| People July 1, 2006
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Marnie Holley (left)
with trainer Mindi O'Brien at the 2006 OPA Ontario Provincial Championships.
(Photo June 2006 by D. Dave Paul) |
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Meet Marnie Holley – Canada's
Fast-Rising Fitness Star
It was at the 2003 Ontario National Qualifier that I
watched an attractive, well-muscled female athlete compete successfully in both
bodybuilding and fitness – she was Marnie Holley from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and
she was 26 years old at the time.
I think Marnie could have been a decent bodybuilder if she
had continued with it, but I could tell from what I saw at that show that she had a real
talent for fitness. Her routine featured outstanding strength moves, good gymnastic
skills, and innovative choreography, and she already possessed a well-muscled physique:
first-rate potential for a future fitness star.
In fact, Marnie made my heart skip a beat when she turned
up the at the 2004 CBBF National World Qualifier (a drug-tested event that qualifies
Canadians for the IFBB World Championships) in London, Ontario. That year she dedicated
herself to fitness, and my heart skipped not just because of her good looks, but also
because I had been training the country’s top fitness competitor at the time,
Quebec’s Chantal Dicaire, who was also competing at this event. Marnie was a threat
– a serious one.
I could see that in terms of both physique and routine
skills, this relative unknown from Northern Ontario had the potential to go straight to
the top, possibly knocking Dicaire off the throne in London. On this day, however, Marnie
wouldn’t quite make it – she ended up placing second to the superbly polished
Dicaire – mostly because she didn’t have quite the right look to her physique,
her posing was off, and her routine that year was a little inconsistent. However, I knew
that had Marnie received the right kind of coaching, she could have won that show quite
easily. In 2004, though, she was only 80 percent there.
Marnie competed at the CBBF National World Qualifier again
in 2005. Unfortunately for Marnie, she hadn’t really improved; instead of second, she
placed third for pretty much the same reasons as in 2003. Chantal Dicaire once again took
the top spot.
However, it was at this event that I took Marnie aside and
asked her if she wanted some advice. She did – and what I told her she took to heart.
I explained how I thought that she needed to improve, and then I introduced her to fitness
star Mindi O’Brien, who is now her trainer. Since then, Marnie’s done nothing
but improve.
At the 2006 OPA Ontario Provincial Championships, Marnie
floored me with her polished new look, and her non-stop routine that bowled over the
crowd. Finally, Marnie’s now a real national-level threat, and she has what it takes
to topple anyone. Whereas in previous years Marnie was only 80 percent there, this year
she appears to be 110 percent!
I had a chance to sit down and talk to Marnie following her
win at the Ontario Championships, to learn even more about her for our readers, and to
find out what her goals are for competing this year.
Marnie attended Principia College in the United States, and
then teachers’ college at the University of Western Ontario. Now she is a Grade 1
French immersion teacher. She still lives in Sault Ste. Marie and is currently working on
her master’s degree in French literature through Purdue University.
As for her sports background, she’s been competing in
fitness for just three years but she’s quite accomplished in other areas. Marnie was
a former provincial-level gymnast and diver, and she competed in the 2000 Olympic trials
in pole-vaulting, in which she placed fourth. Now, though, she’s focused exclusively
on fitness – and O’Brien’s advice has helped her immensely.
Marnie’s sums up Mindi in one word: amazing. In
fact, the two are inseparable at contests, and some even feel that the two striking blonds
are beginning to look similar (Marnie actually wore one of Mindi’s two-piece suits
for the Ontario Provincial Championships, and will likely use it again at the Canadian
Fitness Championships.) O’Brien’s influence is apparent in other areas too,
particularly in Marnie’s physique.
As soon as Mindi met Marnie, she told her she’d have
to lose the "bodybuilding look" and develop a more streamlined, aesthetic
appearance. She’s also helped Marnie attain better competition conditioning, and she
has improved Marnie’s onstage presentation so that it’s now light-years ahead of
what it was previously. As a matter of fact, Marnie’s transformation is so dramatic
that it’s even astounded me – and Mindi will attest to the fact that I’m
one of the strongest critics around.
This new-and-improved Marnie Holley will compete July 1 at
the 2006 CBBF Canadian Fitness Championships and, win or lose, she will also be competing
on August 5 at the CBBF National World Qualifier. The Canadian Fitness Championships can
get her an IFBB Pro Card, but she wants to go to the World Championships in Spain, too,
and the Qualifier is the contest that gets you there.
I see many competitors who have strong potential, but most
don’t ever fulfill it. Marnie Holley, however, has. From being just another promising
competitor three years ago to one who might take home a national title today, Marnie has
come a long way in a fairly short time. Now let’s see if she goes all the way!
...Doug Schneider
das@seriousaboutfitness.com |
