2020 FitGems Awards Announcement

2020 has been quite the year. Some good, a lot bad, and a WHOLE LOT of WTF. But like all things, it must come to an end (THANK GOD) but before we say goodbye and good riddance to 2020, it's time to make an annoucement on the 2020 FitGems Awards! With all the shows being done differently and the holidays going on, I've decided to start the award voting on January 11th so I can make sure that everything this year counts. You will be able to vote once per day until January 29th with results annnounced on Super Bowl Sunday (Yes, they will be announced before the game so folks won't be stressing about THIS during the game. LOL.). A few categories have been modified and some have been omitted due to everything that happened this year. Nominees to be revealed at a later date.

PRO CATEGORIES

Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Pro Women's Physique Competitor of the Year

Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year

Pro Figure Competitor of the Year

Pro Bikini Competitor of the Year

Pro Wellness Competitor of the Year (NEW)

Most Improved Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Most Improved Pro Women's Physique Competitor of the Year

Most Improved Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year

Most Improved Pro Figure Competitor of the Year

Most Improved Pro Bikini Competitor of the Year

Rookie Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Rookie Pro Women's Physique Competitor of the Year

Rookie Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year

Rookie Pro Figure Competitor of the Year

Rookie Pro Bikini Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Women's Physique Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Fitness Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Figure Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Bikini Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Pro Wellness Competitor of the Year (NEW)

AMATEUR CATEGORIES

Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Amateur Women's Physique Competitor of the Year

Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year

Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year

Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year

Amateur Wellness Competitor of the Year (NEW)

Breakout Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Breakout Amateur Women’s Physique Competitor of the Year

Breakout Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year

Breakout Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year

Breakout Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Female Bodybuilder of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Women’s Physique Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Fitness Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Figure Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Bikini Competitor of the Year

Most Underrated Amateur Wellness Competitor of the Year (NEW)

MISC. CATEGORIES

Fitness Model of the Year

Fitness Ambassador of the Year

Social Media Star of the Year (Instagram/Twitter/Facebook/Snapchat/TikTok, etc.)

Moment of the Year

Photographer of the Year

Fit Celebrity of the Year

Fittest Female WWE Superstar of the Year (Raw/Smackdown)

Fittest Female NXT Superstar of the Year (this also includes NXT UK)

Fittest Female AEW Wrestler of the Year (NEW)

Fittest Impact Wrestling Knockout of the Year (NEW)

Physique Paysite of the Year

Physique Paysite Model of the Year

Promoter(s) of the Year

Fitness Clothing Line of the Year

Team of the Year

Male Trainer of the Year

Female Trainer of the Year

FitGems Nation Woman of the Year for 2020 has already been determined and this year, there was no brainer on who's getting this at all. But you will have to wait until January 4th to find out who it is. We want our reveal to be done right, and I think this might be the most popular winner (or WINNERS...hint-hint) to date. So for the first time ever, the FitGems Nation Woman of the Year will be announced BEFORE the rest of the awards. 

On that note, I want to take this time to wish every single one of you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. See you in 2021! 

2020 Olympia Predictions

We're here at last! 
Photo credit to the original owner

This year has been crazy, but somehow...someway, we are getting an Olympia. By the time this weekend is over, we will crown the best of the muscle world. Obviously, since this is a female muscle site, we will be focusing on the female muscle side of things. The big story without a doubt is the return of Ms. Olympia, but all the divisions are loaded. Will we see new champions crowned? Will returning favorites return to glory? Will any new faces shock the world? Chcck out our predictions on what many are calling the biggest Olympia...EVER. 

