2011 IFBB JUNIORS AND MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIPS
When you are young at your heart…

by Andrew Michalak

This is the phrase from music background of the Canadian master bodybuilder and is key to understand tremendous popularity of masters categories in the IFBB. Their soul is young, their mentality is young and their body is young, what they presented in details on the stage. “Bodybuilding as weight training and healthy nutrition is the key to prolong your mental and physical youth and allows you to prolong your life and rise the quality of this life” – as the IFBB President Dr. Rafael Santonja emphasized in his opening speech. The number of participating masters has broken a new record of 162 competitors.

This year’s World Juniors and Masters Bodybuilding and Fitness Championships were held in the Spanish Mediterranean spa of Santa Susanna. Several World Women’s Championships were held there but they will host Juniors and Masters for the first time. This was the biggest IFBB contest of this type, with over 500 participants, including athletes, delegates and supporters. The whole Caprici Verd Hotel was booked and it was not enough. Altogether, 228 competitors from 50 countries and 6 continents came to these Championships. The host country, Spain, entered the biggest number of athletes (A- and B-Teams) and won the team’s classification, ahead of Germany, Poland and Czech Republic. 24 sets of medals were distributed, including the new categories, held for the first time in the IFBB championshps: junior women’s bikini fitness and master men’s bodybuilding over 65 years old.

Spacious Parc Colomer Sport Center served as a venue site and was perfectly prepared by the Spanish Federation officials with two Ramos brothers: Jose (Spanish Federation President) and Carlos (Catalonia Bodybuilding Federation President) working closely with the City Council Sport Department and City Mayor Joan Campolier, who undertook this responsible task with great enthusiasm.

Mr. Campolier welcomed IFBB Executive Council members and managers and national teams managers at the special dinner given Friday night. The contest was run in a new order, with semifinals and finals of some categories on Saturday and shorter, attractive finals of the other categories on Sunday. Then there was the farewell banquet at the hotel and Monday morning all teams were delivered to the
El-Prat International Airport in Barcelona.
Now the battles! What happened in each category?


JUNIOR WOMEN BODYBUILDING

Three-time European champion and two-time world champion Liana Pall (Romania) easily won her third worlds title. Her main challenger was her team-mate and European Juniors runner-up Mihaela Serban but distance between them is still big.

JUNIOR MEN BODYBUILDING UP TO 75 KG

8 athletes, with two top from the 2011 European Junior Championships: Yovko Tihov (Bulgaria) and Burak Güllü (Turkey). They ran a close battle for the victory once again but only in the routine round (8:9 to Tihov). Compulsory poses rounds went clearly to Tihov, who displayed bigger muscle size and deep separation.
Gullu was in good shape but needs bigger thighs, which looked too small compared to his massive arms. Third place went to a newcomer from Germany, Mike Niessen, strongly pressed by the newcomer form Poland, Rafal Domin. I was especially impressed by Niessen’s overall predispositions for physique sports: he is taller, wide-shouldered, with longer legs. Perfect body lines for bodybuilding and I think he will need one-two years more of training to follow his famous team-mate Tim Budesheim and climb up to the top, probably in the heavyweight category.

JUNIOR MEN BODYBUILDING UP OVER 75 KG

Only 4 athletes but what a quality! It is a great pleasure to observe how a young bodybuilder has been gradually growing and progressing, finally reaching the top in his class. Tim Budesheim of Germany is a perfect example of the above. Beginning his competitive career in 2009, he won the junior overall title at the 2010 Nationals, then debuted at the Junior Worlds, finishing in the 4th place. One year more of diligent training and nutrition and he advanced to the top. He showed not only bigger and better muscularity but also hardness and quality. Having no weak points, he will be a very competitive bodybuilder among seniors soon, if not turning pro too quickly like his predecessor from Germany few years ago, Daniel Hill.
Budesheim had two demanding rivals in Santa Susanna: Federico Gonzales from Argentina and Witold Pomecko from Poland. Both of them have nice physiques and good muscularity but not so big and hard like the winner. Gonzales is the next “export” bodybuilder form Argentina, following 2010 world junior overall champion Rodrigo Piriz and he has similar, very attractive body structure. Pomecko also showed fantastic frame but suffered a stomach flu just before coming to Santa Susanna, so was dehydrated, with flattened muscles.

