frustration with judging

[figure_champ]

As a figure competitor, I'm wondering if anyone else is feeling frustrated with the judging at shows lately? I recently competed at a National level show for figure/fitness but it was judged more like a bodybuilding show, where the biggest girls were walking away with the top spots. There were some major upsets as well where a home town competitor from the contest location ended up winning overall Fitness to get her pro card, when clearly the other competitor should have won.

When will the judging truly become what figure and fitness shows are supposed to be? Why is it when reading contest rules it states that extreme muscularity and striations will be marked down, but none of the judges are actually doing it??

Sorry to vent - just wanted to see if anyone feels the same or has gone through something similar at recent shows. :mad:

[redsquirrel]

Everyone who competes deals with this constantly when being judged for shows. I feel your pain.

A good friend of mine just placed 6th at the Jr. Usa's. The girl who placed 5th had a flabby ass....

The problem with figure, and all the fitness sports for that matter, is that it is SO subjective. Some judges like a cute face and good stage presence, and others like more muscularity. Unfortunately since the sport is fairly new, there are still some major growing pains with the judging. Most of the NPC is very political. At my BBing comp last year, one judge counted me off because she didn't like me suit??? It was BBing, NOT figure! LOL!

On the other hand, keep in mind you are just entering the sport. The more you get your face in front of the judges, the more they will remember you. The federations want to keep the sports with a good mix of competitors, and the more they see you the more they will know you want it.

On another note, and I am not flaming you here....but as we talked about before, you really need to add some muscle if you want to do well in the sport. IMHO, if you added some overall depth to your body you would do even better than you have. Just looking at your avatar pic, I can tell you your back is just too lean. You need to increase your shoulder to waist ratio, as it appears you are not fat, but have somewhat of a wide waist. By increasing the size of your shoulders and lats, you will create the V taper they love to see so much. Judges want to see a nice fullness to all bodyparts. Conditioning is a factor also, but they go more for overall appearance.

So, while the girls who look really lean and striated to you, in the judges eyes, they may have a better overall package. They may be bigger, but just have a better presentation. Full shoulders, good depth in the back, small waist, round booty and good quad sweep are the major characteristics. The striations are supposed to be a deduction.

Figure is not bodybuilding. However, it's only about another 2 weeks of dieting as far as BF is concerned. The bigger and fuller girls will be rewarded because this is not a swimsuit contest. Judges don't want someone who looks stringy or thin.

[INTIMID8OR]

I seriously don't know how you girls do it especially after they came out with the 20% smaller rule ..lol Its way to ambiguous ...I think they've made it so they can give the card or trophy to whom ever they want and nobody can really complain because nobody can put a finger on what they're looking for lolol :D

hang in there figure_champ you look awesome ... ;)

[figure_champ]

Thanks Red and Intimid8or. After the 20% rule came out I actually thought I would do better. Looking at the pics, everyone thought I should have placed higher - guess the judges didn't like my look. There were a couple girls ahead of me that did not look very good. I am training like a mad woman trying to add some size before the next show in July. Then it will be time to work on really putting on size for next year.

Red - your advice has been super helpful and I appreciate your feedback and direction. My trainer is fantastic but he's a guy and a BBer, so sometimes it's good to get a woman's point of view.

[cedartree]

When you say- everyone thinks you shoud have placed higher-are you referring to people who compete or judge in the sport or friends and family members?

This is a physique competition. I would hope the judges are looking for athletic, developed physiques over thin with big boob jobs. I've seen what I would consider "major upset" when this type of body is preferred over a woman who actually trains hard.

IMHO: The 20 percent crap is a heads up to those who were gettin huge, not a break for those who haven't developed yet.

Look at Debbie Leung- she went from BB to figure and looks amazing. If someone is going win at something, or be given a "pro" status, I would expect them to be exceptional. Not look like a regular gym girl who took diuretics to rip.

[figure_champ]

Actually my trainer does judge competitions and he said that comparing all the girls, he would have placed me higher. I realize that this is a physique competition and I train hard to come in at my best.

My commitment to the sport, training and diet are far from the regular gym girl. My pic may look like just a thin girl but this is after 12 weeks of dieting and dropping 15 pounds. Many competitors are feeling frustrated with the judging and I just wanted to hear if others had similar issues. There was a lot of debate at this recent show on the fitness winners too.

I know that I need to add more size to improve my placings and that is my focus now.

[redsquirrel]

Originally posted by figure_champ
Actually my trainer does judge competitions and he said that comparing all the girls, he would have placed me higher. I realize that this is a physique competition and I train hard to come in at my best.

My commitment to the sport, training and diet are far from the regular gym girl. My pic may look like just a thin girl but this is after 12 weeks of dieting and dropping 15 pounds. Many competitors are feeling frustrated with the judging and I just wanted to hear if others had similar issues. There was a lot of debate at this recent show on the fitness winners too.

I know that I need to add more size to improve my placings and that is my focus now.

You are just starting out in this sport. No reason to get down on yourself or your training. You are taking the necessary steps to improve, and you have a decent base to work with.

The goal of any competitor is to look full and at the same time be lean. Everyone gets frustrated with the judging because it is so subjective...no matter what the sport is. What one judge likes, the other may not. At the regional level, the girls are going to be thinner than those at the Jr and National level. However, I do believe that if you are in shape with a fair amount of muscle tone and your competitor is bigger, but not as lean, I would expect the leaner of the two would be rewarded for her conditioning. The judges simply aren't going to reward a girl who didn't diet as hard.

There really is always debate in any of the sports. That's part of the reason I'm not going to compete in these sports anymore. I am going to compete in something where I am competing against myself rather than relying 100% on what someone else thinks.

[redsquirrel]

Also keep in mind FC, the Candian federations are a little bit different than the ones we compete in.

In each sport, BBing, fitness and figure, the competitors are typically smaller than those competing in the NPC here in America. Now, obviously if you compete in the NPC shows, bigger, fuller and lean is key. But since you're in Canada, the looks are different.

[cedartree]

FC:
That wasn't meant as a personal attack against you. Your hard work is obvious in your avatar.
I meant that it should be more of an upset if someone who has less of a physique wins. Your first post seemed to complain that more muscular athletes win. IMO:They should!
These people also judge BB, I wonder what is "extreme muscularity" to them?