Women's Physique Olympia

For the last couple of years, Shanique Grant has dominated women's physique with an iron fist. Other than Juliana Malacarne, no one has owned the divison quite like Shanique. She might be on her way to being the best to ever do it, and a win this weekend will definitely strenthen her case as the GOAT. I feel Natalia Coelho is in the same boat as Shanique but is not talked about NEARLY enough despite being a 2x (and current) Women's Physique International Champion, but I'll in a future blog post after the holidays. Sarah suprised me with her runner-up placing last year, which she will do her best to show everyone that that runner-up placing was no fluke and she's legit. Valentina brings a great physique at the biggest shows and after what she felt was a disappointment in an earlier show this year, she will look to rebound from it with a big showing at the biggest show of the year. Rulying Bian brought an incredibe physique in Arizona, and I think she will carry that momentum to Orlando in her Olympia debut. Tanya Chartrand came from the same group of competitors as Shanique and Natalia in crossing over from figure to women's physique and having immediate success. I think with a full year of women's physique training under her belt, Tanya is going to do SERIOUS damage in the women's physique division, and we will get a nice taste of that at this year's O. As far as a wildcard is concerned, I'm going to go with Laura Richards on this one. I feel she has what it takes to crack the top 6 if she comes in nicely. 

WOMEN'S PHYSIQUE OLYMPIA TOP 6 PREDICTIONS AND WILDCARD:

1. Shanique Grant
2. Natalia Coelho
3. Sarah Villegas
4. Valentina Mishina
5. Rulying Bian
6. Tanya Chartrand
WILDCARD Laura Richards

Fitness Olympia

There have been stacked line-ups, and honestly, I feel this is the most stacked Fitness Olympia lineup EVER, and this is despite not having Adela Garcia in the mix. She was originally scheduled to come out of retirement, however she didn't feel she was up to par with how she wanted to present herself, the fitness division, and the IFBB as a whole. With that being said, she opted to hold off on coming out of retirement for now, be we hope to see her return at some point. It doesn't make this year's event any less epic, though. Whitney Jones, the defending champion, is in for the defesne of her career and one of the rare times I will call her an underdog. The fact that I feel she's an underdog this year speaks volumnes on the competition she has this year. Ariel Khadr is under new training and is coming in crazier than ever before in her career. Missy Truscott has been WOWing folks with that many are calling her best physique ever (and that's saying something considering she has brought one of the best physiques in the fitness division the last few years) and she has promised a routine that is going to WOW the audience this year. If they both click like they have in the past, we could see a new champion. And oh yeah...OKSANA FREAKING GRISHINA IS BAAAAAAACCCCCCK!!!! From 2014-2017, she ran the fitness diviison with an iron fist, with many considering the best pure athlete to ever compete in the fitness division. Her routines were works of art, and there's no telling how she's going to grace us in her return, but if it's anything like her previous performances...we are in for a SHOW this weekend! I see Tiffany Chandler and Derina Wilson having Top 6 perforamces with my wildcard being Minna Pajulahti. 

FITNESS OLYMPIA TOP 6 PREDICTIONS AND WILDCARD:

1. Missy Truscott
2. Oksana Grishina
3. Whitney Jones
4. Ariel Khadr
5. Tiffany Chandler
6. Derina Wilson
WILDCARD: Minna Pajulahti

Figure Olympia

History is on the line for the current Figure Olympia champion Cydney Gillon. She currently has 3 titles. If she wins this weekend, she will tie with Nicole Wilkins, who has the most Figure Olympia titles with four. If Cydney wins, it's time to put her in the conversation of GOAT in the figure division. But it won't be easy. Latorya Watts is a former Miss Figure Olympia in her own right and she looked she could have potentially beatedn Cydney last year. Nadia has showned that she is just a big of a threat to a major title as anyone and I can see her right in the mix. Bojana is another one who is hard to ignore and I feel she has one of the best shapes of any woman in the figure division. I personally don't know what else she needs to do to get over the hump but I think if she continues to bring it, it's going to be downright impossible to ignore her. Jessica is in the same boat to me as Bojana in terms of shape and conditioning. Jessica has that hard-to-ignore look about her that has made her a top figure competitor. BTW, how cool would it be to be crowned Miss Figure Olympia ON HER BIRTHDAY?! (Yes, her birthday is the same day as this year's Figure Olympia). I also see the current Figure International champion Natalia Soltero making some noise in this year's event. The rest of the field looks pretty awesome, but the newcomer I have my eye on is Samantha Jerring. She has developed quite the following for a couple of years and in one weekend, she competed for a pro card and won the right to compete in the Olympia. She might be new to the States as a competitor (her first show in the United States will be the freaking Olympia) but her physique could be too good to ignore. We predict Samantha is going to be someone folks are gonna talk about a LOT when this weekend is over. 