JUNIOR MEN CLASSIC BODYBUILDING

7 bodybuilders but nobody from the previous year finalists except … Milan Oboril (Czech Republic), who moved from bodybuilding (4th place at the 2010 Worlds in Antalya in 75 kg class) to classic bodybuilding and took his rivals by surprise. Milan was an unquestionable leader of this category, winning all rounds with the perfect scores. He impressed the judges with his muscle quality (abs, thighs), so his rivals will need one year more to advance to the top (Milan already turned 21) if… IFBB will not change the rules moving up the upper age limit for juniors to 23, what was seriously discussed in Santa Susanna. But better to wait for the official announcement.

JUNIOR WOMEN FITNESS UP TO 163 CM

7 athletes but of the extraordinary quality! The routines of the top five were really fantastic! In my Preview I asked who could stop Melinda Szabo from winning the next world title? Now we know the answer: nobody could. Melinda continued her amazing series of victories, started in Alcala with the 2011 European junior’s title, then winning the Arnold Europe and Women’s Worlds. Now she completed this series with Juniors Worlds victory, grasping all titles she could fight for. Infant prodigy? Maybe. Melinda’s power is that she is as good in the physique round as in the routine round (received 7 points in each round). This is necessary nowadays, if you want to be an unbeatable fitness champion. Former world champion Laura Cupsa did her best but she lost too many points in the routine round to challenge Melinda for the final victory. She rather had to focus to advance to 2nd position ahead of next Hungarian young star Renata Meri, who is able to won the routine round even over Szabo but showed too soft body. Cupsa did something very difficult, moving up from the 5th place in the routine round to the 2nd place in the physique round and in total.

2010 European champion and bronze medal winner at the 2011 Women’s Worlds Dominika Multanova (Slovakia) was helpless in this situation, despite the fact she was also very well prepared to this event, both in routine and body. And then two newcomers at this level: Inna Nosolenko (Ukraine) and Alexandra Alekhanova (Russia). We can expect that Nosolenko, being trained by famous coach Antonina Orobets (her both children: Oksana and Maxym already won the world juniors fitness titles), will be improving and moving up quickly.

JUNIOR WOMEN FITNESS UP OVER 163 CM

8 athletes but no so high level like in the short class. 2010 Worlds bronze medal winner Nikoletta Resch (Hungary) used up the absence of the top two from Antalya and moved up to the top, winning no single round. Olga Stepina of Ukraine was unbeatable in the routine but it was no surprise. She is well-known of her top acrobatic possibilities but I couldn’t see any bigger progress in her body quality. It seems that the judges had the same opinion and put her in the 5th palace in the physique round what pushed her down to the
3rd position in total. Barbora Micianova of Slovakia – the opposite: won both physique rounds but coming last in the finals’ routine round and dropped to the 4th place.

JUNIOR MEN FITNESS

Nobody from the previous year. Most of them already turned 21. The battle began with big surprise, advancing 15-years-old newcomer from Paraguay, current South American men’s fitness champion Hermann Rolon to the 1st place as a winner of the routine round. But he didn’t manage to keep this place as much older (age 21) and matured European champion Anghel Birica of Romania showed bigger muscularity and easily won the physique round, taking the gold medal, ahead of Rolon and the second Romanian Costin Dumitru. According to Paraguayan delegate and judge Mr. Fernando Mederos Caldarelli, it was the first IFBB World Championships medal for Paraguay in the history (2010 world bodyfitness champion Nora Martinez lost her medal due to the Anti-Doping Rules violation).
Anyway, very young Hermann Rolon is a new interesting men’s fitness rising star, with all predisposition for the future successes.

