December 2nd, 2009
Burgess fifth at national body building meet

Olivia Burgess of San Marcos, fifth place at the Fitness America Championships.

By MOE JOHNSON
San Marcos Runners Club

Olivia Burgess of San Marcos finished fifth in the Figure America short category recently at the 20th anniversary Fitness America Championships in Las Vegas.

Burgess actually finished tied for fourth place with Patty Wilson, but lost the tiebreaker. At that, though, the 37 points for Burgess placed her only two points behind the winner, Monika Rodgers.

The competitors, 15 in the division, came from the United States, Europe and Asia.

Burgess said Rodgers deserved first place, but the competition past that point was very close.

Burgess said she was pleased with her placement, considering she has competed for only about a year and some of her competitors have been at it for ten years.

“I’m going to take a few weeks off and let my body rest from the hard training routines and maybe do some running in between some of the weight days,” Burgess said.

Her next competition on a national level is the Junior USA Competition in 2010. Burgess said she will enter some regional meets to keep sharp and gain experience.

Bobby Warren, Burgess’s trainer and owner of the San Marcos Athletic Club, said, “Olivia is one of the more dedicated and hardest working competitors I have trained and I think she will do well in future national competitions.”

Meanwhile, Burgess will focus on her personal training business and continue to pursue her education at Texas State for a master’s degree in fitness management.