2010 Phoenix Pro Fitness Results (Julie Pulls Off Minor Upset; Tanji Makes MJ Proud; Camala Is Olympia Bound In Pro Debut)

Before the Pheonix Pro, fitness got the most attention, and for all the wrong yet needed reasons. There was (at one point) ONE official name on the list. But after some spoken (and very heated) words from a few of the top industry movers and shakers, the official number went up to eight. These eight competitors made for one heck of a night for the fitness division.

When the list was finalized, the favorite to win was the 2009 Fitness Olympia runner-up, Tanji Johnson. But when the smoked cleared, it was Julie Palmer that stood the tallest. Julie clearly won the physique round (to me, at least), so as long as she nailed a good routine, she was just about locked in as a winner. The judges thought she nailed it enough to get the win. Expect Julie to try and up her game in Columbus, as she will have home-field advantage.

Tanji Johnson's physique might not have been at its best, but her routine was arguably the most entertaining of the bunch, and no, I'm not saying that because it was based on the late, great King of Pop, Michael Jackson. Many were surprised that she was the runner-up.

Camala Rodriquez ,in her pro debut, made her pro career case well known by taking 3rd place honors, with a nicely-structured physique and decent routine. She became a pro last year during the Jr. Nationals, where she won her class and the overall title in fitness. Now she prepares for the Arnold where she will no doubt make another case again.

The person that many people thought would get a Olympia qualification was Oksana Grishina. She had a great routine, which was the second best routine of the night, according the judges. But her physique (according to the judges) was maybe a tad too hard compared to Camela, who was a full 10 points better than Oksana. I'm no judge, and can only judged by what I saw by pictures and on the webcast. For the record, I thought Oksana was great.

Brigdette Murray rounded out the top five with her best showing to date. She was softer than previous years, but it worked to her advantage, and she had a pretty nice routine as well. If she keeps this up, she will be going places in fitness.

Nita Marquez placed sixth with a nice physique (probably a tad too hard for judges liking) and incredible strength for someone her size in the routine round. Yenny Polanco (7th) and Stefanie Bambrough (8th) rounded off the competition, tying for last place in the physique rounds with Yenny over Stefanie in the routine round by quite a margin. To me, the fitness women came to play and hopefully more will represent in the year ahead.

Questions, concerns, complains on this report or the placings? Leave a comment below.

FULL RESULTS:

1. Julie Palmer*
2. Tanji Johnson*
3. Camala Rodriguez*
4. Oksana Grishina
5. Bridgette Murray-Ward
6. Nita Marquez
7. Yenny Polanco
8. Stefanie Bambrough

*-Qualified for the 2010 Fitness Olympia