JUNIOR WOMEN BODYFITNESS UP TO 163 CM

There was an internal battle between two Czech girls: 2010 world champion Jana Cernovska and newcomer Michaela Podnecka, who was very close to dethrone the champion, winning the semifinals. But Cernovska managed to reverse the course of events advancing to the top in the finals, mainly due to the very attractive T-walking presentation. Podnecka emerged at the 2011 European Junior Championships finishing 3rd there. She is one year younger than Cernovska, 20, and has all qualities (perfect body frame) to be the future champion. The same can be said about the 3rd place winner, Tatiana Piackova of Slovakia. Time will show which one will be progressing faster.

JUNIOR WOMEN BODYFITNESS UP OVER 163 CM

7 competitors, with clear domination of the former European overall junior champion Adela Ondrejovicova (Slovakia), who had so nice debut at the latest Women’s Worlds in Novi Sad (4th place). Telling the truth, when I saw her first time at the 2010 Europeans in Doneck,
I didn’t think she would progress so fast and would ever reach so high quality. Now I have to change my opinion: girls at that age can change their body in a surprising tempo and range. In Santa Susanna I heard from the judges that Adela will become the second Yulia Ushakova! And I can agree with this point of view. She has done a real metamorphosis, transforming her body to perfectly developed one, with narrow hips, slim, hard thighs, tiny waist, impressive lats and shoulders. She had no problem to win the overall title as well. Congratulations to her and her trainer Pavol Jarabek. Barbora Cernakova of the Czech Republic finished once again second behind Ondrejovicova, same like in Donetsk, showing no visible progress and being strongly pressed by a gifted newcomer from Lithuania, Ana Merdenova, who is only 15 years old and the future will belong to her, I think.

JUNIOR WOMEN BIKINI FITNESS, OPEN CLASS

This was a new category at the World Juniors and Masters Championships, so only 4 athletes competed as many National Federations didn’t know about this change in advance and didn’t nominate their athletes. The first, historical IFBB world champion, Bettina Nagy of Hungary, is already a top quality athlete, with brilliant perspectives not only in juniors class but among women’s also. The next girls: Andrea Ketselou of Greece and Roza Mazurek of Poland were too slim and too soft, needed more time for developing better body lines and quality.

MASTER WOMEN BODYFITNESS

The longest line-up, with 23 competitors and one great name: latest Arnold America and Arnold Europe winner, 2011 European master champion and 2010 Worlds masters runner-up Raquel Hernandez (Spain). The battle was so tough that many titled athletes didn’t enter the finals: Anna Maria Giordani (Italy), Marisa Lopez (Spain), Carina Isaksson (Sweden) and Roberta Raguth (Switzerland). Under the absence of the 2010 world champion Dagmar Simmen, Raquel Hernandez was the main pretender for the title and she didn’t fail. Presenting her usual top condition, elegance and self-confidence in T-walking, she won both rounds and… declared to turn pro next year, so it was her farewell performance at the IFBB Worlds.
The next two places went the newcomers: Emi Perez (Spain) and Natalia Vetrova (Ukraine). Perez has competed in bodyfitness since 2001 but in the other organizations and moved to the IFBB this year, finishing 3rd at the 2011 European Masters Championships and at Arnold Europe (women’s bodyfitness over 168 cm). She is tall (172 cm) with nice body lines and low bodyfat level. Vetrova won the 2011 Ukrainian Nationals and debuted at the international level in Santa Susanna. She displayed top body quality, with delicate abs and quads separation but her T-walking presentation was a real feast to the eyes. Stepping to the music, almost dancing, she was passing along the stage with lightness and poison. Has great potentials.
The tallest competitor on the stage, graphic artist from Norway, Jorun Steine (180 cm) came to her third consecutive Masters Worlds and took the 4th position for the third time. We can only wish her to win a medal next time. Next places went to the railway manager from Russia, Elena Kizima, and cooking expert from Venezuela, South American Women’s runner-up Tibis Araque.

