The 2023 Olympia features six women’s divisions, including the Ms. Olympia contest. The world championship for Women’s Open bodybuilding made its return to the stage in 2020 after a six-year absence.
The Women’s Open division has seen a resurgence in popularity during the dominant reign of three-time Ms. Olympia champion Andrea Shaw. She will attempt to make it four consecutive titles on Nov. 2-5, 2023, in Orlando, FL. Shaw will contend 10 of the world’s best who hope to hear “and new.” The full roster of qualified athletes is below:
2023 Ms. Olympia Roster
- Andrea Shaw (USA)
- Angela Yeo (USA)
- Sherry Priami (USA)
- Natalia Kovaleva (USA)
- Julia Whitesel (USA)
- Alcione Barreto (Brazil)
- MayLa Ash (USA)
- Kristina Mendoza (USA)
- Michaela Aycock (USA)
- Reshanna Boswell (USA)
- Chelsea Dion (USA)
- Helle Trevino (USA)*
*Will not compete.
[Related: 2023 Mr. Olympia Preview]
[Related: 2023 Olympia 212 Contest Preview]
How to Qualify
Earlier in the 2023 season, Helle Trevino announced that she would not be onstage in Orlando, opting to take the 2023 season off. Thus, 11 athletes will take the stage at the 2023 Olympia.
Past Olympia winners are qualified to compete within their division for life. The top three finishers of the 2022 Olympia are also permitted to compete in 2023. Beyond that, athletes had to win a pro show during the 2023 qualifying season, which concluded on Oct. 9, 2023, to earn their ticket to Orlando.
A special invite could also be offered to an unqualified competitor by either the IFBB Pro League or the Olympia promoters. As of Oct. 19, 2023, no invites have been awarded.
Past Champion
Shaw is the only Ms. Olympia winner in this show. She has dominated the Women’s Bodybuilding division since she won her first Rising Phoenix championship in 2020. She won the Rising Phoenix and Ms. Olympia titles in 2020, 2021, and 2022. She already has her fourth Rising Phoenix title thanks to her 2023 victory and seeks a four-peat in Orlando.
Top Contenders
Angela Yeo was the runner-up to Shaw in the 2022 Ms. Olympia and 2023 Rising Phoenix contests. Yeo has added size to her physique since the 2022 Olympia in Las Vegas, NV, but Shaw’s combination of size, shape, and definition has been too much for any competitor to overcome. Yeo is the number one contender for the 2023 Olympia, but Shaw remains the favorite to defend.
MayLa Ash has ranked as high as fourth on the Ms. Olympia stage and won the 2023 Lenda Murray Atlanta Pro. She faced Shaw at the 2023 Rising Phoenix; Ash placed fourth. Despite ranking 11th at the 2022 Olympia, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see her in a first callout in 2023.
Another star to watch is Michaela Aycock, who is best known among the most ripped competitors in any lineup she enters. Aycock won the 2023 Tampa Pro in August, followed with a third-place finish at the Rising Phoenix contest.
Dark Horses
Reshanna Boswell has already won an Olympia show this season at the 2023 Masters Olympia contest. She will make her fourth straight Olympia appearance in Orlando, hoping to finish better than her best result of ninth place in 2020.
Chelsea Dion, who ranked ninth overall in the 2022 Olympia, won the 2023 Europa Pro winner. It would not be a surprise to see the second-year pro in the top six.
Olympia Debuts
Five newcomers qualified for the 2023 Ms. Olympia contest: Sherry Priami, Natalia Kovaleva, Julia Whitesel, Alcione Barreto, and Kristina Mendoza. Kovaleva made a big statement by winning the 2023 New York Pro. Some in attendance shared that Kovaleva could be a serious threat to Shaw in the future, if not this year.
Mendoza won the 2023 Chicago Pro and finished eighth at the 2023 Rising Phoenix contest. Barreto has placed in the top three in her three pro show appearances since 2022, including winning the 2023 Mr. Big Evolution Pro.
Whitesel and Priami have won the Toronto Pro and Vancouver Island Showdown, respectively. First-time competitors who. have won the Ms. Olympia in the past. The most recent to do it was Shaw in 2020.
Audiences unable to travel to Orlando can still watch the Ms. Olympia and the other 10 divisions compete live via the pay-per-view, available for purchase on the Olympia Productions website.
Featured Image: @mzprettymuscle on Instagram
The post 2023 Ms. Olympia Preview appeared first on BarBend.
