2018 Olympia Predictions

It's here. The Olympia has arrived!
Credit to the original owner

Super Bowl.
NBA Finals.
Stanley Cup Finals.
World Series.
Wrestlemania.

You haven't "made it" until you have competed in the biggest event of your profession. This weekend, the best physique athletes in the world compete in the Super Bowl of bodybuilding, The Olympia. Usually people have a good idea of who exactly will take home the titles but this year, there is a lot of mystery, especially with Oksana Grishina retiring from competing in fitness and Juliana Malacarne not defending her title this year. While this hasn't been brought up more than it has, but Nicole Wilkins for the first time in years will NOT be stepping on stage as well. Regaine Da Silva, a top fitness competitor, is also not competing at the Olympia this year.

Women's Physique Olympia
The world was shocked when Juliana Malacarne, arguably the greatest women's physique competitor of all time, decided a few weeks ago that she would not be defending her title at the Olympia, meaning we are guaranteed a new champion. Her reasons for not competing are very respectable, and as we mentioned, the direction of this division will be decided by who will walk away with the title this weekend. As of now, it seems to look like two women are the front-runners for becoming the next Ms. Physique Olympia: Shanique Grant and Natalia Coelho. Shanique will be entering her first Olympia, but this is her third time qualifying for the event. She was set to compete in 2016 but thugs not only cost her to be on the shelf for a while, but were close to ending her life. She also qualified to compete last year but she had to step out due to eye issues, thus delaying her Olympia debut. Now after winning this year's Physique International and no other obstacles in her way, she is set to make her much-anticipated Olympia debut and a huge favorite to win the biggest title in the industry. Many say it's already won...and it would be true, if Natalia wasn't competing. Natalia, like Shanique, is a competitor that has no equal. This will be her third Olympia but her first as a women's physique competitor. Mere weeks after competing at the Olympia in figure, she decided to do women's physique (with no training specifically for the division) and SMOKED the competition on the word go, qualifying her for this year's Physique Olympia event. In fact, the only contest she lost as a women's physique competitor thus far has been when she faced Shanique at the Physique International earlier this year (she placed 2nd in a close race). I'll be honest with you all, there are two showdowns here: Shanique vs Natalia for who will be the next champ and who will be runner-up, and everyone else fighting for the rest of the spots. The rest of the field is definitely not bad, it's just that Shanique and Natalia are just too damn good right now, and they have yet to reach their peak as competitors. PONDER ON THAT.

MY TOP SIX PREDICTIONS AND DARK HORSE:
1. Shanique Grant
2. Natalia Coelho
(You can easily flip these two. That's how close it will be)
3. Jennifer Taylor
4. Michalea Aycock
5. Melissa Pearo
6. Autumn Swansen
DARK HORSE: Penpraghai Tiangngok

Fitness Olympia
This is one division where, to me, there is no ONE clear-cut favorite at all, as Oksana has retired from competing. First, you got Myriam Capes, who will be entering her 10th Olympia (yes her TENTH appearance at the big one!) and will be looking to secure her spot at the best fitness competitor on the planet. She has already secured her spot at the best Canadian fitness competitor of all time with over 40 shows (which includes multiple Arnolds and Olympias) but I think she would want the Best in the World title just a bit more. Then you have Bethany Wagner, who has one of the best physiques in the fitness division as well some very entertaining routines. Ariel Khadr is considered a prodigy who has honed her physique to match (and at times surpass) her more-experienced competitors and her routines have been the highlight of many shows, and she plans on unveiling a new one this year that I'm pretty sure will steal the show, if her past routines are any indication. Jenny Worth will be returning to the Olympia stage for the first time since 2003, and she is looking better than ever before. Over the last couple of years, she has shown that she's still got it, and how big will this be to see her return to the biggest stage in the industry in nearly FIFTEEN YEARS and win it?! Kate Errington shocked the world earlier this year by coming out of nowhere and placing 2nd at the Fitness International and following that up with winning the Arnold Australia Fitness title. And speaking of the Fitness International...what about Whitney Freaking Jones, ladies and gentleman?! She won the Fitness International title practically on one leg (torn ACL/MCL) after coming back from neck fusion surgery. If you don't have her as a threat, you're crazy. The fact that someone is about to win their first Fitness Olympia title this year is gonna make the fitness division must-see this weekend. Hold on to your hats, folks, and get ready to see why competitive fitness is more alive than ever before.