MASTER WOMEN BODYBUILDING

14 athletes from 9 countries, with two big names: 2009 Women’s Worlds bronze medal winner and 2010 Masters Worlds silver medal winner Elena Stasiukyniene (Lithuania) and 2007 European master champion and 2008 Masters Worlds runner-up Marina Nikotina Russia). And one new top quality athlete came to these Championships: Josefina Sanchez of Spain. But really new? Josefina had not been seen on the stage for over 10 years but… I’ve found in my files that she won silver medal at the 2000 European Championships in Torremolinos. Now returned and made some troubles to the champions. Stasiukyniene was in her best life conditions, with rock hard and defined muscles, showing a lot of details. She was “untouchable” this time but Sanchez, who was the most muscular bodybuilder on the stage and placed 5th in the semifinals, improved her muscles quality (separation) till the finals and advanced to the 2nd position, ahead of two blond stars from Russia (Marina Nikotina) and Norway (Nina Midling). Midling was successful in the other organization but recently moved to the IFBB and won the 2011 Nordic Championships (+55 kg category). Nikotina won her third Masters Worlds bronze medal, having the same results in 2001 and 2009 as well as silver medals in 2003 and 2008. She is persistently hunting for her first “gold”.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 40-49, 70 KG

9 athletes in the line-up. 2009 world masters champion Miguel Lopez (Spain) came in so perfect condition that nobody could do any damage to him and he unanimously won all rounds. Ideal body proportions backed up by the top definition, with paper-thin skin and details. Successful autumn season for him, following his 2nd place at Arnold Europe, just behind multi-time world champion Jose Carlos Santos. The next three athletes also showed beautiful physiques and frames but not so good definition. Jose Bustamante represented Peru but lives in Barcelona, Spain – better upper body and abs but smoother legs, Carlo Capucci – good separation but smaller muscle mass (legs) than Bustamante, Sandro Brocca – nice body proportion but too smooth (thicker skin). Athlete who could be a dark horse, five-time European men’s champion Adam Cibula (Slovakia), came a bit off and was too smooth.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 40-49, 80 KG

The longest line-up, with 23 athletes in a row and many experienced, famous bodybuilders with a lot of titles. Some of them had to finish the completion in semifinals: 2011 European masters champion Maurizio Minoccari (Italy) – 7th place, 2009 world masters champion Leonardo Carballo (Spain) – 8th place, 2010 European masters champion Steven Graham (UK) – 9th place. So, who advanced to the finals? First of all, a new great star was born: Valeri Koptenko, 45, from Kyiv, Ukraine. Valeri has been known from late 1990s, when he started his international career winning bronze medal at the European Men’s Championships. But then he had had less successful years and just this autumn started to win major international contests, beginning with Arnold Europe. In Santa Susanna confirmed his body quality. He is short, 160 cm, with very full, rounded muscles. His muscle size compared to his body height is amazing. He won all rounds. Congratulations to his trainer Ms. Alyona Fedorova.
There were the next two famous names in the finals: former world master champion Luiz Carlos Sarmento (Brazil) and 2010 silver medal winner Hakan Gumus of Turkey but they were over passed by Spanish bodybuilder Esteban Amat from Barcelona, who was not so successful in the past but placed 4th in 80 kg men’s category at the recent Arnold Europe and advanced to the 2nd place now, in masters division. Amat is 5 cm taller than Sarmento and has longer legs, what creates a very nice vertical body proportions. Moreover, he was visibly harder than Sarmento and got 2nd place in all rounds. Sarmento showed incredible back and arms quality but his abs and quads lacked of sharp definition. Gumus also showed not too sharp definition and placed 4th, but won the last round (routine) over Sarmento. The 5th place to bodybuilder from Libya, Hussain Abdalla, what is probably the first participation of the Libyan athlete after the recent Civil War and since many, many years.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 40-49, 90 KG

