The 2022 Fitness Olympia will be held as part of the 2022 Joe Weider’s Olympia Fitness and Performance weekend, scheduled for Dec. 16 and 17 in Las Vegas, NV. The lineup of qualified athletes for this contest includes four previous champions and 23 athletes in total.
The Fitness Olympia is scored differently than other IFBB Pro League divisions. The physique round will take place during pre-judging at the Venetian on Friday, Dec. 16. The routine round, which will count for two-thirds of the overall score, will take place during the finals that evening at the Zappos Theater in Planet Hollywood. The roster of athletes that will compete in this contest is below in alphabetical order:
2022 Fitness Olympia Roster
- Jaclyn Baker
- Corinne Elizabeth Bean
- Abby Bolton
- Danielle Chikeles
- Anna Chism
- Danielle DaCosta
- Kate Errington
- Adela Garcia
- Andrea Glass
- Oksana Grishina
- Stephanie Jones
- Whitney Jones
- Ariel Khadr
- Sara Kovach
- Allison Kramer
- Michelle Fredua-Mensah
- Minna Pajulahti
- Michaela Pavleova
- Terra Plum
- Alix Small
- Missy Truscott
- Aurika Tyrgale
- Tamara Vahn
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Not Competing
Eight-time Fitness Olympia champion Adela Garcia is on this year’s list of contestants, but it’s unclear if she will compete. As a past champion, she is qualified for the Fitness Olympia for life. She was scheduled to return in 2021 but had to withdraw.
Past Champions
Aside from Garcia, there are three former champions in this lineup. The defending champion is Whitney Jones seeks a fourth title to add her to a list of four-time champions, including Garcia, Susan Curry, and Oksana Grishina. Grishina is on the list of competitors and will pursue a fifth Olympia title this year. She was third in 2021 and has yet to appear onstage in 2022.
Based on her track record of success, it would be no surprise if Grishina managed to secure that fifth championship. However, she revealed on Instagram that she suffered a recent injury. She didn’t disclose the injury but remains hopeful of competing in Las Vegas. BarBend will share updates on Grishina’s status as they develop.
The third champion in this lineup is 2020 winner Missy Truscott, who defeated Jones to win the title. She placed second at both the 2021 Olympia and 2022 Fitness International contests. Her last appearance was at the 2022 Boston Pro, which she won.
Top Contenders
Should a new Olympia champion be crowned, it would be the division’s 11th winner since the contest started in 1995. The defending champion has suffered defeat for the past two years. Truscott defeated Jones in 2020, and Jones returned the favor in 2021.
The top contending athlete fans will watch this year is 2022 Fitness International champion Ariel Khadr, who won that title during the 2022 Arnold Classic weekend. She placed fourth at the Olympia in 2020 and 2021, but defeating Truscott in the Fitness International could help her move up at the Olympia. Some fans believe her time has come, and they will cheer her on in the physique and routine rounds.
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The fifth-place finisher from the 2021 Olympia was Jaclyn Baker. That’s a rank that typically marks a contender for the following year. She qualified for this year’s contest by ranking first on the Olympia Qualification System because she didn’t win a contest in the 2022 season. She placed third in the Fitness International and second at the Boston Pro. That said, anything can happen at the Olympia, and the record of placings leading into it won’t affect her standing in the contest. Baker’s experience on the Olympia stage could help her return to the top five this year.
New Contenders
There will also be a few new athletes on the Olympia stage this year. One of those athletes is Slovakia’s Michaela Pavleova, who won the 2022 Europa Pro in Spain to qualify for her first Olympia. Anna Chism will also make her Olympia debut in Las Vegas, thanks to winning the 2022 Chattanooga Night of Champions Pro.
Olympia rookie Stephanie Jones won the 2022 Toronto Pro to qualify. She also placed fifth at the 2022 Boston Pro this season. Jones is a second-year pro who has shown a lot of potential.
Dark Horses
Several veterans will compete, including 2022 Puerto Rico Pro winner Tamara Vahn, who was sixth at last year’s Olympia. Terra Plum was absent from the 2021 Olympia but finished 12th in the 2020 contest. She will enter this year’s Olympia with two wins in 2022 under her belt: the Arnold Classic UK and the Arizona Pro. Momentum could serve her well at the Olympia.
The 2022 Chicago Pro winner, Sara Kovach, hopes to improve on her seventh-place finish at the 2021 Olympia. It will be her fourth time competing in this contest.
Minna Pajulahti is traveling from Finland to Las Vegas to make her fourth career Olympia appearance. She was ninth one year ago. Her highest placing on the big stage was eighth in 2020. She won the 2021 Bigman Weekend Pro to earn her spot on this year’s stage.
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Aurike Tyrgale was 10th one year ago in Orlando, FL. She won the Tampa Pro in early August to make her fourth career Olympia appearance. Alix Small of the United Kingdom is a potential breakout star as she was 12th in the Olympia last year, but she improved her upper body when she won the 2022 Mr. Big Evolution Pro show.
You can watch both rounds of the 2022 Fitness Olympia and all 11 pro contests in Las Vegas by ordering the 2022 Olympia pay-per-view. The premium package will cover all rounds of competition, costing $59.99. You can order and watch the Olympia on the Olympia Productions website.
Featured Image: @whitneyjones_ifbbpro by Will Wittman on Instagram