MY TOP SIX PREDICTIONS AND DARK HORSE:
1. Myriam Capes
2. Whitney Jones
3. Kate Errington
4. Bethany Wagner
5. Ariel Khadr
6. Jennifer Worth
DARK HORSE: Missy Farrell

Figure Olympia
For the last couple of years, this division has been run by three women: Candice Lewis-Carter, Latorya Watts, and the current champion Cydney Gillon. This year, things are gonna be significantly different as Latorya will be at the Olympia but she will not be competing due to medical issues. She is hoping to return to the stage at some point next year. Also not competing is 4x Figure Olympia Champion Nicole Wilkins, who decided to take the entire year off of competing on stage to focus on competing in triathlons. One would assume that it will be a two-person battle between current champion Cydney and Candice, who many consider to the best to not (as of yet) win the biggest championship in pro figure. But Heather Dees MIGHT have something to say about that. Heather has come into her own over the last couple of years and has been the only woman to currently give the three ladies a run for their money. From what I have seen, I definitely see a top three finish for Heather. Ivana Ivusic is another one who is coming into her own as a competitor and could be a force to be reckoned with this weekend. Bojana (your choice for Figure Competitor of the Year) has impeccable shape and will fighting for a top 5 spot. Two newcomers I'm definitely think will turn some heads at the Olympia will be Alexia Sullivan and Felisha Livezey. Those two women have legs for days with some of the best conditioning, shape, and size I've seen on figure competitor in quite some time barring Tina Nguyen(Another one being Stacy Fujarski, who I predict will step on the Olympia stage sometime next year). And it we truly want to focus on shape, I feel Wendy Fortino SHOULD be in the top ten, but I'm not too sure how her lack of size (in comparison of most competitors) will pan out on the sport's biggest stage.

MY TOP SIX PREDICTIONS AND DARK HORSE:
1. Cydney Gillon
2. Candice Lewis-Carter
3. Heather Dees
4. Bojana Vasiljevic
5. Ivana Ivusic
6. Maria Baeza Diaz
DARK HORSE: Alexia Sullivan


Bikini Olympia
Angelica Teixeria is one of the best young athletes in the bikini division and will look to repeat as champion this weekend. Everyone that placed in the top 5 last yeat will be back to do better than they did with Angelica being the exception, as she wants to leave Vegas as a two-time champion. But two returning competitors are going to give all five of these ladies a run for their money. First up, India Paulino. After missing the Olympia stage last year due to motherhood, she has returned right where she left off, being a top star in the bikini scene and looking to win her first-ever Bikini Olympia title. Also returning is arguably THE greatest bikini competitor of all time, Ashley Kaltwasser. A 3x Bikini Olympia, she returned to the stage after taking some time off last year and is more dominant than ever before, winning all her shows that she entered in this year. While Angelica is an amazing competitor, with how India and Ashley have been able to return better than they were before, Angelica has got to be at her all-time best if she is to retain her title this weekend...and even then, I'm not sure it will be enough to stop them.

MY TOP SIX PREDICTIONS AND DARK HORSE:
1. Ashley Kaltwasser
2. Angelica Teixeria
3. India Paulino
4. Jennifer Ronzitti
5. Romina Basualdo
6. Narmin Assria
DARK HORSE: Stacy McCloud

So there you have it, my predictions for what I think will go down this weekend at the biggest show of the year for this industry. The way things have went down this year, there's a good chance that my predictions will look like garbage compared to the actual results, but honestly, I wouldn't mind that one bit. Unpredictability in life, especially in this industry, is a good and necessary thing. Competition is a great thing. And with at the very least two new champions being crowned, new stars making their debuts, and returning stars aiming to return to top form, we might be in for one of the most exciting and thrilling Olympia weekends in recent memory, at least on the female side of things. We at FitGems Nation wish every single competitor the best of luck and hope all of them bring their A-game!

This year iHerb will be sponsoring the Olympia webcast, and like it's been for the last several years, it's FREE to watch! Go to https://iherb.com/olympia for the webcast and times to watch the events. To see the list of everyone competing, go to http://www.ifbbpro.com/events/2018-joe-weiders-fitness-performance-weekend/.

