It was interesting to sit in the audience for this competition. You would think that a body building competition would be a demonstration of women’s empowerment. In many ways, it was. The raw physical power of these women was undeniable. The dedication that the competitors have to their sport is impressive.
At the same time, the hoots, hollers, and judgments from the men in the crowd made me question whether a large part of the sport still maintains traditional gender roles. Maybe people from the audience yelling, “Yah! Squeeze it girl! Keep it tight! NO! Not that side! The other side!” is the way that supporters do their thing in this context. I’m not familiar enough with it to say. But it felt condescending in some cases.
Despite any dumbasses in the crowd, these chiseled women deserve huge respect. I applaud the competitors and congratulate them on the fruits of a ton of hard work - especially to Yaxeni Oriquen, who came out on top as Ms. International for the 5th time! Good luck to all of the competitors in your future endeavors!
From Left to Right:
Unknown, Debi Laszewski (2nd place), Yaxeni Origuen (1st place), Alina Popa (3rd place), Brigita Bezovac (6th place)
And as a little bonus entertainment while the judges discussed their rulings, we had the opportunity to see Dominic LaCasse perform his amazing feats of strength and grace as the “Flag Man”. He makes it look so easy to hold himself sideways on a pole. What a gymnast!
(P.S. Thanks to the hubby for taking pictures!)
I got goosebumps seeing these ladies. I thought they were men and that they only wore masks. My daughter likes to work out with her dad and she even has a kids gymnastics class, but she says she doesn't want to have a big body like these girls'.
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