CANADIAN PHYSIQUE ALLIANCE CPA NOVEMBER ISSUE | Page 20

WHAT THE JUDGES REALLY
ASSESS & WHAT THEY DON’T
BY DARREN MEHLING
After every bodybuilding show,
there are some competitors who
take his/her placing the wrong
way. It really hurts me to see
someone, who could have a long
and exciting competition career,
take the judges’ decision on that
particular day to be something it is
not and cause them to leave the
sport.
I am writing this month’s column
for that person, and any aspiring
competitor, to explain what the
judges are actually assessing and
what they are not; you can spend
more time focusing on the right
things and continue to enjoy the
sport for what it is.
What Judges Assess
First, the judges compare every competitor to the
ideal physique of their respective division.
As CPA Chief Head Judge, Rudy Jambrovic, has
said many times over the years, at seminars,
clinics, and athlete meetings, “We are assessing
the athletes on how closely each one looks like to
the top athlete in the sport. If you want to know
what we are looking for, look at who is the
current Ms. or Mr. Olympia in each division. It is
that simple.”
Second, the judges then compare every
competitor to the others that are standing beside
them on stage on that particular day.