Only one athlete less than in the previous class and, once again, few famous names ended in the semifinals, like 2011 European masters overall champion Jakub Potocki of Poland, despite the fact he was in quite good condition. There were so many top quality athletes in this class. We could look for the main pretender to the title among two biggest names: Arnold Europe masters overall winner Pedro Jose Villa (Spain) and Arnold Europe 85 kg men’s category winner Jose Bustamante (Venezuela). But, finally, the other athlete won, complete newcomer on the international bodybuilding scene Valentin Antonov (Russia), who just turned 40 in September. Antonov has no international contest history but when I was surfing through Russian sites, I found that he participated in several Sankt Petersburg Championships since 2000 and in 2008 won these Championships (80 kg category). In 2010 he participated in his first Eastern European Championships and in October 2011 won the overall title at the Russian National Men’s Championships, ahead of such stars like Igor Losev (bronze medal at the 2011 Men’s Worlds in Mumbai) and 2011 European super heavyweight champion Mikhail Sidorychev. This was a remarkable success, so it isn’t a surprise that he did so well at the Masters Worlds in Santa Susanna. He is trained by the other famous Russian bodybuilder Alexander Kodzoev (2011 Arnold America winner). Will the student become greater than his teacher?
If someone was a loser in this category it was Bustamante. He clearly won semifinals (6:16) and the routine round (10:11) but lost four points to Antonov in the second round and… lost the title. Then the three-time Masters Worlds bronze medal winner Ernst Zimmermann (Germany) who added the fourth bronze medal to his collection. Uff! It’s time to think about higher place. He was in perfect shape but is taller and has longer, slimmer legs, so it’s difficult for him to place ahead of shorter, massive bodybuilders. And then, in 4th place, former world fitness champion Zoltan Kormos (Spain) for whom it was a big success, and in 5th place Pedro Jose Villa, who presented not so good condition (definition) as at the Arnold Europe and dropped out of the medal zone. Incredibly tough category!

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 40-49, OVER 90 KG

While Bustamante failed a bit, his team-mate in the heavier category, William Ortuno, was fully successful. He has been known for over ten-year contest history but has begun to take higher places when turned 40 and moved to masters. Following his 4th place last year, he definitely won this category in Santa Susanna, being at the top in each round. Maybe, the sport level in this category was not so high like a year ago or in the lighter classes this year. Many athletes showed not so sharp definition and dropped into the lower places, like 2011 Arnold Europe winner Luis Gigena (Argentina) or Nordic star Magnuss Bess Juliusson (Iceland). But the battle for the silver medal was very exciting. Multi-time Norwegian champion and Stavanger Open overall winner Jorgen Corneliussen had it after the compulsory poses round but lost it in the routine round for the benefit of German bodybuilder Ralf Herget. Herget is shorter (174 cm) and very muscular but was not so sharp this time. The 4th place went to athlete with beautiful overall body proportions and tiny waist Kwadwo Sarpong of Switzerland. He needs bigger muscles only. Sam Harris (Germany) came with much sharper definition than at the Arnold Europe and placed 4th.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 50-59, UP TO 80 KG

This was a shorter category, with 9 competitors and… surprising course of battle. The first round went smoothly to the Spanish star Alfonso Gomez, who won the European title in 1988 (over Luciano Andreose, who will appear later at this event) then turned pro and disappeared from the stage for long years. But two hours later, when the finals were started, Gomez lost the leaderships being scored at the 5th place and his team-mate Armando Villa went to the top from the 4th position, also receiving the perfect scores. It happens very rarely that judges change their scores so drastically in so short time. Villa looked most muscular and hard in this category, so his victory was welcomed with applause by the viewers. In this way, he defended his title won in Antalya a year ago. 2010 runner-up, Faruk Arda Horhor of Turkey, tried to defend his silver medal and was semi-successful, having it after the first round but then lost the next two rounds to the 2011 European masters champion Michele Vossier (France) and dropped to the 3rd position. Both showed very good condition, with hard, separated muscles and, probably, better legs definition and a bit fuller lats decided about higher place to Vossier.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 50-59, OVER 80 KG

Three European masters champions: Antonio Vergiani (2011), Inigo Ortiz De Mendibil (2010) and Alexandr Aleksejev (2009) against three Europeans runner-ups: Stanislav Shakh-Nazarov (2007), David Lamptey (2008) and Wolfgang Schober (2009). And who won? Runner-up from 2009 Wolfgang Schober! Few weeks earlier, at the Arnold Europe in Madrid, he lost to Armando Villa but placed ahead of De Mendibil and Vergiani. In Santa Susanna Villa had a separate category and Schober moved up to the top, wining over De Mendibil, Aleksejev, Shakh-Nazarov, Vergiani and IFBB newcomer, engineer from Stockholm, Sweden, Ali Kazemi, who took the 4th place.

