With a competitive history dating back to 1982, the IFBB North American Championships has been an event that has built an interesting past complete with outstanding competitors, stellar winners, and a colorful combination of American, Canadian, and Mexican entrants that has helped make the event unique.
Over the years, and not surprisingly, American competitors have dominated the winner's circle, as well as the overall entries. And the majority of venues where the contest has been staged were also within the borders of the United States. On two occasions, however, promoter Javier Pollock hosted the event in Mexico in 1993 and '94. But it was the 1994 contest in Mexico City that brought Mexico its brightest moment as a host country since it staged the women's IFBB World Amateur Championships in 1990.
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| MARTHA SANCHEZ, 94 North American Overall |
In a field of 22 contestants (with all three countries represented), it was lightweight dynamo Martha Sanchez who emerged as the overall IFBB North American champion.
Far from having an easy time of flexing her way to victory, Sanchez found herself in a spirited posedown for the overall with two Americans - middleweight winner Jodi Friedman and a striking young contestant from Washington named Brenda Raganot as the heavyweight winner.
In winning the overall North American crown and earning pro status, Sanchez became Mexico's first IFBB pro since Lupita Lugo in 1987. Along with Sanchez, only Maria Segura in 2007 has been an overall winner from Mexico at this event.
By the numbers, the lightweight and middleweight classes were small, but the winners were representative of what one would expect at a contest of this stature.
Held at the Teatro Ferrocarrilero on the weekend of August 27-28, the IFBB North American Championships helped bring further awareness and positive reinforcement to a culture and country that had been historically resistant to the idea of a highly developed female.
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| Martha Sanchez, LW 1st |
In the LW class four of the five entrants were from Mexico and Sanchez's victory in this group was convincing and unanimous. A 5-0 ¼, 112-pound personal trainer from Guadalajara, Sanchez had been competing since 1986, and the win enabled her to make good on a promise she made to return to this contest and win the overall after capturing the same class in 1992. An experienced competitor, Sanchez gained additional international notoriety in winning the middleweight class at the World Games in 1993. But it was her overall North American win here that propelled her to the pro level where she competed for three years before retiring from competition. As an added perk to this event, Sanchez teamed with Jose Luis Renteria (the winner of the men's MW class) to win the North American Mixed Pairs title.
American Danet Seely was the only non-Mexican lightweight entrant and placed third.
Only four contestants entered the MW category with 1993 NPC USA middleweight winner and 1993 IFBB North American middleweight
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| Jodi Friedman, 1st Place MW Class |
champion Jodi Friedman successfully defending her title from a year earlier. Highly successful as an amateur, she was also the 1990 NPC California overall champion and a middleweight winner at the 1994 NPC Team Universe. Friedman completed her competitive career without moving on to the pro ranks.
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| Michelle Ivers-Brent 2nd MW |
Finishing second to Friedman was Michelle Ivers who was accepting the bridesmaid position, albeit unwillingly, for the third consecutive time at this event. Ivers has become well known for her passion and perseverance as an amateur competitor and is still entering contests to this day - 24 years after her
first contest in 1985. Ivers, who is now married and is known as Michelle Ivers-Brent has entered a total of seven North American Championships over the years - finishing second a remarkable six times. And unless she turns pro in 2010, that number may go up in the future.
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| Jackie Ludy, 4th Place MW |
Third went to Mexico's Lourdes Bermudez who had been the lightweight North American winner in 1993.
Fourth placed Jackie Ludy placed fourth but showed the best overall structural quality of the quartet in this class. With added attention to her contest prep - which would have brought out more definition in her legs and back - she would have gained serious consideration for the top spot.
With a very competitive field of 13 contestants entered in the heavyweight class, Brenda Raganot - at 5-4, 131 pounds - used her aesthetically pleasing structure and appealing muscle shapes to claim a unanimous
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| Brenda Raganot, 1st Place HW |
victory. She was still four years away from winning the 1998 NPC Nationals overall crown and later becoming a top IFBB pro winning a pair of lightweight Ms. International titles (2000 and 2005) and competing in six Ms. Olympia events.
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| Heather Tristany, 2nd HW |
In addition, Americans (all of whom were from California) occupied the next three placings with Heather Tristany, Leilani Dalumpines and Carmen Brady finishing second, third, and fourth respectively.
The top finishing Mexican in this class was Marisol Almela in the fifth spot showing a nice combination of muscular balance and detail.
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| Carmen Brady, 4th HW |
Also notable among the heavyweights was sixth-placer Sally McNeil (who is currently featured in an in-depth article by Leigh Penman- SALLY MCNEIL
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| Marisol Almela, 5th HW |
and Mexico's Myriam Bustamante. Interestingly, Bustamante finished a distant 11th in this field, but surfaced seven years later in 2001 as an IFBB pro where she made her debut at the Jan Tana Classic finishing fourth in the MW class. Bustamante is still currently competing and most recently finished seventh at the 2009 Tampa Pro Classic.
Ninth placed American Nikki Limpert drew high praise from the Mexican audience as she displayed among the best shaped arms in this class.
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| Nikki Limpert, 9th HW |
With only two Canadians entering the women's portion of the contest, both were entered in the HW class and finished eighth (Petula Gillingham) and tenth (Kate Cadieux).
As an event that took place 15 years ago, it is notable to point out that four
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| Sally McNeil, 6th HW |
competitors in the field are still actively competing at either the pro or amateur levels - a fact that further demonstrates the strong desire many bodybuilders hold for their chosen sport.
Also of note was the fact that the 1994 IFBB North American Championships was a randomly drug-tested event that was supervised by the Mexican Olympic Doping Committee.
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