Isabelle Nunes is OUT of the 2023 Wellness International Contest
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By Roger “Rock” Lockridge
The 2023 Wellness International will have a new champion crowned. The 2022 winner of the Arnold Classic’s Wellness contest, Isabelle Nunes, announced on Instagram that she is withdrawing from the show due to a meniscus injury. She cited that she’s been dealing with this injury since 2022 in the caption of the post.
“Since last year I've been treating a knee injury (meniscus) and everything was fine and under control, I had done the treatment when I was in Brazil, and I was training without pain...But a few weeks ago the pain became unbearable to the point that I couldn't walk in the supermarket or sit for a long time for example. Training and cardio were impaired, as many times I would wake up in pain and not be able to do them. I'm not an athlete who delivers 70-80%, I always want to show my best and unfortunately in this condition I wouldn't be able to.”
Nunes last competed in the 2022 Wellness Olympia, where she placed second to now two-time champion Francielle Mattos. Nunes is qualified for the 2023 Wellness Olympia thanks to her second-place finish in Las Vegas this past December. So, she wouldn’t have to compete until then if she wanted to give herself more time for the injury to heal.
With Nunes out of the competition, that leaves eight athletes to vye for the honor of being crowned the second Wellness International champion. The updated roster is below.
- Alexis Adams
- Marissa Andrews
- Sunny Andrews
- Angela Borges
- Amanda Burnett
- Rayane Fogal
- Kassandra Gillis
- Andrea Hrenko
Angela Borges was the runner-up to Nunes in the 2022 Wellness International, and she was third in the Olympia. She would be considered the early favorite to be standing alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger at the end of the contest. Stay tuned to Muscle Insider for further updates and predictions leading up to the big contest in Columbus, Ohio on the weekend of Mar. 2nd through 5th.