in Figure Class C (over 5’3” and up to and including 5’4”) may find themselves in Class D. Our bet is that they will end up keeping the competitors where they are because Class C is currently the smallest, with 25 competitors. In either case, rising star Erin Heath has a strong chance at her card, after placing 3rd in New York and 2nd at the Junior USA’s. We would love to see her hit the stage to make a statement with the level of hardness and conditioning she exhibited while winning the Emerald Cup.

Look for DC-Area competitor DeSunka Dawson to make a big splash in her national debut. She finished second in her class at the Ronnie Coleman Classic, but only because she was behind Melissa Pearo who went on to win her card in Chicago. DeSunka has great overall size and symmetry to go along with an etched midsection, and may just need to bring her quads down a little bit. Also entering her first national level show will be Danyell Leavitt, she won her class at the Contra Costa and was 3rd at the Emerald Cup and may be a factor here.

Wendi Murray	Holly Semanoff	Michelle Woodward

Wendi Murray placed 6th at both Juniors and 8th in New York, we have confidence that she will move up here. One half of the 2005 Ironman Fittest Couple, Holly Semanoff, will be hitting the stage, and Emily Nicholson is much better than her placing indicated in New York. Michelle Woodward’s tan and presentation looked dramatically better at Junior Nationals than at the Junior USA’s, and she looks to continue that upward trajectory in Las Vegas. Ginger Redeker can be a factor depending on her conditioning. Finally, we have not seen Siene Silva since the 2005 Motor City because of the notorious lack of categorized photo coverage at the Southern States, but she exhibited great potential then and we look forward to seeing her improvements at the USA’s.

We expect Figure Class B (over 5’2” and up to and including 5’3”) to feature a battle at the top between significantly different physique types. Nikki Warner took all of the 2006 season off to make improvements and then made a brief and notable appearance at the Arnold Amateur, and we expect Nikki to return here in full force and in her best shape ever. Squaring off for the pro card will be Coloradan Jacqueline Skibba, who exhibits ideal figure lines and overall shape but a softer physique.

Nikki Warner	Jacqueline Skibba	Stacy Adams

Stacy Adams, from Maryland, placed third and just missed a pro card in New York. Stacy looks vastly improved, particularly with her conditioning, compared to last year in Las Vegas where she also placed third. That goes to show you that placings don’t always tell the full story in the NPC (understatement of the article). We continue to be impressed with almost everything about doctor Elissa Schlichter from Redondo Beach, who won her class at the California State and took 5th in New York. Elissa also competed in the 45+ age category at Masters this weekend. Another competitor on the more muscular side is Texan Natosha Green, who placed 8th here last year. We like Patricia Farrow’s look and Tracy Bodner’s muscularity, both will have an impact. Nez Zamorano is a fitness crossover athlete who has improved her leg conditioning over her last couple of shows. Additional contenders for the top ten include Denise Rose, Bea Fox, and Erika Branich. We were unable to find any photos for Coloradan Anjalee Lalich or Texan Stacy Garcia, although we hear good things.

Elissa Schlichter	Patricia Farrow	Natosha Green

Figure Class A (up to and including 5’2”) has seen incredible turnover for this show, meaning that the vast majority of the listed competitors here did not compete in 2006 or earlier this season in New York. Melissa Froio has decided to skip Las Vegas and prepare for the North Americans and Tivisay Briceno looked amazing while placing 3rd in New York and is expected to win her pro card at the Master’s this weekend. If any of the missing competitors show up at the last minute they could shake things up. But with a confirmed group of over 40 registered competitors in the class, who among them will stand out and compete at the top?

Jennifer DeJoya	Kristi Newsome	Melody Manlove

North Hollywood’s Jennifer DeJoya is always one of our favorites, and she showed up shredded in New York, perhaps a little too much for the judges. She fares better when she is filled out a little more and we hope to see that here. Kristi Newsome, from Tennessee, has an extraordinary shape and placed 6th here last year, but in 2007 stripped down a little too much for Class A which usually brings a bit more muscle. It remains to be seen what the judges will prefer here. Melody Manlove has the type of overall look that the judges usually like in Las Vegas, and she placed 7th at Nationals in New York.

Tina Cross-Arabia	Sue Upson	Traci Hall

Tina Cross-Arabia is an Oddo-trained competitor who took first at the 2006 Excalibur, while Las Vegas-based photographer Nikki Browner will look to create some great shots of her own in her home town. Our sleeper pick is Arizona’s Traci Hall, who has a stunning look and quality figure musculature that comes from previously training for bodybuilding shows. Carolinian Sue Upson has great arm development and will look to build on her 5th place finish at the Junior USA’s. Other contenders for the top ten include Tricia Temple, Sunshine Classic winner Andi Grasso, Shannon Bennett (9th in Chicago), San Diego champion Crystal Lowery, and California overall champion Brie Zentil.

We welcome any comments that you may have about this article at FigureRX@verizon.net