After seeing 65 contestants hit the stage at the inagural NPC IRON MAN Naturally last season, I figured 85 to 90 would be a good number to shoot for in 20012. Fortunately, I figured wrong. Yup, a grand total of 118 bodies, with 150 counting crossovers, showed up on Saturday, January 28 at the LA Convention Center to take part in the annual event that is part of the huge LA FitExpo.

And it wasn’t just the quantity that stood out; the winners were all exceptional, with a few seasoned vets and a host of first-times putting on the posing suits to strut their stuff in front of the judging panel and thousands of spectators viewing both the contest and the Expo.

One of those veterans, Ibrahim Daramy, came back to defend his Open Lightweight crown and left with not only another class win, but the Overall crown as well, besting LHW winner Lamir McQueen, MW champ Jason Demarco and HW winner Greg Grant in the process.

In the Novice Men category, Ricardo Miranda took the MW class en route to the Overall, topping Israel Hernandez (LW) and Mike Pierron (HW). In the newly formed Men’s Physique division, where I added a third class because of the volume of competitors, Shaka Smith duplicated his Short class and Overall victory at my 2011 BMR West Coast Classic, holding off the strong challenge of nemesis Tim Roberts, who finished right behind Smith at the WCC, but one slot ahead of Shaka at the USA. Smith fended off strong challenges by Mike Saffaie, Class B winner, and C category champ Martin Mester, to cop top honors. Mester, the Tall class winner at the 2011 WCC, toppled the field in the Masters to add another award to his mantle. Masters Mester…sort of a nice ring to it, eh?

Alexandra Porshnikoff, one of the NPC’s premier figure competitors, returned to the stage after a two year absense to win both the Open and the Masters 35. Porshnikoff, 38, now has her sights on the Arnold Amateur title, to be held in Columbus, Ohio next month. Cindy Jackson came out on top in the Masters 45+ division.

In the Open Bikini division, Alyssa Adamson followed up her victory in the Masters 35+ category to take both the C division and the Overall; she defeated A champion Victoria Renee and B Class winner Cystal Cunningham to top a very strong field of contestants.

Alabama’s Holland Canter was crowned as the winner in the newly added Women’s Physique class; Greg Grant won the 50+ in Masters Men 50+, with Michael Landon (no relation to the late, great actor), did likewise in the 40+.Robert Willey, a 17-year-old senior from Granada Hills High School, defeated Danny Zamora to win the Teen Men title.

Dear Competitor,

WELCOME TO THE 2012 NPC IRON MAN MAGAZINE NATURALLY!

When: Saturday, January 28, 2012

Where: Los Angeles Convention Center

Competitor briefing at 8 AM SHARP!! SOUTH HALL, ROOM 407. Check-ins immediately following at 8:30 AM. It is imperative that you are on time. Besure to allow extra time to get to the briefing area, which will be clearlymarked. The LA Convention Center is extremely large and you will need extratravel time to get from the parking lots to the briefing/check-in room.

Prejudging is scheduled to start at 10 AM in the South Hall, where the FitExpo is located. All competitors must proceed to the backstage area before prejudging begins. The judging process will move along switfly, so please pay close attention to the expeditors instructions.

Finals are scheduled for 4 PM, however, we hope to start by 3:45 PM, so don’t stray too far. All competitors must return to the backstagearea of the South Hall no later than 3 PM.

We have very tight time constraints; the contest is just one of numerous events taking place that day and we will be sharing space with other programs. It is critical that all competitors are where they should be at the time they are expected. Remember, you’ve worked hard to get to this point and you don’t want to miss your stage time.

Drug testing will be random polygraph testing during and after prejudging. You will be notified during prejudging if you are selected to take the test. Each test will take approximately 30 minutes. All results are final.

NPC cards ($100) can be purchased at check-ins; cash or check only.

Only competitors and staff are allowed backstage.

Competitors will receive a badge with a green dot, allowing entrance into the Fit Expo and the backstage area. You must wear it at all times, except when on stage. You will also be given one wrist band for a guest, which is good for Saturday, January 28.

Everyone poses at the finals; 60 seconds for Men’s Bodybuilding and Women’sPhysique. Model turns for Men’s Physique, Figure and Bikini.

