Big things are going to happen this year!” You hear it at the beginning of the year, every year without fail, but trust us on this one: 2013 is going to be huge. We can’t unload everything on you all at once for fear of your head exploding, so we’ll start you off with this: Joe Weider’s 2013 Olympia Fitness and Performance Weekend is going to be bigger than ever (if you can believe that!). How big you ask? Two new contests have been added to September’s show of shows, the Olympia Men’s and Women’s Physique Showdowns. Back in 2011, the much anticipated physique divisions debuted in the NPC. Physique gave men who preferred a more streamlined and classic look and women who fell between figure and bodybuilding standards a platform to fulfill their competitive desires. Through the course of the year, the number of contestants swelled with each successive outing, making it one of the most popular divisions in the NPC. By early 2012, physique contests were on the IFBB Pro League calendar. And now, thanks to the efforts of the IFBB Pro League in partnership with the Mr. Olympia LLC and AMI/Weider, physique has taken a giant step up, all the way to the very top. By the tail end of this year, one deserving man and woman will walk away as the first-ever Olympia Men’s and Women’s Physique Showdown champion, respectively. To earn the honor of stepping onstage at the inaugural Olympia Physique Showdowns, competitors must win an IFBB pro contest or earn enough points in the Olympia Qualification Series during the 2013 IFBB Pro League season. It all happens this September at Joe Weider’s 2013 Olympia Fitness and Performance Weekend!