FIGURE OLYMPIA TOP 6 PREDICTIONS AND WILDCARD:

1. Cydney Gillon
2. Latorya Watts
3. Nadia Wyatt
4. Bojana Vasiljevic
5. Jessica Reyes Padilla
6. Natalia Soltero
WILDCARD: Samantha Jerring

Bikini Olympia

This division is never easy to predict for me. It definitely wasn't until Ashley Kaltwasser became champion in 2013. She would go on a 3-year winning streak until she was dethroned by Courtney King in 2016. Angelica Teixeria would win the title in 2017 and 2018 and Elisa Pecini won last year. Three of the last four champions are competing which right there makes one of the toughest divisions to judges even tougher. And oh yeah...this is without a doubt the biggest line-up in ANY division this year. There was nearly 45 QUALIFIED competitors, which is more than double of most other divisions! Now, you can argue that is a BIG too many for the most prestigious show of the year, but we'll talk about that another day if anyone wishes to hear about it. But it doesn't change the fact that this is a deep division that is one of the hardest to judge. The crowning of this year's champion is very important because of the imcoming Wellness Olympia next year, so the look of the Bikini Olympia needs to remain as far apart of the inargual Wellness Olympia look as possible. I know Elisa is the defending champion, but Ashley has been on an absoulte hot streak this year, officially cementing herself as the most winningest bikini champion of all time. Despite it being a bit since she's won the Bikini Olympia title, I'm going with Ashley to win her first Bikini Olympia title since 2015, followed by Elisa, Angelica, Janet, Jennifer R., and Monica. And honestly, I'm just choosing at random for  a wild card here, so I'm going with Jennifer Dorie.

BIKINI OLYMPIA TOP 6 PREDICTIONS AND WILDCARD:

1. Ashley Kaltwasser
2. Elisa Pecini
3. Angelica Teixeira
4. Janet Layug
5. Jennifer Ronzitti
6. Monica Ellis
WILD CARD: Jennifer Dorie

Ms. Olympia

We have not has a Ms. Olympia since 2014, which is a damn shame in our book because this was the reason there are even any female Olympias in the first place in any division. But with new ownership, a big wrong was righted and the Ms. Olympia is finally back, as we will embark on a new era in the sport with the crowning of the first Ms. Olympia since 2014. I have no idea what direction they are going to go with as far as who will be the new face of women's bodybuilding, but my guess will be that it will be someone who has done well in shows post-2014 like Margie Martin and Helle Trevino. Yaxeni Oriquen is a former Ms. Olympia so that automatically makes her an instant contender. Iris Kyle is arguably the most dominating female bodybuilder of all time with 10 Ms. Olympia titles (2004, 2006-2014). That ALONE makes her a favorite to kick off the new era as Ms. Olympia. However, I feel they will go with a different look to kick off the new era and it HAS been a minute since Iris has stepped on stage, otherwise I would have her winning this weekend. (Same reason why I don't have Oksana winning the Fitness Olympia as well). With that being said, I'm doing with Margie Martin to usher in the new era of women's bodybuilding as the new Ms. Olympia with Iris taking 2nd place, followed by Helle, Monique, Asha, and Andrea, with Theresa as my wildcard. Either way, the real winners this weekend are fans of women's bodybuilding because the Ms. Olympia competition is BACK! Now we need to get the Ms. International to return in 2021. Your move, Arnold...

