There will be seven IFBB Pro League shows taking place around the world on the weekend of June 3-4, 2023, but only one will include the Fitness division. The 2023 Adela Garcia Classic Pro show is a Fitness only contest, and it will take place in Austin, TX, on Saturday, June 3, 2023.
The contest is named after promoter and eight-time Ms. Fitness Olympia Adela Garcia. Nine athletes are entered in this show, eight Americans and one from Russia. The winner of this show will qualify for the 2023 Fitness Olympia on Nov. 2-5 in Orlando, FL. The roster is below, with names in alphabetical order:
2023 Adela Garcia Classic Pro Fitness Show Roster — Fitness Division
- Ellie Ambs (USA)
- Savahannah Byczek (USA)
- Ashley Downes (USA)
- Leila Hughel-Deeds (USA)
- Marlaina Shrives (USA)
- Amanda Sink (USA)
- Amber Steffen (USA)
- Darrian Tissenbaum (USA)
- Aurika Tyrgale (Russia)
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Athletes to Watch
Below are athletes expected to score well on the judges’ scorecards:
Aurika Tyrgale
Tyrgale may be the only non-American in the lineup, but could also be considered the favorite going into the contest. She is a two-time Tampa Pro winner and has six wins overall in her nine-year pro career.
Tyrgale has been on the Olympia stage four times. Her best finish was seventh in 2020. She was outside of the top 15 in the 2022 Olympia in Las Vegas, NV. Winning this show would be a solid rebound for her, providing the Olympia qualification with five months of prep.
Savannah Byczek
Several athletes in the field are newer competitors, but they have shown potential for success. One of them is Savannah Byczek, who turned pro in 2021 and competed twice in 2022. She placed sixth in the 2022 Tampa Pro and fourth at the 2022 Ben Weider Natural Pro show. This will be her first contest of the 2023 season.
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Ashley Downes
Downes won her pro card by winning the 2021 NPC Junior National Championships. She put that pro card to use at the 2021 Ben Weider Natural Pro, scoring silver behind winner Terra Plum.
Downes then took the entire 2022 season off, and this will be her first show of 2023. We’ll see what improvements she made to her physique and performance during that time away from the state.
Other Notes
Going into this competition, there are only three athletes qualified for the Fitness Olympia, and none of the athletes on this roster are among them. So, the winner of the show will add her name to this list.
- Missy Truscott (USA)
- Jaclyn Baker (USA)
- Ariel Khadr (USA)
Another name eligible to compete in the Olympia is three-time Fitness Olympia winner Whitney Jones. She missed the 2022 contest due to health issues and has yet to announce if she plans to compete in 2023 at the time of this article’s publication.
Featured image: @aurika_tyrgale on Instagram