Dr. Schober, who is also Austrian Federation President, displayed beautiful body lines, full, hard and deeply separated muscles, with no weak points. Very complete and balanced physique. Won all rounds. De Mendibil – better legs than upper body. Aleksejev – big muscles but not so good definition, Kazemi – classic body proportions and impressive back but to small thighs and arms.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING 60-65

This was the new category, created by splitting of the former over 60 years old class. One great name, 2010 world champion Esmat Sadek of Egypt and five other bodybuilders. Sadek, who started to compete in the late 1970, won three Men’s Worlds bronze medals, then had had a short pro episode, came back to the amateur status and won his first world masters title in 1998 (over 50 years old division). Then was less successful, lost his title and regained it just a year ago, in over 60 category. Maybe this year he was not so hard and defined like at the previous Championships in Antalya, but showed good condition, with nice quads and the best abs in the line-up. It was enough to defend the title but his routine was performed with nonchalance, not taking care of music, so he had only one point advantage over his main challenger Gilles Pomerleau of Canada in this round. Pomerleau’s routine was started with a song declaring “when you are young at your heart” what had a special meaning in this category; however masters bodybuilders are young not only at heart but also in their bodies, showing so well-developed muscles, so we can say that their body and soul are young.
Three competitors: Pomerleau, Luciano Andreose (Italy) and Baki Köseahmetoglu (Turkey) presented similar level, receiving 28:28:30 points in the compulsory poses round. The routine round cleared up the situation. Pomerleau has begun to compete even earlier than Sadek, in 1974, but only at the national level and won his first national title in 1990. Then over 15-year break and come back in 2005. Next few-year break and returned to the stage this year, coming to his first international contest. Silver medal paid off. Andreose started to compete internationally in 1983, winning the Europeans silver medal in 1988, behind Alfonso Gomez, who also came to Santa Susanna this year and participated in 50-59 age division. Then over ten-year pro status and came back to amateur division in 2004, winning Masters Worlds silver medal in 2008. Now added bronze medal to his achievements.

MASTER MEN BODYBUILDING OVER 65

This was a great inauguration of the new age division in the IFBB. The main question was: who would be the first, historical IFBB champion? This category had a longer line-up than the younger class, with 10 Grand Masters on the stage. Among them three former world champions: Bernard Cooper (UK), Manuel Valbuena and Rafael Vera (both of Spain).
Since Vera was a bit too smooth this time and finished 3rd, the main battle was: Cooper vs. Valbuena. Both were in top condition, muscular, hard, with low bodyfat level. Cooper won all rounds once again, showing “V-taper” upper body and deeper abs separation; however the “Back double biceps” pose went to Valbuena who displayed hard, nicely separated back muscles, with “Christmas tree” in lower back and even slightly cut-up glutes. Our respect for this champion, who turned 68 earlier this year and his hobby is… powerlifting. Maybe this is a secret of his so dense and full muscles?

Personally, I was quite impressed with the German bodybuilder Willi Neubauer, who has made so big progress since the previous Championships in Antalya, when he came back to the stage after dozens of years. But there was one newcomer this year: South African businessman and great bodybuilding enthusiast, Dion Friedland, who decided to start his contest adventure in Santa Susanna, being 68 years old. Former pro bodybuilder Francis Benfatto advised him during the preparations to his debut. IFBB President Dr. Rafael Santonja honoured Mr. Friedland with the IFBB Athletic Achievement Award. The same award was presented to the oldest bodybuilder on the stage: 76-years-old Teddy Kaplan of Israel. He was born in South Africa to parents who had come from Russia. Started to compete in track and field but then South African athletes were not allowed to compete internationally due the apartheid policy ran by this country, so Mr. Kaplan moved to Israel and began to represent his second homeland. He participated in four World Track and Field Championships (wining one bronze medal) and in 9 World Masters Weightlifting Championships (winning 7 gold medals). When turned over 50, started to compete in bodybuilding also. He has been recognized as a role model for sport excellence in Israel and in January 2011 was elected to The International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame run by the Wingate Institute for Physical Education and Sports in Netanya, Israel. We can be proud having with us so outstanding sport personality, so the IFBB President honoured Mr. Kaplan with the well-deserved IFBB Athletic Achievement Award.

