Olympia 212 Showdown 2018 - James "Flex" Lewis wins his seventh title in a row!

Author: František Randáček

16.09.2018

3 minuty čtení

Just as this year's Mr. Olympia contest is now history, and surprisingly enough to some, Shawn Rhoden dominated it, the winner of the Olympia 212 Showdown is also known.

This category has been ruled by James "Flex" Lewis for the last six years, and it was clear that he would be looking to win for the seventh straight time. What's more, this was to be his last appearance in this category!

From the very beginning of the semi-final battles, it was clear that the aforementioned James "Flex" Lewis was going for the win once again. He presented here such a form that made it clear that he is the only king of this sport!

"Flex" presented excellent symmetry, full, rounded and separated muscles, perfect final preparation and amazing presentation on the stage. He bid farewell to bodybuilding with a weight limit of 212 pounds with grace!

After the actual announcement of the results, during which he received a standing ovation, he stated that he is now living his American dream thanks to bodybuilding. He thanked his coach Neil Hill and his fans. He told them that he will not disappoint them about his future in bodybuilding, that he has always had big dreams, and so at the right moment they will surely see him among the heavyweights in the open category!

The judges awarded second place to 25 year old Derek Lunsford. The superbly built youngster didn't offer the quality that the second man in such a spectacular contest should have displayed. However, it seems the judges consider him to be Lewis's successor, and so they have given him the impetus to move on.

Third place went to Kamal Elgargni, who many thought should have been ahead of the aforementioned Derek. His final preparedness was breathtaking. In the eyes of the judges, he's probably not the man for the job.

Ahmad Ashkanani, the second man of the 2016 and 2017 editions, took fourth place from the podium this time. However, he is very satisfied with this position, as his preparation was marked by protracted health problems that required four surgeries, such as knee, hernia and respiratory surgeries.

Veteran Jose Raymond was the last to squeeze into the top 5. He announced on stage a fact that he had already mentioned several times before the competition - the end of his competition career!
He has decided to do a few more fall events before that actually happens.

Sixth place went to the first ever winner of this competition, David Henry. He was certainly not the only one disappointed with his performance.

Sami Al Haddad was also very disappointed, finishing 13th. This is the worst ever placing of his professional career!

RESULTS:

1. James "Flex" Lewis - qualified for Olympia 212 Showdown 2019
2. Derek Lunsford - qualified for the 2019 Olympia 212 Showdown
3. Kamal Elgargni - qualified for the 2019 Olympia 212 Showdown
4. Ahmad Ashkanani - qualified for Olympia 212 Showdown 2019
5. Jose Raymond - qualified for Olympia 212 Showdown 2019
6. David Henry
7. Shaun Clarida
8. Alejandro Cambronero
9. Ricardo Correia