Bodybuilders and Women’s Physique competitors, bring one CD with one song (no profanity) to the briefing/check-ins.

Overall winners of the Open Men, Novice Men, Women’s and Men’s Physique, Figure, and Bikini all need to stay for photos at the end of the Finals.

Attached to this email is the tentative Order of Events (subject to change). Due to the high number of competitors, a third class has been added to Men’s Physique.

Thank you for entering the 2012 IMN; I know you’ve all worked and dieted your tails off to get ready for this contest. Let’s get ready to rumble!

Lonnie Teper

IMN Coordinator

Editor-at-Large IRONMAN Magazine

www.ironmanmagazine.com/naturally

Phone: 626.665.7000

Email: tepernews@aol.com

Arnold will be back. In more ways than one, at this season’s Arnold Sports Festival, held March 1-4 in Columbus, Ohio.

Followers of the Arnold Schwarzenegger/Jim Lorimer promoted mega-weekend know the dynamic duo always add something big to the production each season. A couple of issues back I wrote about the 8-foot, 800-pound statue of the Governator in the News & Views that was unveiled in October in his hometown of Thai, Austria. It’s located on the front lawn, outside the museum, open since last July, that is the two-story home where Arnold Schwarzenegger grew up. Some of the significant items in the historical building include his first barbell, life-size “Terminator” models and his polished wood governor’s desk.

Now, the bronze sculpture will be coming to Columbus, Ohio. Well, at least a replica will be. The statue, a facsimile of the Arnold Classic trophy (the Ralph Crawford design from 1980), will be dedicated at 11:30 am on Friday, March 2, as part of the annual Arnold Sports Festival. It will be located in the front lawn of Veterans Memorial, and was donated to the city by Dr. Robert Goldman on behalf of the International Sports Hall of Fame (which will induct the inaugural class at this year’s ASF).

“This is great recognition for both Arnold and the Arnold Sports Festival,” said Lorimer. “Arnold and I are extremely pleased and honored that the Franklin County Commissioners requested instillation of the statue in front of Veterans Memorial Auditorium….Arnold won the Mr. World at Vets in 1970. We’ve been promoting contests together for the past 37 years.”

The morning of the unveiling, Schwarzenegger will be speaking to the Columbus Metropolitan Club for the first time. The Metropolitan Club is an influential group of downtown business leaders.

At the opening of the late Joe Gold’s World Gym in Venice, CA in 1987, I asked Arnold how things were going. “Great, and always getting better…you keep going up, up,” he told me. As you can see, things are still going up, up, 25 years later.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 22, 2011

2012 Arnold Sports Festival:

Branch Warren To Defend Title At 2012 Arnold Classic

Defending Champs Kyle, Garcia, Wilkins, Nagrani Top Women’s Fields

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Branch Warren will return to the competitive stage for the first time in nearly a year when he defends his title at the 24th Annual Arnold Classic at the 2012 Arnold Sports Festival.

Warren, who won the Arnold Classic and the British Grand Prix in March 2011, did not compete in the 2011 Olympia due to an injury. He will face three-time Arnold Classic champ and 2011 Arnold Classic Europe runner-up Dexter Jackson, 2011 Arnold Classic runner-up Dennis Wolf and 2011 fourth-place finisher Evan Centopani in an international field of 14 competitors.

In the Ms. International contest, six-time champion Iris Kyle will gun for her third straight victory in Columbus. She will be challenged by four-time Ms. International winner Yaxeni Oriquen and 2011 third-place finisher Alina Popa in a field of 15.

Four-time champ Adela Garcia will defend her Fitness International title against a field of 17 that includes 2011 runner-up and 2011 Arnold Fitness Europe winner Tanji Johnson and Camala Rodriguez, who finished fourth in Columbus last year.

Two-time defending champ Nicole Wilkins and 2011 runner-up Erin Stern will resume their rivalry at the 2012 Figure International. Ava Cowan, who finished third in 2011, Cheryl Brown (5th in 2011) and Teresa Anthony (6th in 2011) also highlight the field of 16.

Nicole Nagrani, winner of the inaugural Bikini International in 2011, is back to defend and will face a field of 18 that includes Sonia Gonzales and Nathalia Melo, who finish second and third, respectively, in 2011.

