Shanique Grant Shares Update on Her Return to the Stage
By Roger “Rock” Lockridge
For those that may not be aware, two-time Ms. Physique Olympia Shanique Grant has shared intentions to return to the bodybuilding stage, but it will not be in her former division that she dominated in 2018 and 2019. Instead, her sights are set on the Wellness division. Grant shared a physique update on Instagram back on August 6th, and it was well-received by her 325,000 plus followers.
In a previous post, Grant compared the Women’s Physique championship look to her shape now, and even though she’s proud of both forms, her eyes are set on the future and her potential to succeed in her latest challenge. She also discussed health issues she was facing at the time she walked away from the sport in 2020.
“I’ve loved my body in all forms. I took nearly 3 years off from training upper body due to issues with my eye and my forearm (still ongoing) But I knew I was striving for a different look at the same time. Just recently in June, I made the commitment to really lock into competing again but in a different division. Let me make this clear. DOWNSIZING IS NOT EASY. From now to my Wellness Debut 2024 is going to be one heck of a journey! Feeling blessed.”
Clearly, Grant is not only preparing to make a comeback, but she wants to achieve the same level of success that she reached in her former division. This would be the third pro division that Grant would be walking onstage for if she enters a Wellness show in 2024. Her pro career began in the Figure division back in 2015, but she shifted to Women’s Physique one year later. After two seasons and three wins, she finally entered the Olympia in 2018 and won the Women’s Physique title. She went back-to-back in 2019 but placed second to Sarah Villegas in 2020. Following that loss, Grant announced her retirement from competition.
The Wellness division wasn’t around during Grant’s time in the sport, but it was added to the Olympia in 2021. The champion for both 2021 and 2022 was Francielle Mattos, but other stars have emerged as contenders as well, including Canada’s own Kassandra Gillis, Isabelle Nunes, Angela Borges, who many consider the original legend of Wellness, and others.
Grant will be eligible to compete in pro Wellness shows since she is an IFBB Pro. Usually, Olympia champions can go straight into the Olympia because they are qualified for life in the division that they won the title in. Since Grant didn’t win the Wellness Olympia, she will have to enter another show and win if she hopes to see the Olympia stage for Wellness in 2024. Based on the feedback from her fans and followers, they have faith she can get it done.
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