Review of the 2024 Olympics on Friday evening: Will Derek Lunsford be dethroned?

There’s nothing like Friday night at the Olympia, and that was reinforced at the 60^Th Edition of Joe Weider’s Olympia Fitness and Performance Weekend. The Resorts World Theater in Las Vegas, Nevada was a hive of activity on Friday evening, October 11th^Th Fans came in to see the best of the best in fitness, figure, women’s physique, women’s bodybuilding, wellness, 212 and the preliminary round of the Men’s Open competition. Here’s a quick look back at the history that was written on the Olympic stage.

Mr. Olympia prejudges

The main event of the weekend is the 60th^Th Edition of the Mr. Olympia competition. 15 of the best Men’s Open bodybuilders in the world will compete in a two-day competition to determine the world champion for the Men’s Open division, including reigning defending champion Derek Lunsford and 2022 winner Hadi Choopan.

There was a lot of preparation for this competition around them and leading contenders Samson Dauda and Andrew Jacked, but Martin Fitzwater shocked the crowd when he was placed among them in his Olympic debut. If things go his way, he looks to be in the running for a place in the top five.

However, the preliminary round focused on Lunsford, Choopan and Dauda – the top three from 2023. They were in their own final, and head judge Steve Weinberger gave fans three comparisons by having each man stand in the middle of the group. No one in the audience was sure which way the jury was leaning. We won’t have to find out until tomorrow evening.

You can also watch Saturday night’s final by going to www.olympiaproduktions.com and ordering the 2024 Olympics pay-per-view live stream so you can watch history being made at the ’60s^Th Olympia.

Missy Truscott wins third Fitness Olympics

Missy Truscott exited the 2023 Olympics under the care of medical staff after suffering a horrific knee injury during her finals training. This was also the beginning of her path to redemption and recovery.

That journey culminated on the 2024 Olympic stage when she returned and performed a Spartan-like routine that helped her crown the comeback in the best possible way – as champion. Truscott is now a three-time Ms. Fitness Olympia and feels back where she belongs. Jaclyn Baker joined Truscott in second place and the bronze medal went to Taylor Learmont.

Missy Truscott – $50,000
Jaclyn Baker – $20,000
Taylor Learmont – $12,000

Gillon is retiring as an 8-time Olympic champion in figure sports

Cydney Gillon was already the most dominant Olympic figure champion in history, but she was looking to join Olympic legends Ronnie Coleman, Lee Haney and Iris Kyle as the only athlete with eight straight victories (Kyle has 10 Ms. Olympia victories, but there were eight). one after the other.)

Gillon made the task look easy as she dominated both the preliminary and finals to claim her eighth gold medal. The big story of this competition was what happened next. During her interview with Bob Cicherillo, Gillon announced her retirement from competition, capping a tenure that will be difficult to match in the future.

Cydney Gillon – $50,000
Jessica Reyes Padilla – $20,000
Lola Montez – $12,000

Villegas wins fourth women’s Physique Olympic title

The Women’s Physique Olympia was very familiar to fans of the division. Sarah Villegas and Natalia Abraham Coelho have one of the longest rivalries in the sport. Coelho wanted to regain the title, while Villegas wanted to make her own history by tying Juliana Malacarne for the most wins in the division’s young history.

The two champions once again stood at center stage waiting for the announcement, and Villegas’ name was announced as the winner. They were joined in the top three by Sheronica Henton.

Sarah Villegas – $50,000
Natalia Abraham Coelho – $20,000
Sheronica Henton – $12,000

Shaw receives redemption as Ms. Olympia

Andrea Shaw has been the queen of women’s bodybuilding since she won the 2020 Rising Phoenix and the returning Ms. Olympia competition, but Angela Yeo broke the foundation of Shaw’s reign by defeating her at the 2024 Rising Phoenix. Many fans felt like this was the start of a transition at the top.

However, Shaw spent seven weeks in Arizona and changed coaches to complete her Olympic preparation, and those moves paid off. It was a tough fight, but Shaw held off Yeo and won her fifth Ms. Olympia title. They were joined in the top three by rising star Ashley Lynnette Jones.

Andrea Shaw – $50,000
Angela Yeo – $20,000
Ashley Lynnette Jones – $12,000

Isabelle Nunes is the new Wellness Olympic champion

The wellness department has only been part of the Olympia since 2021 and has a champion. When Francielle Mattos began her title defense in Las Vegas, she wanted to keep it that way, but two-time runner-up Isabelle Nunes had varying levels of confidence in both the prelims and finals. It was like she knew something no one else knew.

That confidence was confirmed when Cicherillo announced “and new” for the first time that evening. Nunes finally defeated her long-time Brazilian rival and the division now has two champions.

Isabelle Nunes – $50,000
Francielle Mattos – $20,000
Eduarda Bezerra – $12,000

212 Olympia

Keone Pearson and Shaun Clarida had a friendly but competitive preparation for the 212 Olympic title. Clarida wanted to win his third title, while Pearson was desperate to prove his 2023 Olympic victory was no fluke. Pearson was the larger of the two and had better overall condition, but Clarida was strong and very conditioned on stage. This match was apples versus oranges.

This was the final competition of the evening, meaning the winner would be the last to leave the stage for the night. That man was Pearson, now gone in a row. Angel Calderon Frias was satisfied with third place.

Keone Pearson – $50,000
Shaun Clarida – $20,000
Angel Calderon Frias – $12,000