Juliana Malacarne to SIT OUT 2018 Olympia. End of an Era?!

Sunday morning, the bodybuilding world woke up to some massive news: 4x Miss Physique Olympia and inaugural Ms. Physique International Juliana Malacane would not be competing at the 2018 Olympia, meaning we are guaranteed a new champion this year. In our honest opinion, the IFBB might want to be very careful with who they select as the new queen of women's physique as this could go a long way toward how women's physique is looked at for the foreseeable future. In fact, it was this very mindset that actually played a part in why Juliana has decided not to go for a 5^th straight title. In fact, in all honesty, we should have seen this coming a few weeks ago if we paid attention to her Instagram nearly a month ago:

I wish IFBB would still reward this look from NY Pro 2013 over my last years olympia! This is for me way more appealing than last year Olympia and without of any doubt a lot healthier to achieve! Gostaria que a IFBB pudesse considerar esse look que apresentei em 2013 no NY Pro do que o meu look do ano passado no olympia , na minha opinião é muito mais bonito e sem duvida alguma muito mais saudável pra chegar lá! #julianamalacarne #takingnothingforgranted #myopinion #health #better #achievablegoals #freakisdisgusting #leaveitforthemen

A post shared by IFBB PRO Juliana Malacarne (@julesfit10) on Jun 20, 2018 at 11:10am PDT

That post spoke volumes right there. It's one thing for fans/spectators to say that the look is too much, but when arguably the greatest women's physique competitor of all time says that, that should be a wake-up call for the IFBB. I said SHOULD but as history has shown, it won't be, not even for a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer like Juliana. We mentioned to Juliana on that post that we felt her best look was the Olympia she DIDN'T win: 2013. Her conditioning was pretty good, better than most of the field (including those that placed above her as well) but what made her so awe-inspiring that year was her shape, structure, and overall combination of muscles and curves. Fans were in disbelief of her look as it was crazy yet HEALTHY-LOOKING at the same time. It seemed achievable and attainable. Fans were also in disbelief when she placed 7^th, which was bullcrap then and bullcrap now. No disrespect to the competitors, but not all six women that placed about Juliana were better than her that weekend. No way in hell, and we'll take that to the grave. She finally got that win in 2014 and would go on become a 4x Ms. Physique Olympia and would win the inaugural Ms. Physique International title in 2015. I was there for that and it was unreal to see how graceful Juliana's physique was compared to everyone else. There was no question as to why she's not just the Queen of Women's Physique, she IS women's physique, which is why the news of her not competing this year hurts and the reason behind it is disheartening.

Many call this her best Olympia look ever...and she didn't even win this show!
Photo credit: FLEX Online

Rather than explain it, we will post the two Instagram posts that broke the news: Juliana's good friends Justin Miller (@astrongspirit) and Michael D. Bryson (who runs This Is Bodybuilding on Instagram)

Well I'm seeing that chatter online and Juliana @julesfit10 has now given me the go ahead to make the announcement on something I have known for a little while now.....4x Ms Olympia Juliana Malacarne will not be competing in this years Ms Olympia! She has given me many reasons that I find interesting. Juliana is in good health and perfectly capable of competing but is simply choosing not to. I first met Juliana in 2007 when she moved to NY from Brasil and barely spoke any English. I needed a good female trainer at my gym I used to own and despite the obvious language barrier I knew Juliana was an amazing trainer. We became friends and she moved into my house and rented an extra room I had until she got on her feet and got busier at the gym. She eventually built up her clientelle & rented an apartment down the street from my gym where she lived for the next 7 years while working there. Juliana actually introduced me to my wife Rita @ritashantidmt back in 2009. I have many memories of Juliana's career. Starting with her telling me in broken English the first time we met in person "I know one thing, one day I will be Ms. Olympia". I then watched her take LAST callout in 13 straight shows over the next 5 years. I remember Juliana was going to retire in 2012 before WPD came out. She decided to hang on for one more show (2012 NY Pro) to see what would happen. Her mom had a stroke 4 weeks out and was left unable to walk in the hospital. Juliana jumped on a plane for Brasil. Surely I thought the show (and likely her career) was over then...but she hung on. She stayed on her diet and got back here to NY 10 days out and told me "I just want to be successful one time in life and I will win this show for my mom". Well the history book will reflect she did it!! 14 shows into her pro career she finally had a win! Now she is stepping down as the reigning 4x Ms Olympia. The greatest Champion the division has ever seen. A future IFBB Hall Of Fame member. Will she compete again next year? 🤔 Its possible. But for now she is stepping away....as a Champion. Juliana wishing you all the best. Congrats on an amazing career to the most resilient IFBB Pro who ever lived.

