2008 CBBF B.C. Provincials Review
by JP Erickson

The BC Provincials took place on July 19 in North Vancouver. A big congratulations to the Pantheon Gym promotion team of Kosta Kromidas, Tatiana Anderson and the rest of their crew for not only a job well done with the Provincials, but for securing an upcoming Nationals event for the province of BC.

The Pantheon team definitely knows how to manage an event of this nature. The show ran smoothly from top to bottom; they brought in IFBB pros Toney Freeman and Cathy LeFrancois as guest posers; on the media side, they brought in a number of entities to cover the show and made certain all had competitor lists and other pertinent information.

Contrast the BC show to the recent Alberta Provincials in terms of media coverage and it’s painfully obvious the Alberta hierarchy should sign up for some schooling from the BC crew. The brain trust at the top of the Alberta executive, although no doubt hard-working and well-meaning volunteers, are simply in over their heads when it comes to media and promotion savvy. When you have President David Leung bemoaning a downturn in sponsor money on one hand and then banning media outlets on the other hand, you really have to wonder how hard it is to connect the dots.

Some praise on the BC side has to go to head judge Chris Parker, one of the best in the business. Chris works tirelessly at every show he attends to make sure everything runs smoothly, from the judging criteria to the lighting. Additionally, he makes himself available to all competitors looking for feedback on their physiques.

On to the show. In bodybuilding, it was all about the return of Dawn Alison. A former top competitive bodybuilder, over the past few years Dawn has devoted her time to training many of BC’s top male and female physique competitors. This year, she decided to return to the stage and what a triumphant return it was as she captured the overall title with a thickly muscled and shapely physique that was definitely the class of the field.

The figure stage boasted some great physiques, including newcomer Keashia Wester, under the tutelage of trainer Dawn Alison. Keashia exploded out of the gates in this her first year of competing, racking up some impressive victories prior to the BC’s.

For someone so new to the stage, Keashia displays an outstanding physique and has great potential as both a competitor and model. But in the end, it wasn’t quite enough to beat Jennifer Jewel for the overall title, although Keashia will be competing at the upcoming Canadian Nationals.

Fans will recall Jennifer Jewell as a top fitness competitor, but injuries forced her to make the change to figure. She didn’t seem to miss a beat as she hit the stage with a great physique that propelled her to the overall title in figure.

Fitness belonged to Ocean Bloom. Ocean always brings a standout routine to the stage and this year was no exception. That, combined with her physique, made for a combination that left the rest of the field fighting for the follow-up spots.

BC will certainly have some outstanding competitors moving on to the national stage for both bodybuilding and figure and fitness. First up will be the August 9 fitness and figure championships hosted by another top BC promoter and professional fitness competitor, Sandra Wickham.

For full results and information on upcoming shows, visit www.bcabba.ca

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