Natural bodybuilding is getting bigger and more competitive than ever. As proof of this, check out the 2009 ABA Natural Illinois Bodybuilding, Fitness and Figure Championships. With almost 2 ½ times the number of competitors as a year ago and a SRO evening show crowd, this contest was a huge hit in only its second year in existence.

John Hansen and 2008 Natural North America Teenage winner Kris Carver present the Teenage awards to Victor Rei, 4th place, Kurt Kacich, 3rd place, Kye Mallernee, 1st place and Mohsin Khan, 2nd place.
Grand Masters Women Bodybuilders - Bobbie Kongsgaard, 2nd place and Patty Mayo-Katsion, 1st place	Fitness Winners - Stacy Kvernmo, Lacey Hancock and Tiffany Giusti
John Hansen and 2008 Natural North America Figure Champ Chelsea Kmiec award the Masters Women Bodybuilders, Marissa Ruffalo, 1st place and Laurie Ellis, 2nd place.
John Hansen and Murrell Hall present the Jr. Masters awards to Eric Forest, 1st place and Greg Gabriel, 2nd Place
1966 Mr. America Bob Gajda and John Hansen present the Grand Masters awards to Jeff Weeden, 1st place and Bob Reiner, 2nd place
John Hansen and Bob Gajda award the Overall Masters Men champ Jeff Gruskovak
Jeff Gruskovak wins the Masters Men Bodybuilding division Marissa Ruffalo wins the Overall Masters Women Bodybuilding 60 year old Art Miller brought the house down in winning the Ultra Grand Masters division
Novice Men Short Class - from left - Kye Mallernee, 4th place, Ryan Doris, 2nd place, Promoter John Hansen, Eric Forest, 1st place, Fitness Champ Nicole Moneer-Guerrero, Jason Norman 3rd place, Dorian Oleksak, 5th place
Novice Men Tall Class, from left - Matt Kornick, 4th place, Greg Gabriel, 2nd place, Frank Muzquiz, 1st place, Tony Litton, 3rd place and Mohsin Khan, 5th place.
Frank Muzquiz and Eric Forest posedown for the Novice Men Overall Award won by Eric Forest
The dancers from Sultry Salsa wowed the audience! Guest Poser Thomas Anderson as the Incredible Hulk Fitness Winner Stacy Kvernmo
John Hansen and Mel Chancey from Pride Nutrition award the Masters Figure winners, from left - Bobbie Kongsgaard, 3rd place, Jamie Adcock, 2nd place, Patty Mayo-Katsion, 1st place and Nancy Nguyen, 4th place.
Crystal Marie Smith, 2008 Natural Illinois Figure Champ, John Hansen and Elliott Harris from the Chicago Sun-Times award the Figure Open winners, Brittany Ramsey, 1st place, Vickie Kolb, 2nd place and Tasha Armstrong, 3rd place
Figure Open winners, from left - Brittany Ramsey - 1st, Vickie Kolb - 2nd, Tasha Armstrong - 3rd, Angie Moye - 4th, Alice Teodor - 5th place, Megan Melone - 6th place, Meghan von Linden - 7th place, Nancy Nguyen - 8th place.

The Natural Illinois contest was held on Saturday, April 25th, 2009 at Brooks Middle School in Bolingbrook, Illinois. 48 competitors showed up to compete to see who can lay claim to the title of  “Best Natural Bodybuilder in Illinois”. With outstanding competition in the contest, particularly in the Men’s Open and Men’s Novice division, the audience was treated to an extremely entertaining contest.

The competition began with the Fitness division. The audience loves this part of the contest as the competitors entertained them with their fun and exciting fitness routines. Stacy Kvernmo from nearby Naperville, Illinois combined the best in both physique and fitness routine to win the Natural Illinois Fitness Championship over Lacey Hancock and Tiffany Giusti.

The Teenage Men were up next and it was good to see some good competition in this division. Kye Mallernee, 19 years old, from Decatur, Illinois looked much older than his age with his hard and big physique. He scored a unanimous decision over second place Mohsin Khan. Mohsin has good potential and just needs to come in harder for his next contest. Kurt Kacich finished third followed by Victor Rei in fourth.

In the Masters Women Bodybuilding, Marissa Ruffalo was hard and ripped in first place. Laurie Ellis from Decatur, Illinois gave another entertaining posing routine in second place.