A post shared by Justin Miller 🇺🇸 (@astrongspirit) on Jul 14, 2018 at 6:51pm PDT

The first live IFBB show I ever went to was the 2012 @bevsgym New York Pro. From that moment on FLEX Magazine and Mr. Olympia on Bodybuilding.com just would never be enough. I’ve been blessed to have seen true legends in their primes! Folks like @philheath, @flex_lewis, @oksanagrishina, @jeremy_buendia, and of course the woman who won that 2012 NY Pro WPD Championship...the beautiful @julesfit10. I saw her LIVE as she won 3 consecutive NY Pros, the inaugural Arnold Classic WPD Ms. International and, of course, her 4 consecutive Women’s Physique Olympia Championships. And today, she gave me the honor of being the first large Bodybuilding Media site to announce that she will NOT be competing in the 2018 Olympia. This is NOT a retirement. This is a break. I think she deserves it. In 2014 she beat the inaugural WPD Ms. Olympia, Dana Lin Bailey, in a very decisive manner. She maintained that dominance at the 2015 Arnold Classic. She’s maintained consistent greatness with a different 1st runner up each year. I rank her with the likes of Cory Everson and Lenda Murray as the ultimate in feminine muscle. Some folks have been commenting that they hate to see her go because they fear femininity will leave WPD. THAT ultimately will be in the judges hands. So...WHY???? Well, she is NOT injured. She is healthy and she is happy. She’s grown disinterested in the look of WP. She wanted to soften the look to a healthier one...sort of how the IFBB initially stated the look would be...”conditioned but not striated”...but it was made clear to her that last year’s conditioning would be required this year. It was a look she didn’t like for herself. With little financial rewards(FACT: this 4X Reigning Olympia Champion has no major sponsors, has never had a spread in a major magazine much less a cover...and did I mention NO SPONSORS?!) the fire & passion for competing and representing WP has left her heart at this time. Her passion is placed now in a new happy relationship. She is enjoying life and staying healthy. Some day, somewhere and in some form she MAY compete again. Just not in 2018. Tomorrow will be #juliannamalacarne Day here at #thisisbodybuilding, so STAY TUNED for more!

A post shared by MichaelD.Bryson (@this_is_bodybuilding) on Jul 14, 2018 at 8:55pm PDT

After reading and seeing both posts (and wiping a few tears...I sure as hell did), how can you blame her. We only have one body and once it's gone, it's gone. We can never get it back. I'm not bringing up their names to prove a point but just these last couple of weeks, we lost IFBB Physique Pro Tracy Hess and IFBB Figure Pro Chelsey Morgenstern due to (as of now) unknown reasons. We have had competitors who lost their lives because they went too far in the industry for the sole purpose of winning a show or hell even winning a pro card! Some competitors are thankfully still with us but have had their lives changed dramatically because of their pursuit of getting that pro win or getting that pro card. VERY FEW PEOPLE make money in this business, and I'm talking pros here. You spend way more than you get back in return. There's an old saying that you get what you put in. Well...in bodybuilding, nine times out of ten, that's not the case! Competitors are making GoFundMe accounts for fans to donate so they can actually compete, for Christ's sake. Seriously, folks, that's crazy! And for what?! A plastic trophy? An opportunity at MAYBE some cash that you WON'T be able to keep because you have to pay for suits, supplements, travel, training, food...yeah, I'm not even talking about the actual living essentials such as rent, bills, gas, etc. It's not like Miss America where you are a legit ambassador and show up at events throughout your reign. You don't see the Olympia champions going out getting paid by the IFBB to being fitness ambassadors to children and adults, do you?