Matthias Botthof (Arnold Classic), Alevtina Goroshinkaya (Ms. International), Diana Monteiro (Fitness International), and Raquel Hernandez (Figure) earn automatic invites based on overall victories in their respective classes at the 2011 Arnold Amateur IFBB Bodybuilding, Fitness, Figure & Bikini Championships. Gloria Keplinger Tarpley earned an invite into the Figure International based on her overall win at the 2010 Arnold Amateur.

The 24th Annual Arnold Classic, Ms. International, Fitness International, Figure International and Bikini International contests will be held March 2-3 at Veteran Memorial and the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio during the Arnold Sports Festival. Visit www.arnoldsportsfestival.com for more information and www.ticketmaster.com/arnold for ticket information.

2012 Arnold Classic, Ms. International, Fitness International, Figure International and Bikini International Official Invite Lists:

2012 Arnold Classic (14)
Fouad Abiad
Gustavo Badell
Lionel Beyeke
Matthias Botthof
Evan Centopani
Eduardo Correa
Brandon Curry
Dexter Jackson
Michael Kefalianos
Ben Pakulski
Shawn Rhoden
Branch Warren
Ben White
Dennis Wolf

2012 Ms. International (15)
Maria Rita Bello
Brigita Brezovac
Kim Buck
Tina Chandler
Alevtina Goroshinskaya
Monique Jones
Iris Kyle
Debi Laszewski
Cathy LeFrancois
Zoa Lindsey
Geraldine Morgan
Yaxeni Oriquen
Kim Perez
Alina Popa
Maria Segura

2012 Fitness International (17)
Michelle Blank
Jodi Boam
Myriam Capes
Regiane Da Silva
Tina Durkin
Allison Ethier
Adela Garcia
Oksana Grishina
Tanji Johnson
Diana Monteiro
Julie Palmer
Kayde Puckett
Camala Rodriguez
Daniella Ruban
Kizzy Vaines
Sheri Vucick
Bethany Wagner

2012 Figure International (16)
Jelena Abbou
Teresa Anthony
Cheryl Brown
Krissy Chin
Ava Cowan
Heather Dees
Alicia Harris
Candice Keene
Gloria Keplinger Tarpley
Raquel Hernandez
Sue Knott
Larissa Reis
Erin Stern
Gennifer Strobo
Latisha Wilder
Nicole Wilkins

2012 Bikini International (18)
Jennifer Andrews
Jaime Baird
Abbie Burrows
Juliana Daniell
Sonia Gonzales
Candyce Graham
Diana Graham
Jessica Jessie
Lexi Kaufman
Nathalia Melo
Justine Munro
Nicole Nagrani
India Paulino
Jessica Paxson
Natalie Pennington
Monique Ricardo
Tianna Ta
Christine Vargas

VIP Ticket Packages and individual event tickets are available through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com/arnold or 800-745-3000. Daily EXPO tickets are available for $10 in advance or $15 at the door of all Arnold Sports Festival venues. Children 10 and under free.

Arnold Sports Festival National Sponsors: GNC, AEP, Animal, Bodybuilding.com, bpi Sports, BSN, EAS, Gaspari Nutrition, Jan Tana, MET-Rx, MHP, Michelob ULTRA, Optimum Nutrition, Supro, Twinlab and Vitamin Shoppe.

Arnold Fitness EXPO Sponsors: Bodybuilding.com, Burn Machine, Dymatize, Europa Sports Products, Enforce Nutrition, Everlast, Fitview, Interactive Nutrition, ISS, Liquid Grip, Lonestar Distribution, MRI, MRM, MuscleDog, PROLAB and Proto Whey.

Arnold Sports Festival Local Sponsors: AEP, American Airlines, Chase, The Columbus Dispatch, Gold’s Gym, Metro Fitness, Michelob ULTRA, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Nationwide, Qfm96, Ricart.com and Subway.

Media Contacts:
Matt Lorz
Lorz Communications
(614) 443-1877
mattlorz@rrcol.com

Brent LaLonde
Arnold Sports Festival
(614) 431-2600
brent@arnoldexpo.com