212 Olympia 2021 - Derek Lunsford has finally made it, and he is the king of the 212lb division!
Author: Since 2008, Joe Weider's Olympia Fitness & Performance Weekend has featured bodybuilders who must meet the maximum weight limit, which is currently 212 pounds.
So this year was the 14th edition, and yet this contest only knows five winners, having dominated it in the past:
The latter two also entered this year's edition, and so the question was whether the five winners would remain or whether someone else, the sixth in the order, would win. The name of Derek Lunsford, who had already shone during his debut appearance at the Olympia 212 Showdown in 2017, when he managed to break into the Top 5!
He even finished second the following two years, and was thus considered the successor to the phenomenal James "Flex" Lewis!
Last year, however, he had to settle for "only" fourth place! This meant only two possible scenarios for his future sporting endeavours - either it would break him, and he would never be able to come to the limelight again, or on the contrary, it would kick him into even greater efforts! And that was what was to be decided last night and today!
A total of twenty fighters qualified to participate this year, and absolutely all of them made it to the venue, which, given the current coronavirus measures introduced in the USA, can be considered a huge success without exaggeration!
Unfortunately, not everyone made it to the podium. The very beginning of the competition was marred by the death of one of the contestants, the front-runner George Peterson, who was found dead in his hotel room!
His coach Justin Miller commented on his ward's death with these words:
I am in complete shock! I'm scared. I'm sad. I still can't believe it! It's driving me crazy. I'm completely overwhelmed. My hands are shaking as I write this. It's like a nightmare, even though I know it's real! Our cameraman Ricky and I have just cleared out George's room to take his things home to give to his mum and sister. We're so overwhelmed, I'm literally shaking. I can't stop my hands from shaking. I still haven't cried, I'm still in shock.
We know this... George looked absolutely gorgeous! He felt great! He was very inspiring last night, saying things on and off camera that gave us goosebumps. He was in great shape, both mentally and physically. He was full of energy, focus and determination during yesterday's training session. The best version of George mentally and physically that I have ever seen!
I went to watch the semi-finals of the Amateur Olympia and in the meantime Ricky was working on our next video. I got back to the hotel around noon but couldn't get to my room, George wasn't answering at all. So we called security to open the door but George was lying face down on the floor, his body was very cold. We immediately called 911, and followed their instructions, giving him a CPR, then we were relieved by security and then the paramedics. But they couldn't help him anymore, apparently he'd been "gone" for hours. I begged them to keep trying, but they finally convinced me that there was no point.
I've gotten hundreds of reports and heard the internet is full of it, but I haven't looked yet. I don't know what to do or what to say. George was my closest friend, I can't believe he's gone, I just can't believe it...
We don't know what happened. A heart attack? Stroke? We don't know, and we won't know until the autopsy's done. He seemed healthy and in good spirits. I was going to turn off the comments because of the trolls, and maybe I will, but I'll leave it at that for now. Please have respect for this great man and his family! If only I knew what to say...
Please pray for him and his family. I love you, George! I will hold you in my heart until my last days on Earth!
In light of this tragic event, the aforementioned trio of Clarida, Elgargni and Lunsford were considered the favourites for the top spots, and therefore of course for the win, as well as Ahmad Ashkanani, who finished second here in 2016 and 2017, and then managed to break into the Top 5 in each of the following years!
And it was this foursome that opened the semi-final comparisons! The judges made it clear that it is this foursome that is fighting for the top positions, so no surprise there. The Clarida - Lunsford pair then posed in the middle of the line, sending a clear message that they were fighting for the win! They were both presenting completely different characters!
Lunsford possessed an excellent physique with no major weaknesses, and even this time he managed to come in with full and round muscles, which has always been problematic for him in previous years due to meeting the weight limit. So the only weakness remains the immaturity of his muscles, which is understandable given his age.
It is so obvious that last year's setback literally kicked him into gear!
On the other hand, only 157 cm tall Clarida has hardness to spare, but symmetry is not so "rosy". However, this does not change the fact that he is a truly excellent bodybuilder, as evidenced by last year's title for the winner!
As far as the final fights were concerned, there too there were calls followed by free sets. After that, it was expected who would be the winner of this year's competition, which was intended for representatives of the division up to 212 pounds. Would it be the defending champion of last year's triumph, "pocket bodybuilder" Shaun Clarida, or would Derek Lunsford, who is considered to be the successor to seven-time Shammy James "Flex" Lewis, finally take the win?
Derek Lunsford, who is a ward of trainer Hany Rambod, under whose wing Phil Heath also trained, finally did it, and on his fifth attempt, in his sixth start among the elite, won the title of champion!
As mentioned above, Derek came into this year without the slightest of flaws, and so his goal will be to continue to work on muscle maturity. If he does well, he undoubtedly has a bright future ahead of him at this event, and he certainly has what it takes to live up to the expectations placed in him, i.e. a new multiple champion!
Last year's defending champion Shaun Clarida ended up finishing second, which may be disappointing for him. On the other hand, he exceeded all expectations! When he was moving up to the elite, hardly anyone could see him as a future champion! But he did it anyway, and made his mark in the history of the most prestigious competition in the world!
Third place went to Kamal Elgargni, who will soon celebrate his half-century. The 2019 winner was clearly the oldest fighter on the podium. He lost out to his rivals especially in the massiveness and fullness of his lower limbs, but on the other hand he offered a great deal of detail and, given his age, the most mature musculature.
Fourth place was conquered by Angel Calderón Frias, possessing a massive upper body. Although his lower limbs can be considered a weakness, due to their subtlety compared to his upper body, he still manages to improve year after year, and at quite a dizzying pace. After all, in 2019 he finished tenth here, last year he was already seventh, but this year he is fourth! And next year? who knows?!
The last place in the Top 5 was taken by Nathan Epler, who pushed Ahmad Ashkanani out of the top five. Nathan was one of the more subtle, but on the other hand absolutely the best prepared fighter on the stage!
Ahmad Ashkanani had to settle for sixth place, his worst Olympia finish to date! In 2016 and 2017 he finished a great second here, in 2018 he finished fourth, and the year before and last year he finished fifth. This year he had the ability to equal some of those results, but unfortunately he lacked the final touch.
Results:
1. Derek Lunsford - qualified for 212 Olympia 2022
2. Shaun Clarida - qualified for 212 Olympia 2022
3. Kamal Elgargni - qualified for 212 Olympia 2022
4. Angel Calderón Frias - qualified for 212 Olympia 2022
5. Nathan Epler - qualified for 212 Olympia 2022
6. Ahmad Ashkanani
7. Nasser Sayed
8. Kerrith Bajjo
9. John Jewett
10. Tonio Burton
11. Pasquale D'Angelo
12. Lucas Coelho
13. Noel Adame
14. Keone Pearson
15. Ahmed Wardany
16. Steve Benthin
16. Piotr Borecki
16. Kim Jun Ho
16. Vladimir Yakovlev
1. Derek Lunsford
2. Shaun Clarida
3. Kamal Elgargni
4. Angel Calderón Frias
5. Nathan Epler
Other competitors
More photos can be found HERE, on the website www.npcnewsonline.com.
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Source:
www.mrolympia.com
www.npcnewsonline.com
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