I know I went on a rant there, but you all know damn well Juliana Malacarne is more than that. Yes, she is an athlete, one of the best this industry has ever seen, but first and foremost...she's a woman...and as a woman, she wants to continue to live her life AS a woman. That's one big reason why she never wanted to compete as a bodybuilder, as she felt her femininity would be lost in that division. She feels her femininity is gonna get lost in the division that was seemingly made for someone like her as the IFBB is seemingly going away with the original guidelines of women's physique in the first place. In fact, each female division (minus fitness we believe) is having some identity issues, which we will DEFINITELY be discussing sooner than later. So rather than pushing her body to the brink of no-return, Juliana is taking a stand her way and saying, “NOPE” and going out on HER term. Now will she return to the stage next year? We don't know. Is this an official retirement from Juliana? NOT YET. So anyone who says she has retired is flatout LYING. She is merely taking a well-deserved break from it all and training like she wants to and living HOW she wants to.

With Juliana out, the IFBB has a decision to make. To those that are entering the 2018 Olympia Physique Showdown, they will be coming in at what they feel is their best. My hope is that they will come in like what the actual guidelines call for in women's physique, which we will post directly from the NPC News Online website:

WOMEN’S PHYSIQUE JUDGING CRITERIA

• Symmetry, shape, proportion, muscle tone, poise and beauty flow
• Physique assessment and comparison will take place during prejudging

Women’s Physique Division has been created to give a platform for women who enjoy weight training, competing, contest preparation. Competitors should display a toned, athletic physique showcasing femininity, muscle tone, beauty/flow of physique.

The following are examples of common terms used in the bodybuilding industry. These words can be helpful to assess what should not be descriptive to the physiques being judged in women’s physique:

Ripped, shredded, peeled, striated, dry, diced, hard, vascular, grainy, massive, thick, dense, etc.

While all types of physiques will be considered when it comes to height, weight, structure, etc. Excessive muscularity should be scored down accordingly.

Women’s physique competitors should have the overall aesthetics and look that is found in figure with a little more overall muscularity.

On her Instagram today, Juliana Malacarne (@julesfit10) stated that she wished her 2013 New York Pro look was awarded in today's women's physique over her 2017 Olympia look. She was easily the best in both shows, but look at the difference in the physiques. It's one thing for a fan to say this, but when the most successful competitor and the face of a division says this...it speaks volumes. #fitgemsnation #julianamalacarne #ifbb #ifbbpro #ifbbwpd #wpd #ifbbwomensphysique #womensphysiquepro #womensphysiqueathlete #womensphysiquecompetitor #womensphysiquedivision #ifbbprowomensphysique #prowomensphysiquedivision #femalemuscle #fitnessmodel #fitnessmodeling #girlswholift #womenwholift #girlswithmuscles #womenwithmuscles #muscleathlete #femalemuscleathlete

A post shared by FitGems Nation (@fitgemsnation) on Jun 20, 2018 at 5:32pm PDT

Based off the critieria from their own website, who should be rewarded? The 2013 Juliana or the 2017 Juliana? We would go with the 2013 Juliana. If the judges choose the 2018 Ms. Physique Olympia based off THEIR OWN ACTUAL JUDGING CRITERIA ON THEIR WEBSITE, in my opinion it will go a long way towards Juliana possibly coming back to compete at least one more time in 2019, as well as others who feel women's physique has went the opposite way of what they were hoping for. The IFBB needs to do a better job in enforcing their own rules and guidelines or the IFBB will be in danger of losing its status at the best. Just because you're the biggest doesn't guarantee you're the best in your field (WWE, looking at you) and just because you're the biggest in your field doesn't mean you can't be threatened or weakened (NFL, NBA...looking at BOTH of you, for different reasons). IFBB, you're in danger of losing one of the greatest athletes you've ever had for good if things don't change. Other top competitors who CAN STILL GO TODAY no longer compete in the IFBB (Monica Brant, Jenny Lynn, Erin Stern, Jennifer Gates, Gina Aliotti, to name a few) for many of the reasons that were brought up here. This trend doesn't have to continue. Things can change for the better, but the IFBB has the be the one to make their move....and it starts at the 2018 Olympia. 

For more on Juliana, follow her on the following links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julesfit10

Twitter: https://twitter.com/julesfit10

Instagram: https://instagram.com/julesfit10