Floridian, Yaxeni Oriquen Garcia beat out thirteen of the world’s best female bodybuilders to capture the Ms. International title for a fifth time. The win earned her a chat with Arnold Schwarzenegger, a beautiful trophy, $25,000 and a Tony Nowak jacket. of Miami, Florida is a five-time winner of the Ms. International bodybuilding competition at the Arnold Sports Festival 2012.
The decision was clear in the judges’ minds as Yaxeni received a perfect score. She was a bit smaller in size than we’ve seen her in years past but she was every bit as conditioned. Yaxeni’s overall structure and shape helped carry her to a win over a very competitive Debi Laszewski. Debi packed a bit more muscle on her frame than Yaxeni however her look didn’t quite match up. Debi also sported an interesting choice in make up with bright red lipstick. The judges overlooked the distracting makeup and awarded the runner-up position. The second place finish earned her $13,000 for her efforts.
Third place finisher, Alina Popa showed an aesthetically pleasing physique but wasn’t quite as muscular as Yaxeni nor as sharp as Debi. She recently started training in the high altitude of Denver, Colorado but is originally from Switzerland. Alina took home $8,000 and an Olympia qualification. She’s the only one from the show to do so since Yaxeni and Debi were already qualified. A recent rule change allows for the top three finishers a chance to compete at the Olympia.
Cathy LeFrancois was holding a bit of water in her lower body during prejudging and it cost her heading into the finals. She improved at the finals and actually tied Alina however it wasn’t enough to over take her. Cathy finished in the fourth place position and received $5,000.
Rounding out the prize winning spots were Kim Buck in fifth and Brigita Brezovac of Maribor, Slovenia in sixth. Brigita was ahead of Kim by two points heading into the finals however she finished four points behind her. Brigita appeared to fade at bit at the night show and Kim improved which was reflective in their scores.
There were a number of bad wigs, poor tans and even worse posing. While hitting transitions many of the competitors needed to control their breathing better. You may see some of this reflective in the photos from the show. Overall it was a competitive show and Yaxeni proved that she still has some gas in the tank.
2012 Ms. International Results
Placing / Name / Prejudging score / Finals score / Total
1. Yaxeni Oriquen 5/5/10
2. Debi Laszewski 10/10/20
3. Alina Popa 16/17/33
4. Cathy LeFrancois 19/17/36
5. Kim Buck 33/29/62
6. Brigita Brezovac 31/35/66
7. Alevtina Goroshinskaya 34/34/68
8. Maria Rita Bello 37/33/70
9. Kim Perez 48/44/92
10. Monique Jones 50/55/105
11. Zoa Linsey 57/55/112
12. Maria Segura 60/61/121
13. Tina Chandler 64/59/123
14. Geraldine Morgan 64/66/130
Check out all the photos from this and other events at the Arnold Sports Festival on Bodybuilding.com.