MASTER MEN CLASSIC BODYBUILDING 40-49, OPEN

2011 world men’s classic bodybuilding champion from Tallinn, Taavi Koovit, was nominated to these Championships but didn’t come and, maybe, it was a good decision because the other world champion from Tallinn, Jerzy Pisulski (Poland) came and… lost. The sport quality of masters classic bodybuilders in Santa Susanna was so high that even the Men’s Worlds title didn’t guarantee the success! Pisulski experienced this bitter lesson, finishing 3rd despite quite good condition, not worse than in Tallinn. This happens from time to time. Enough to recall the 3rd place of the world superheavyweight champion Ahmed Hamouda last year in Antalya or world women’s bodybuilding champion Simone Linay, who has never won the world master title. Coming to masters championships you have to expect extremely dried and defined rivals and this happened in Santa Susana also. Gold medal went to Roman Senti of Switzerland, who moved up from the 2nd position last year. He displayed extremely low bodyfat level, with thin skin and hard, full of details muscles visible under it. This impressed the judges and they put him in the 1st place. Similar qualities were shown by the 2nd place winner, Dr. Michael Aprin, MD, from Germany, who was a newcomer at the international level, having won only silver medal at the 2010 German Championships. His body structure and overall proportions are also perfect. 4th place went to 2011 Arnold America and Amateur Olympia winner Mariusz Balazinski (Poland), 5th to 2011 European champion Giuseppe Brancaccio (Italy) and 6th to Hassan Tabrizi of Iran, brother of the famous world men’s bodybuilding overall champion Ali Tabrizi. The quality of athletes in this class was the best in a short history of this sport at the IFBB masters championships.

MASTER MEN CLASSIC BODYBUILDING OVER 50, OPEN

this category was not run at the 2010 Worlds, so 2009 world champion Frantisek David (Czech Republic) came to defend his title won in Bialystok. The category was shorter (5 athletes) but the battle was interesting. This time it was a great day for the mathematics teacher from Japan, Atsushi Katakawa. He started to compete in 2000, wining Japan Nationals (masters over 40 class). In 2008 he went to the Asian Championships and won the continental masters title but was not successful at the IFBB Worlds (out of the top ten). Constantly improving, he has been especially successful this year, having won Japan Nationals, Asian and World Championships. His muscles looked full and hard, with better separation that in his rivals. Two Czech bodybuilders: Frantisek David and 2011 Europeans 3rd place winner Michal Sidik showed similar qualities and condition but this time Sidik was granted higher place and won silver medal.

WHEELCHAIR BODYBUILDING

Incredible! Who could expect this level of excitement when most of the European top wheelchair bodybuilders already turned pro? This sport, with only three-year history in the IFBB, is still surprising and unpredictable. After the last year Worlds in Antalya and outstanding muscularity presented by the world champion Tolga Murat Balikci of Turkey, I thought that nothing better could be seen in the next few years. One year passed and two better wheelchair bodybuilders appeared: Shan Singh of India and Mohammad Reza Tabrizi of Iran (the next brother of Ali Tabrizi). Singh showed amazing muscle quality, which is not so often seen at the Men’s Worlds or even at the pro contests. His skin was so thin that was almost invisible, like see-through membrane. His muscles (chest) were striated with dozens of strips, same with his shoulders. Judges had a tough problem because the next two athletes presented the similar quality. Sing won both rounds because of the extreme definition of his muscles. Balikci and Tabrizi were running a very close battle for the silver medal. Balikci had it after the first round but failed to keep it in the second round. Tabrizi showed the biggest arms in the line-up and great abs but a bit less dense and striated muscles than Singh. Balikci was, maybe, not so full (arms) like a year ago but presented the similar lever and condition, with nicely shaped and separated muscles. All three of them are great champions and it’s a pity that only one could be the winner. Now the only question coming to my mind is: what will we see next year?