2017 Toronto Pro Supershow Bigger and Better Than Ever
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Toronto Pro Recap
By: Jaime Filer
Contest Review sponsored by Allmax Nutrition
Once again, Canada’s biggest IFBB Pro show has come and gone, and once again, it was biggest and better than ever. This was the seventh year that the Toronto Pro SuperShow has been held, and according to an official announcement by the Exhibit Manager of the TPSS, there was a 35 percent increase in attendance in the Expo this year. Now you see we mean it when we say it’s growing every year; not just in terms of attendees though, but competitor as well. The 2017 edition of the Toronto Pro held 10 different IFBB Pro events throughout the weekend, making it one of the most diverse and inclusive in the IFBB schedule. The weather in Toronto, Canada was tame, but the competition was H-O-T. Check out the results and recap for more about what went down May 26 – 28, 2017 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
All winners of the show get an automatic qualification to the Olympia in September this year, while the rest of the Top 4 competitors rack up points that will add up towards their point totals for the Olympia qualifying series.
OPEN MEN'S BODYBUILDING
1. JOHNNIE JACKSON
2. JONATHAN DELA ROSA
3. JEFF BECKHAM
4. PAULO ALMEIDA
5. MAREK OLEJNICZAK
Johnnie Jackson was feeling good and ripe, and beat Jon De La Rosa who narrowly lost the New York Pro the week before to Sergio Oliva Jr. It’s tough to do two shows in a row, and that schedule may have hurt Jon. Regardless, Johnnie brought a tight, sharp, symmetrical package. He was thick and grainy from the side and the back, and narrowly beat Jon from the front. He also has one of the most iconic most muscular poses we’ve ever seen. Johnnie has ridiculously thin skin and incredible muscle maturity and density that not a lot of other competitors have. This was his show to lose, and he completely nailed it, and earned his right to compete at the Big O show. Johnnie also announced his retirement from the sport after this season once Bob Chick gave him the mic. This will definitely be the end of an era when JoJ hangs up his posing trunks.
212 BODYBUILDING
1. RONNY ROCKEL
2. NAM EUN CHO
3. VOJTECH KORITENSKY
4. MEHDI HATAMI
5. BENJAMIN PARRA
Ronny Rockel is a name we haven’t heard in a while but clearly the guys has been doing his homework while out of the stage lights. This is Ronny’s second pro win in a row, and now has a ton of momentum going into summer shows (if he chooses to do them), or just he can just take the Olympia head on. Nam Eun Cho had the craziest wheels in the line up, and Vojtech Koritensky is a definite up-and-comer in the 212 world; look for him to make waves towards the end of the season and into 2018, once he hits his stride.
WOMEN'S BODYBUILDING
1. KIM BUCK
2. MARIA MIKOLA
3. WENDY MCCREADY
4. ROBIN HILLIS
5. TANANARIVE HUIE
As you already know, neither the Arnold Classic nor the Olympia host Pro Women’s Bodybuilding events anymore, but that doesn’t mean that female bodybuilders don’t have a place to go. Instead of winning a chance to compete at the Olympia, Kim Buck won the prestigious right to compete in the 2017 Wings of Strength Rising Phoenix Women’s Bodybuilding World Championship, being held in conjunction with the IFBB Arizona/Phoenix Pro this year in September. Maria, Wendy, Robin, and Tananarive all won points that will go towards competing at the Phoenix Pro as well.
CLASSIC PHYSIQUE
1. CHRIS BUMSTEAD
2. KEVIN FORD
3. SANTIAGO ARAGON
4. DARREM CHARLES
5. AJ SHUKOORI
Canada’s golden boy won get another Olympia qualifier by taking top honors in the Classic Physique category. It was a battle of old school versus new school as Darrem Charles fought hard to keep his place among the young bucks who are rising to take over the division. Unfortunately, Darrem’s status, stature, and seniority in the industry weren’t enough to hold off Chris, Kevin, and Santi from taking the Top 3 spots. No one can touch Bumstead’s size or conditioning on stage; the guy just exudes power when he’s up there, and both the judges’ and audiences’ eyes gravitate towards him. It was game-over from the type he was called out, and everyone else just had to fall in line for the Chris Show.
