Yaxeni Oriquen won her record-tying fifth Ms. International title, holding off a much-improved Debi Laszewski to tie Iris Kyle for the most wins in female bodybuilding history. IFBB Women’s Head Judge Sandy Williamson takes a look at the top 6 physiques and the marquee matchup of Oriquen vs Laszewski.
6 – BRIGITA BREZOVAC
“I don’t think she looked as full as she did at the Olympia. But she has a nice v- taper, nice shape. With a little bit more fullness I think she’ll move up a couple spaces at her next show.”
5 – KIM BUCK
“Nice symmetry, where she’s off a little bit is her lats are real high, so she has a little bit of a long torso. But she has nice separation. She had a little bit more fullness where Brigita lacked. “
4 – CATHY LEFRANCOIS
“The best she’s looked in years. Cathy just brought her quality. Beautiful shape, nice definition. She wasn’t too thick. Could have used a little bit more depth in the back, but that’s it.”
3 – ALINA POPA
“Very nice symmetry, nice lines. Her conditioning was very good. Unfortunately her tan was so dark – at this level, that’s going to hurt you. I think it hid some of her separation and that hurt her in the morning at the prejudging. I don’t think she had quite the fullness that she had last year. “
2 – DEBI LASZEWSKI
“Debi was in probably the best shape of her career. Great muscle mass. Condition really good. She does have a little bit of a thicker waist, she’s a little shorter and stockier than Yaxeni and that ended up hurting her.”
1 – YAXENI ORIQUEN
“Great symmetry. Nice muscle bellies. Nice fullness. A couple of the judges – including myself – had Yaxeni second in the morning – it looked like she lost a little depth in her back when she brought down the muscle. But overall, the combination of symmetry, fullness and muscularity was the deciding factor.”
INSIDE THE MATCHUPS
Williamson analyzes her view of the most intriguing matchup in the top 6
YAXENI ORIQUEN VS DEBI LASZEWSKI
“To me, this matchup was mass vs symmetry. I thought they were both in excellent condition. Yaxeni just has better overall symmetry. Her lines are just better genetically. Debbie has a little bit of a thicker waist. She brought it in from previous years, but when they are both in their best shape it’s going to be tough for her to win because of the thicker waist.”
OVERALL COMMENTS
“I was very impressed, it seemed like the top six just got it. They all came in shape. They worked on the quality of the physique over the year rather than size. Which they all needed to work on. So many times with the pros you tell them , “You don’t need to get bigger, you just need to work on that quality” but they rarely do. This time they all did that, and they all looked great.