MS. OLYMPIA TOP 6 PREDICTIONS AND WILD CARD:

1. Margie Martin
2. Iris Kyle
3. Helle Trevino
4. Monique Jones
5. Asha Hadley
6. Andrea Shaw
WILDCARD: Theresa Ivancik

This weekend will be one to remember for so many reasons, and you can view it all via pay-per-view. Go to OlympiaProductions.com for more on how to order the PPV, which you can watch on any device, as well as watch some free content from this weekend. To everyone that was able to get this together despite how this year has went, my hats off to all of you. To everyone that is competing and were able to get it done despite how this year has went, my hats off to you as well. Here to one hell of a weekend for everyone, whether you are in Orlando or watching from the comforts of home. 

Why We're Rooting for a Christine Pomponio Comeback Someday

Over the last few years, we have seen a lot of returns in the female muscle world: Oksana Grishina, Jenny Worth, Adela Garcia possibly in 2021 (it was aimed to be 2020 but she has put off the comeback to make sure she represents the fitness division the right way), Monica Brant made a comeback a few years ago (competing in the PCA and NABBA), and Yarishna Ayala became an IFBB Pro again a few years after leaving the sport to pursue different opportunities elsewhere. At the 2020 Arizona Pro, Melissa Teich returned to the IFBB stage after a four-year break and ended up winning the women's physique title. This year is the much-anticipated bthe return of the female Olympia event that started it all for the women: Ms. Olympia. In this industry these days, you just never say never. And based off what little we've seen of one of our number-one supporters, we would love to see Christine Pomponio, one of the first ladies of the figure division, make a comeback at some point. 

If we were to tell you how far apart these photos are, you wouldn't believe us. 
Credit to the original owners

Christine used to go by a slightly different name during her competition days, but things have changed in her life for reasons that we will not discuss here. But something that hasn't changed that much in her life is her dedication to living a healthy lifestyle, as evident in local commercials she does for Granite Depot in Denver. She last stepped on stage at the 2006 Figure Olympia, but you wouldn't know it by looking at her these days, as she seems like she would not be out of place at all in today's competiting world. In fact, she did a couple of photoshoots with Marc Thyssen back in 2010 and 2011 that made people wonder THEN if she was going to come back competing. Oh yeah...this was not too long after giving birth, a couple of years or so. She also did a few shoots here and there after giving twins and much like after giving birth the first time, she bounced back pretty quickly. 

If it were up to us, if she were to ever come out of retirement, we would love to see her make a return to the stage in late 2021 or early 2022. We say those time periods because from all the time we've known Christine, she is someone who prides herself in doing things right and never wanting to jump into anything without a solid gameplan. While figure posing in relatively easier that most, it STILL requires a lot of practice to nail every transisition, making sure every muscle fiber is flexed correctly during each pose to highly a complete physique. Christine was known for bringing a physique that was well-conditiioned (especially in the delts and quads) yet at the same time full in order to contend with the taller competitors. In fact, her competition resume (which included Top-6 Arnold and Olympia placings) helped paved the way for competitors of her height to achieve success in the figure division, which has historically favored medium-to-tall competitors. 

With big returns happening almost a yearly thing now, it would be great to see the figure division have one of their top first stars return for one final run, and based off how Christine looks these days, the only reason that Christine Pomponio will never step on stage again is because Christine Pomponio doesn't want to. But she has mentioned to me personally to "never say never". If Christine ever does return and it's anything similar to how others have returned to the stage in recent years, figure fans and those that compete in the figure division are in for a treat. 

She. Does. NOT. Age. At. All!

For more on Christine, check out her Facebook and Instagram pages: https://www.facebook.com/christinepomponio and https://www.instagram.com/christinepomponio. For anyone interested in working with Christine for commercial ads, photoshoots, print ads, and/or Covid safe appearances, etc., contact talent mgmt. Brett Myles at rarebeauty.tvmodels@gmail.com or Scott Dozier at toptiermodelproductions@gmail.com. If you want to read our blog about Christine from a couple of years, click here.