Carson team wins big at fitness event

By Walt Johnson, Fort Carson MountaineerMay 28, 2010

Carson team wins big at fitness event
FORT CARSON, Colo.---Members of the team that represented Fort Carson at Saturday's Probody Solutions Southern Colorado and Armed Forces Natural Bodybuilding, Figure and Bikini Championships show off the hardware they won at the event. The winners ar... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

FORT CARSON, Colo.---For the first time in a long time, the Mountain Post sent a team to the Natural Physique Committee Probody Solutions Southern Colorado and Armed Forces Natural Bodybuilding, Figure and Bikini Championships.

The results showed that all the time and commitment were worth it as the Mountain Post team captured 10 awards at the event.

The five women and one man that represented Fort Carson faced off against some very stiff competition but proved to be the equal of the other athletes. Time-after-time, the post athletes were among the top five finishers in their competitive categories.

Before the competition began, Ann Claiborne, who trained the ladies, said she felt the team was ready to do some big things and it did, with each of them earning a trophy and some earning multiple trophies. After the show, Claiborne shared how proud she was of the six athletes.

"I am so happy that we all came out of the competition with (awards). And, I am so proud of the journey this team took. We overcame so many obstacles and I am so happy to have so many strong women in my life," Claiborne said.

One of those strong women, Kanina Garner, was competing in the event for the second consecutive year. Garner won trophies last year and again this year. She said there were many things that made this competition different from last year, but she was appreciative of what she was able to accomplish.

"The best part of this for me was getting to compete with the girls and having fun. I thought last year and this year that it is a great experience no matter if you win or lose. There were more competitors this year and a lot of competition. I feel very good about what I did this year, and I feel I did the best I could for what I had to overcome to get here this year," Garner said.

Erica Lenn was another athlete that represented the post, and this was the first time she competed life was overweight, had to overcome some self doubt but she said with the help of her husband and Claiborne, she was able to compete with confidence.

"I am so pleased and have not a single negative thought about the evening. This was much better than I thought it would be. I thought for a long time I was a square peg trying to fit into a round hole, and I didn't know if I would fit in with those girls on stage. I doubt myself sometimes, and Ann would push me and tell me how phenomenal I looked and that gave me the strength to keep going. Well, I placed third so I feel like I was able to look more than decent," Lenn said.

Pius Agyemang was the only male athlete from post but he made a huge showing. Agyemang won two first-place trophies and was very competitive in the overall voting. He said he is going to go back to the gym, work on some things and get himself prepared to do more in his next event in two weeks at the Mile High Event in Denver.

"This feels good because I feel like I improved so much from my last competition. I was able to get two first-place trophies in my first show and it really feels great. I feel good about what I accomplished. My next goal is to continue to win first place awards and then win the overall title. I think I still need to improve on some things to get the overall title. I need to work on my shoulders and triceps and my posing. I also think I need to get in a little better condition," Agyemang said.