The Grand Masters Women Bodybuilders were up next. Patty Mayo-Katsion from Yorkville, Illinois showed off her shapely physique to edge out Bobbie Kongsgaard in second place.

In the overall Masters Women Bodybuilding, Marissa Ruffalo was the easy winner as she was too hard and ripped to be denied the title.
The Jr. Masters Men Bodybuilding division was next. This competition is for men 35-39 years of age. Eric Forest from nearby Elkhart, Indiana was hard as a rock with super peaked biceps. His unique posing routine helped him score a unanimous decision over ripped Greg Gabriel from Lake Villa, Illinois. Greg was in the best condition of his life and he made the judges work hard in this class to decide a winner.
In the Masters Men division for men ages 40-49 years old, Jeff Gruskovak returned to the stage after a 26 year absence. Jeff was ripped and ready for this contest and he beat out Aaron Santos in another unanimous decision. Aaron displayed great size and thickness but his conditioning was way off on this night.

In the Grand Masters Men division (50-59 years old), Jeff Weeden took first place in his very first competition. Jeff was ripped and ready for this contest and he should improve as he continues to compete. Bob Reiner presented a good posing routine in second place.

In the Ultra Grand Masters class (60-69 years old), the always entertaining Art Miller had the crowd cheering as he posed to “Mr. Lover, Lover”. He won the class over Anthony Dina who also received a great ovation from the crowd for his posing routine.

In the Masters Men overall, Jeff Gruskovak beat out Jeff Weeden and Art Miller to take home the Victory Sword. Not a bad comeback after a 26 year layoff!

Before the intermission, the crowd was treated to a very entertaining posing routine by the guest poser, Thomas Anderson. Thomas is a genetic marvel at 5’3” and 180 pounds. At only 23 years old, Thomas has already won several titles including the overall Natural North America and the short class at last year’s Natural Olympia.

Thomas came out for his routine dressed as the Incredible Hulk. Wearing green bodypaint and performing to a specially designed soundtrack, Thomas shocked and thrilled the crowd with his “incredible” physique and presentation. What a great routine!

After the intermission, the audience was treated to another unique performance. Jed Walker, the owner of Sultry Salsa.com, wowed the crowd with a fantastic salsa dancing routine. Accompanied by his wife, La Baronesa Narce, Jed got the crowd warmed up before another couple joined him onstage. The crowd loved it! 

After these two spectacular performances, the crowd was ready for some more bodybuilding! The Novice Men’s division did not disappoint. Eric Taylor, fresh off his Jr. Masters Men win, received the majority of the judges first place votes to win the short class. Ryan Doris, competing in his first show, placed second with a thick physique and small waist. Following closely in third place was Jason Norman from Lake Zurich, Illinois. Teenage winner Kye Mallernee was in fourth with Dorian Oleksak in fifth.

In the Novice Men’s tall class, Frank Muzquiz won first place by one point over ripped Greg Gabriel. Tony Litton displayed great abs in taking third place with Matt Kornick in fourth and Mohsin Khan in fifth.

In the Novice Men’s Overall, Eric Forest beat out Frank Muzquiz for the title. Frank had more thickness in his upper body but the judges preferred the hard as nails physique of Eric for the overall title.

The Model Search division was up next. The judges were split among all three competitors but, in the end, Heather Frystak from Chicago edged out Meghan von Linden for first place. Heather Burns, a former Black Hawks helicopter pilot, was the crowd favorite in third place.

The Open Women’s Bodybuilding was next on the agenda. Marissa Ruffalo and Laurie Ellis returned to do battle in the Women’s Open class and the results were the same. Marissa won the class over Laurie with her ripped physique.

In the tall class of the Women’s Open, veteran competitor Jennifer Lynn Abrams wowed the crowd with her muscular and shapely physique. She won a unanimous decision over ripped Jessica Olson from Del Rio, Texas.

In the overall Women’s Open, Jennifer Abrams easily took the title with her well-developed musculature and winning smile. Jennifer has to be one of the most impressive female natural bodybuilders competing today.

The Bikini Diva division was up next. The vivacious Vickie Kolb won this division over Meghan von Linden from St. Louis, Missouri. Chicago Sun-Times sports writer Elliot Harris had fun handing out the awards in this class.

