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It's kind of hard to point out which female bodybuilder should be the ideal one as every one of them are great. But to point out for real, then for me it's either Lenda Murray or Andrea Shaw.
Everybody has their favorite but since you asked for the gold standard, the absolute best, there is no question that Lenda Murray was the GOAT.
These where the top tier genes, combined with her training and specific time era in women's BB. A close second is Shanique Grant, she might have been even greater but we will never know.
I don't think any other woman comes close to these two in structure and God given genes for BBing.
I wonder how many people would reply to "who is the best runner in the world" and not point to some multi Olympian medalist. Ms Olympia IS the Female BB, athletes who have not won at least one such or similar title cannot even be considered.
I kind of get your point, but MS. O is determined by the OPINIONS of the judges which can be very subjective. Runners, however, are judged by the STOPWATCH, which has no bias nor subjectivity.
I kind of get your point, but MS. O is determined by the OPINIONS of the judges which can be very subjective. Runners, however, are judged by the STOPWATCH, which has no bias nor subjectivity.
I get your point too, but FBB is judged since the 80s, there where many controversial callings but only between the top 3. The absolute FBB hasn't slipped by the judges and fans in all those decades.
Easy. Denise Hoshor in her prime. Beautiful face, massive muscles. The perfect combination.
Yeah, Anja is a good answer. She'd be like the female equivalent of Frank Zane (often regarded as one of the greatest male bodybuilders)... and I mean that in terms of her beautiful aesthetics and posing.
Lenda Murray is probably the "obvious" answer for most, if you're going by her legacy and number of Ms. O titles. Iris Kyle would be there too except that she came after Lenda, and also her turbulence amongst fans and fellow bodybuilders.
If I had to go with my own personal favorites of classic bodybuilders (it's impossible to pick just one!) then I'd say Michelle Ralabate, Laura Creavalle, or Denise Hoshor.
Modern day choices I'd say Andrea Shaw or Angela Yeo. I'd put in Michaela Aycock too but her lack of calves really frustrates me, lol.
IFBB competitions, while being an important factor, are not the end all be all in deciding the quality of any one FBB's career. Competitions have always been influenced by marketing/money and importantly have shifted the goal posts over the years.
The most famous example of how fickle these competitions can be is with Bev Francis. Bev who competed at the Ms Olympia from 1986-1991 (aswell as guest posing at the 1985 Ms Olympia and making her pro debut at the 1983 Caesar Cup) was easily the most muscular female body builder in the world for much of her career and was often told she was too muscular and or unfeminine by judges. And yet in 1990 she was told she was not muscular ennough to beat Lenda Murray. Finally in 1991 she weighed in at an unprecedented 73kg and was the favourite to win after the first day of the competition closed, going as far as infamously stating that to win the second day of the competition she "only had to avoid falling over to take the title". Francis would end up just one point behind Lenda Murray in the final scoring and would retire from competing all together.
An adenddum: The first 2 Ms Olympias were Rachel Mclish and Ritva "Kike" Elomaa in 1981+1983 and 1982 respectively. Rachel, standing at 1.69m and 59kg and Kike at the same height as Bev yet exactly 20kg lighter. In contrast the winner of the 2020 Fitness Ms Olympia Missy Truscott is an inch shorter that Kike and the same weight as Rachel.
Who is a female bodybuilder(s) that you consider to be the gold standard? Somebody you look at and think "that's what female bodybuilding's all about!" For me it's Andrea Shaw, Rach White, and Cory Everson.
And since everyone's standard is different, what would you consider yours to be?