FITNESS
1. PIIA PAJUNEN
2. ARIEL KHADR
3. JODI BOAM
4. DARRIAN TISSENBAUM
5. ASPEN BUNYAK
This was a big upset for Ariel, who won the Toronto Pro show last year, and has been cleaning up since then with one of the most dynamic routines, and tightest physiques in the Fitness category. But Piia from Finland also has exceptional talent, and we look forward to seeing more from her!
FIGURE
1. JESSICA REYES PADILLA
2. MARTINA YABEKOVA
3. SARA FORD
4. MARY VALID
5. AZARIA GLAIM
Jessica Reyes Padilla had perfect proportions, and obviously exactly what the judges were looking for in the Figure division. She was poised, elegant, graceful, and obviously brought a complete look to the stage. Canadians Mary Valid and Azaria Glaim had exceptionally impressive showings given the depth of the line up. Azaria, with her aesthetic proportions, and beautiful package could make a serious run for the Olympia if she competes again in Vancouver and takes the win, or even places Top 3 at enough shows over the course of the summer season.
WOMEN’S PHYSIQUE
1. ELEONORA DOBRININA
2. EVELAINE ROCHA
3. BARBARA MENAGE
4. LEONIE ROSE
5. MAYLA ASH
Homegrown homegirl Eleonora Dobrinina takes home top honors in this category. This Canadian bombshell has wow’d the crowd with her conditioning, symmetry, and proportion since she was competing as an amateur at the Regional level of the OPA. Everyone who saw her knew she was destined to make it big as a pro, and this is her time to shine.
MEN'S PHYSIQUE
1. ANDRE FERGUSON
2. KIMANI VICTOR
3. DIOGO MONTENEGRO
4. MATTHEW ACTON
5. ANTOINE WILLIAMS
Andre Ferguson is one guy who is making a name for himself in the Men’s physique world. In 2016, he placed 5th at the Arnold, 2nd at the Arnold Pro, and won the Baltimore and Tampa Pro shows. He then finished the season with a 5th at the Olympia. In 2017, he started with a second at the Arnold, and won the New York Pro. So to see him win the Toronto Pro wasn’t a huge surprise; this guy is going to give Ryan Terry a run for his money at the Olympia with so much momentum going into the fall.
BIKINI
1. MICHELLE SYLVIA
2. LAURALIE CHAPADOS
3. ENJOLI ENRIQUEZ
4. YULIA BEREZINA
5. SANDRA REARDON
Michelle Sylvia has this incredible combination of looking like the girl next door with these super cute curls, but also the look of an exotic, stunning, bikini pro. How she pulls off both looks simultaneously is stupefying, but clearly the judges weren’t stumped in selecting a winner! She had exactly what they wanted in terms of the right balance of conditioning, size, and overall presentation. She looked phenomenal and how/if she’ll improve leading up to the Olympia will be interesting to see as she looked nearly flawless on stage in Toronto.
WHEELCHAIR BODYBUILDING
1. HAROLD KELLEY
2. ANTONI KHADRAOU
Harold Kelly may very well be the winningest wheelchair bodybuilder in IFBB Pro history, and he’s no stranger to the Canadian stage. Harold brought flavor to his posing routine, and a smile that lit up the stage when he went through his compulsories. Antoni had incredible conditioning, but his level of ‘shred’ wasn’t enough to overtake Harold’s complete package.
Also, we’d like to thank Allmax Nutrition for sponsoring our coverage of the Toronto Pro Supershow. Their generosity lead to exceptional content being generated on all our social media platforms, our website, and of course, efficiency in terms of getting the photos up on our website! Couldn’t have done any of that, OR had such an exceptionally successful cage on the expo floor without their help and support!