Over the years one picks up information and experience on judging by starting at the regional level and working up from there. In some organizations practical judging exams must be passed before you can judge at the next level. So it goes up the ladder till you get your certificate to judge at the Universe or the International level. The ultimate is to judge at the Olympia.
Anyone interested in bodybuilding who regularly reads the magazines will have noticed that certain aspects of the sport are regularly called into question. The main areas of contention appears to be judging and running of competitions, about which there seems to be a number of misconceptions which are often presented as fact. Bodybuilding seems to thrive on controversy! There is always a bone of contention to be gnawed, mainly it seems when there is disagreement about contest results. Such disagreements seem to arise all too frequently and some people with many years experience in the sport believe that there have always been disputes over results! In any contest the quality of a line-up cannot be predicted before the athletes have actually arrived and registered as competitors. Even then it is impossible to ascertain their size, condition etc until they are actually on stage. The question that seems to arise most often is "what are the judges looking for?" I have heard that question more than a thousand times over the years, usually as a complaint after the event. Judging can be complex and time consuming and at the end of it all people still argue over the results! So what ARE the judges looking for and how is the judging carried out? There are three rounds of judging for all categories. The prejudging, which takes place during the day, is when symmetry and proportions, condition and other factors are assessed via line-ups, 1/4 turns and compulsory poses, either solo or on groups of comparisons. If the head judge asks you to stand differently or straighten up, feet together, relax etc, please remember that these directions are always for your benefit and ensure you will be properly assessed by the judging panel. The judging panel usually consists of an odd number of judges such that a tight decision is decided say 5 judges to 4 in selecting a winner. In the IFBB/NPC athletes will be called on stage in groups of two, three or four for comparisons, depending on how much time is available and the number of competitors in the line-up. In NABBA when all competitors stand across the back of the stage, groups of athletes are called forward for comparisons as called by the head judge. Groups usually are in lots of 4 to 5 athletes, with the head judge often saying who will be in the centre or place two top contenders side by side in the middle. The judges continue to assess muscle mass, symmetry, proportion, shape and condition of all competitors (including those standing to either side of the stage to see if anyone is letting their belly hang out). When the compulsory poses are performed the various muscle groups can more readily be assessed, but judges will still be looking from time to time at those competitors standing "relaxed" either side of the stage. Incidentally, vascularity is not judged as such and if it is excessive it can obscure a bodypart and mar an otherwise good physique. In the IFBB/NPC amateur bodybuilding events, round 3 is the free posing routine. In NABBA it is round 2 for the free posing for 1 minute with the final comparisons in compulsory posing taking place as round 3. From the collated results the top 6 get to pose again at the evening show. In the IFBB/NPC the top people also get to pose at the finals. In IFBB Pro bodybuilding all posing is done at the finals and none at the prejudging. With Pro Men sometimes only the top 15 get to pose at the Finals if there is a very large field.
Fitness/Figure judging in the USA.
Here the fitness girls are a bit harder and more defined than figure because of the degree of strength moves they practice and the added conditioning needed to perfect their routines. This make the fitness girls leaner and harder, but technically the fitness and figure girls should have similar if not virtually the same type of body. They make minor allowances because of the above mentioned things. A perfect fitness or figure body should have the basic structure of a bodybuilder but without the mass. They should have wide shoulders and back, tapering down to a small waist, with good legs and calves and a nice curve to the glutes. It has been my observation that the look the Figure judges are going for is a long lean look. As in men's bodybuilding, a short figure competitor finds it hard to beat a long-legged taller competitor, all things being equal.
There should be no weak bodyparts or strong parts that stand out. There should be no deep separations or striations - ripped is out, but no wobbly jiggle either. It's a balancing act to be hard and tight enough, without being TOO hard and tight. This is what the judges are looking for. The confusion comes when women say that at one contest the winner has the harder look, and at the next one the winner is softer. The Figure class in general terms is where the focus is less on muscular bulk and more on the hard lean symmetrical physique and a fit athletic feminine look. The rounds vary between organizations and in the IFBB/NPC there is no posing routine at any time. In NABBA each woman performs a 1 minute posing routine at prejudging with hands open, no clenched fists as seen in bodybuilding. In NABBA the top competitors, usually the top 6 short and 6 tall women get to do their posing routines at the evening show, followed by an overall judging and posedown between the 2 class winners. Fitness in NABBA can be more difficult to judge as the bodies are not as muscular or as defined as in the Figure Class, although this is changing with Fitness women often having outstanding lean physiques. There should be some degree of muscularity but they must show an athletic and toned physique with good condition. Condition in this context simply means reasonably lean. It does not mean they should be "ripped to the bone", rather that they should not be carrying excessive fat. This category like Figure is not intended as any form of beauty pageant, but as a viable alternative to the physique and figure categories for those women who train for athleticism, flexibility and lean muscle mass. Last but not least is the fitness routine when it comes to deciding the winner. The variations within these broad guidelines are considerable and judging this category is not always straightforward. Other points that need mentioning: * All bodybuilding judging is based on assessing each competitor's physique, looking at muscular size, shape, symmetry, balance and proportions and identifying any weaknesses. Each physique is then judged against the other physiques on stage in the line-up. They will not be compared against some imaginary physique that is deemed to be fashionable this season. The judges are looking for the best physique on stage there and then - nothing else is possible or realistic.
The judges still have to judge what is in front of them. If a girl with the ideal body, or the closest to ideal is softer at one contest, the winner will be softer, but if at the next show the girl with the best overall body is harder, then the winner of that show will be harder. The judges are ALWAYS looking for the same things. The variables are based on which athletes are in the show and what condition they are in. * Competitors are NOT automatically "marked down" if they have tattoos. If that were true Dorian Yates would never have become Mr. Olympia! Flex Wheeler or Lee Priest would have never won any GPs! Tattoos are only a problem when there is a lot of them and they obscure one or more bodyparts and hide the muscularity. Rings should be removed from any obvious body piercings. Bad skin and in particular steroid pimples and boils are a real negative and a big turn-off for the judges and audience. Do not fall into the trap of showing steroid acne . * The competitors are never given points. They are always given a PLACING in first, second or third position and so on. Each placing represents a decision made by the judge and each decision is compared with the final outcome of the contest in order to assess that judge's accuracy. Obviously the most first placing wins or if a tie on first placing the competitor with the most 2nd placing wins or so on down the line if extremely close. * Although there tends to be considerable emphasis on achieving extreme, ripped, dry condition, no-one wants you to risk your life and health in pursuit of a title or trophy. It is simply not worth dieing for a trophy. * The simple answer to the question "what are the judges looking for" is that they are seeking the "best on the day" in each category. The final decision will depend on who turns up to compete and their size, condition, posing etc. In each line-up only one person is guaranteed to be happy with the results and that is the winner. The judges always strive to be impartial and objective, but no matter how fair they try to be, there will always be someone who is unhappy with the results. It is a subjective sport. If you lose in a close decision, on the law of averages you will win in a close decision in some future contest as it always seems to even out. At least on that point of unhappy losers there is no argument. That is bodybuilding! My special thanks to D. Devries for much of the basic research for this article and to Kenny Kassel for most of the USA information.
(Editor's note. Wayne is a qualified International judge and has judged for Australia at the Mr. Universe competition on many occasions.) |
