FOUR British athletes flew the flag for their country at the Emerald Cup in Washington State – with two coming close to qualifying for the Masters Olympia.
IFBB Pros – and husband and wife – Carly Thornton Davies (centre, below) and Llewy Davies finished second in Wellness and fourth in Classic Physique respectively.
Matt Adams, a client of the pair, took third place in the Over 50s Classic. Sue Leadbetter, a client of Thornton Davies, won her category, the Over 50s Figure.
Thornton Davies and Llewy are soon to head to Miami in their second attempt this season to qualify for the Masters Olympia.
Davies was beaten by competitors who also won bodybuilding classes at the Emerald Cup. It raises the question of what the judges were actually looking for. If it was a true Classic look, then how can a frame that also wins a bodybuilding class be preferred?
But Davies said: "We [Nathan and me] are both beyond proud and happy with our showing and would change nothing at all.
"To us and many in attendance we brought Classic to a T. The plan is very simple moving forward; we go again in exceptional spirit and typical world-class energy. The goal remains the same, the path is just slightly different.
"The beautiful thing about life is that God gives you multiple chances in everything that you pursue.
"This is living life and in my soul I am happy as a man could be.
"The highlight of these last five days was seeing my wife step into her own fully. What we witnessed on show day was the birth of her in Pro Wellness. I know exactly what she will now go on and do with this realisation."
Davies also spoke highly of his coach Nathan Smart, who made the trip across the pond with them.
"This isn’t an appreciation post, it’s a realisation post," he said. "Nathan has shown me something in bodybuilding that I didn’t think existed and it’s called congruent passion. He has been physically and spiritually invested from day one. And held me accountable behind closed doors to the highest standards.
"There has been "f*** you" moments based on my character and he hasn’t budged. I’ve challenged him through being an assertive character (not negatively) and he has stuck by his guns every single day.
"Nathan, you are an incredible man, a genuine soul and you are my coach. This weekend we brought the best version of me to America and I am very grateful. I don’t take it for granted. Now we go back to work and finish what we started. Don’t ever change because you are a hidden gem that this industry needs."
Smart added: "Couldn’t be prouder of the look we brought; tight waist, peeled flaring quads, full and hard with clean classic lines.
"Judging didn’t fall our way this time, with the top three all winning bodybuilding classes too. Mass was clearly the order of the day. We brought shape, structure and condition and stood out in our own right.
"We didn’t come here for fourth and we both know that but this is only the start of our project. Llewy put on an insane amount of stage weight in just 12 months. A massive leap forward as a professional bodybuilder and it shows.
"We’ve still got 2.5kg to grow into our weight cap and once the season wraps that becomes the mission. But we’re not done yet."
The couple will compete again in Miami on May 24. They will be joined by Adams, who also has eyes on winning his IFBB Pro Card at the European Masters in November.
Davies said of Adams: "For me personally, he was a clear winner from top to bottom. However, this show was about proof; proof of character and spirit and we got much more than we bargained for.
"Matt has became unrecognisable over the last 14 months. And aged 53 I feel he has revisited the version of himself that used to pop up in his 20’s.
"A dedicated soul, coach and father, this to me was very special and a moment that I will remember."
On her victory, Leadbetter said: "A full line up of incredible figure athletes. I was honoured to be on that stage with them all. Loved every second of this. The show not only surpassed any expectation I had but they laid on a show I will not only remember but will treasure attending for ever."
Leave a Reply