The New Champ - Vince Wawryk Wins the 2007 Canadian Bodybuilding Championships

Many people have told me that I have a good eye for picking future Canadian champions. I think it’s because I’m often able to predict winners long before they take the top spot at a national-level competition. However, when people say that to me, I tell them that you need not only good eyes to pick a champion, but good ears too. That’s because over the years, I’ve learned this: You can tell if a person has the genetic potential simply by looking at them, but it’s having the proper mind-set that usually carries them to the top. And the only way you can tell if they have the correct frame of mind to be a champion is by talking to them and listening to what they say.

Such was the case with Saskatchewan’s Vince Wawryk, a competitor whom I got to know in 2002 when he won his class in at the CBBF National World Qualifier. At the time, I was impressed with Vince’s thick, heavily muscled physique that was obviously the result of years of heavy, intense training. But I was more impressed with his attitude – he came across as a mild-mannered, well-spoken individual who was more apt to ask about your family than how big you think his biceps were. Vince would never be mistaken for some "muscle-head" who thinks he’s the next Arnold Schwarzenegger.

However, it doesn’t mean that Vince won’t ask you about his physique. In fact, in 2002, and in every year since, he’s asked me for feedback on what he needs to do to improve in order to do better at his next competition. So, as I’ve done for other competitors who have asked the same thing, I’ve told him what I thought in no uncertain terms. However, whereas some competitors get angry if you tell them that they’re anything less than great, Vince seems to take it all to heart, and even thanks you for your candor. What’s more, the next time you see him compete, he has usually improved – Vince also won national-level class titles in 2003 and 2004. I believe that being receptive to feedback from other people and this desire to constantly improve help create a true champ, rather than a chump. Furthermore, the overall attitude and demeanor Vince possesses is something I respect, as I suspect others do too, which is one of the reasons why I asked Vince to be a SeriousAboutFitness.com contributor about two years ago (Vince writes the "Wawryk’s Workouts" column that can be found in our "Archives" section).

As a result, Vince has always had all the goods to become a real champion, something I first recognized in 2002, and in 2007 it paid off in a big way. Vince won not only the Middleweight title at the recent CBBF Canadian Bodybuilding Championships, but the Overall title too. This win made him the 2007 Canadian Men’s Bodybuilding Champion – Canada’s top bodybuilding prize – and it qualified him to turn pro if he wants to. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to be at the competition, but from everything I’ve heard and seen, Vince won the Overall title with absolutely no controversy whatsoever, which isn’t always the way it is with bodybuilding shows. That was quite an achievement indeed. (A special thanks goes out to photographer David Ford who supplied the cover shot of Vince, as well as the photo used here.)

Vince and I talked shortly after he won – this time by phone. However, when we spoke there was no feedback coming from me on ways he could improve for next time. What are you going to say to a guy who just won the biggest bodybuilding title in Canada? Instead, I asked him some questions so our readers could learn a little more from our newest Canadian Men’s Bodybuilding Champion. Here is what Canada’s new champ had to say:

DS: How old are you and when did you first start competing?

VW: I am 38 years old and I did my first novice show back in 1991, which I won.

DS: You’ve won national-level titles three times before, and this is your fourth. However, you’ve never won the Overall title before now. How did you feel when they announced your name as the Canadian Overall Men’s Champion?

VW: I was in what I would say the best shape I have presented thus far at the national level. I felt very confident that I was the athlete in the best shape out of the eight class winners in the Overall line-up. However, did I have the size to compare with the heavier weight classes? This is always a concern of mine, since, in the past, the Overall title has usually gone to someone in the heavier classes. But, it was a dream come true when my number and name were mentioned. I was so happy that my wife and three of my four children were able to be present at the biggest show of my life.

DS: You definitely looked like you made improvements this year. What areas do you think you improved upon the most?

VW: This year I want to make some changes to my overall taper. So, with a change in leg and shoulder training and a tight diet strategy I achieved the package I set out to get last October.

DS: I know that you’re well aware of the people you are up against – many of them you’ve competed against before. Who do you feel was your biggest threat in your class and, as well, for the Overall title?

VW: I always find it very difficult to judge my own class. For me, I just get focused on being the best I can in my class so I can move forward to the Overall line-up. No disrespect to any of the other athletes in the Overall line up, but I would have to say that Lou Joseph was one who had me concerned if there was going to be a roadblock in my way. One thing I did know was my condition was definitely better than his was on Saturday night. But Lou is definitely a force to be reckoned with. In saying that, my hat goes off to big Ron Partlow and Mboya Edwards, both class winners and outstanding athletes.

DS: You’ve competed nationally a number of times, winning many titles but also losing some too. All in all, though, you’ve stuck with it. What advice can you give to those who perhaps went for the first time this year and didn’t do as well as they hoped to?

VW: Competing nationally can either make or break you. What athletes need to do is be truly honest with themselves. Win or lose, always compete against yourself and create realistic goals. Trust your instincts: they are more than likely right. Work hard on achieving a better self and do not worry about who else is going to show up. If you do this and keep improving, you will always meet your goals.  

DS: Great advice Vince, and congratulations on your win. You’re a champion in every sense of the word.

...Doug Schneider, Publisher
das@seriousaboutmuscle.com

Doug Schneider is the publisher and chief photographer for SeriousAboutMuscle.com, BodyBuildingLive.com, and SeriousAboutFitness.com.