2023 NPC Emerald Cup Bikini & Wellness Championships (Bellevue, WA - April 29, 2023) Always the highlight of the Northwest NPC competition year, the Emerald Cup again did NOT disappoint. Day 2 on the Women's side featured Bikini and Wellness. Starting with Bikini, it's really a misnomer to underestimate 'True Novice' competitors, it just means they've never competed in the past...their weight training journey is really what counts. Overall Champion Alexis Constantine definitely exemplified that...serious muscle size, shape, proportionality which will serve her VERY well at the National level and beyond! This reporter was not surprised at all, having seen who moves on in this sport, a split decision for that Class 'D' title with Lacy Rutland placing a close second! And the other Open class winners were similarly headed in that direction. Of note was 'B' Class winner Bree Burton who's looked her best ever, centered with Alexis in that Overall round...Jenna Conroy from 'A' Class is a veteran in this sport and 'C' Class winner Jennifer Kintigh has the size and shape to do very well! In the same vein as Alexis, Class 'F' Open winner Rebecca Byrne ALSO went that route, taking the other True Novice Class and going right into Open. Moving on to Wellness, a VERY improved Lainey Blackwood had everybody buzzing, nice tie-ins from the back/legs...look out for her in the future as she adds more size. Her 'B' Class runner-up was National level competitor Jamie McKenzie so very good competition. 'A' Class was won by Leilani Lopes, she went on to win the Overall the following day in the first Emerald Cup Natural show. Of note in this division was very photogenic Yohannah Malabad, she had won the NPC Vancouver (USA} Overall Wellness title a few weeks earlier. We had missed covering it so making up for lost time. We'll hear much more from her in the future. A huge thanks to Promoters Ribic & Craig Productions, volunteers and the dedicated competitors who keep this sport growing. The Pacific Northwest is a special place when it comes to the NPC community with everybody pitching in to make each others' shows as successful as possible. It's a continued privilege to be able to cover and publicize these shows for decades now. We'll have more on the show here in general as time permits. You can also find more content on Instagram @david_twixpix. Thanks for NOT cropping watermarks if reposting photos on social media. Official results and further information can be found at Craig/Ribic Production events.. (Please notify me of any placing or name spelling errors, thanks.) (click for full size) Trophy Time Return to Contest Roundup