The Masters Figure for competitors over 40 years of age was next on the agenda. Patty Mayo-Katsion, fresh off her win from the Grand Masters Women Bodybuilding, took another easy first place over Jamie Adcock who was competing in her first contest. Bobbie Kongsgaard from Romeoville, Illinois took third place followed by Nancy Nguyen in fourth.

The very exciting Figure Open class was next. The audience cheered loudly for their favorites but nothing could compare to the ovation that Brittany Ramsey received when she stepped onstage. Brittany’s loud fan base nearly blew the roof off the auditorium with their screams and applause!

Brittany did not disappoint with a physique that included impressively capped deltoids and tight legs and glutes. Competing in her very first contest, Brittany captured first place with a unanimous decision from the judges. Vickie Kolb, also competing for the first time, finished in second place. Tasha Armstrong from West Des Moines, Iowa was very lean in third. Angie Moye was only one point behind Tasha in fourth place. First time competitor Alice Teodor rounded out the top five.

To finish off the exciting evening, the Men’s Open Bodybuilding was up next. The Men’s Short Class featured a battle between Pierce Walker from Rockford, Michigan and Jeremy Coleman from Palos Hills, Illinois. Pierce was hard as a rock with shredded abs and thick arms while Jeremy displayed freaky proportions including a tiny waist with huge pecs and lats that brought to mind memories of Lee Haney. In the end, Pierce won the class with better leg separation and slightly more hardness. Ryan Doris took third place followed by Dorian Oleksak in fourth and Tim Murtello in fifth.

In the tall class, top contender Brent Swansen from Decatur, Illinois competed in his best shape ever to win a unanimous decision from the judges. Brent was big and full with great leg separation from his hips to his knees. Frank Muzquiz, the tall class winner in the Novice Men, took second place followed by ripped Greg Gabriel in third. Tony Litton was in fourth place followed by big Matt Kornick in fifth.

Before the Overall Posedown took place, the audience was treated to the Best Bodyparts Awards. In the Best Abs category, Tony Litton beat out Pierce Walker for the award. Eric Forest, Novice Men Overall winner, won Best Arms with his freaky biceps. Brent Swansen showed how much improvement he made in his legs by winning the Best Legs award and Jeremy Coleman showed how much potential he has by winning Best Chest, Best Back and Best Poser. Piece Walker won the coveted Most Muscular award with his combination of size and muscularity.

In the Overall Posedown, it was thought that Pierce Walker might have an edge after winning the Most Muscular trophy. However, when Pierce stood next to the much bigger Brent Swansen, Swansen seemed to dominate in every pose. Displaying good proportions, thick muscular development and hardness and perfect color, Brent Swansen won the overall Natural Illinois Bodybuilding Championships.

I want to thank all the sponsors who helped support the 2009 ABA Natural Illinois Bodybuilding, Fitness and Figure Championships. These sponsors include Optimum Nutrition, American Body Building, JM Steel, Capital Nutrition, Pride Nutrition, Nutrition Discounters, Maui Wowi, Govan Fitness and Sultry Salsa.com.

I’m looking forward to the 2009 ABA Natural North America Bodybuilding, Fitness and Figure Championships on Saturday, August 1st. The contest will be held at Bolingbrook High School in Bolingbrook, Illinois and it promises to be the biggest and best one yet!

Click here to see Contest Results List

The Open Men Short Class, from left - Dorian Oleksak, 4th place, Thomas Anderson, Guest Poser, Jeremy Coleman - 2nd place, Alex from Optimum Nutrition, Pierce Walker - 1st place, John Hansen, Ryan Doris - 3rd place, Tim Murtello - 5th place	Best Abs winner - Tony Litton	Best Legs - Brent Swansen
Men's Open Tall Class, from left - Tony Litton - 4th place, Frank Muzquiz - 2nd place, Brent Swansen - 1st place, Greg Gabriel - 3rd place, Matt Kornick - 5th place	Best Arms winner - Eric Forest	Elliott Harris from the Chicago Sun-Times awards Bikini Diva winners Vickie Kolb, 1st place and Meghan von Linden, 2nd place
Model Search winners, from left - Heather Frystak, 1st place, Meghan von Linden, 2nd place, Heather Burns, 3rd place John Hansen presents the Victory Sword to Jennifer Abrams, Women Open Overall Winner	Jeremy Coleman won Best Chest, Best Back and Most Muscular.