Elena Shportun
Encyclopedia
Elena Shportun is an amateur female bodybuilder
who mainly competes in European bodybuilding competitions. She is known in the bodybuilding world for her artistic style of posing which involves modern
and belly dancing, classic lines and symmetry which are often compared with those from the female bodybuilders from the late 1970s
and early 1980s
such as Cory Everson
and Anja Langer
. Although Shportun has had the opportunity to compete at the pro level she has opted to remain competitive as an amateur level and recently won the 2009 Arnold Amateur International Bodybuilding Championship.
, and stopped after two years. Afterwards, her mother became her mentor and coached Shportun in swimming
and cross-country skiing
.
Later on at the age of 17 she continued her athletic lifestyle by doing karate. In 1995, at the age of nineteen, Shportun began weight training when she visited a bodybuilding studio for the first time. Four years later she competed at an amateur bodybulding competition for the first time; after her first experience competing in bodybuilding she decided that she needed to improve her performance on stage and began to take choreography and lessons in modern and belly dancing. This would later help her improve her posing routines on stage.
During the late 90s and early 2000s, Elena has had a very successful amateur career in her native Russia as well as Europe. She has won the All-Russian Championships (2002–03) and World Amateur Championships twice (2005 and 2007), and the European Championships (2005).
Recently 2009, proved to be a very good year for Shpoturn, having won the 2009 Arnold Amateur Classic Championships, Oslo Grand Prix, and the Loaded Cup. Despite having had the opportunity to turn pro after winning the 2007 World Amateur Championships, Shpoturn has opted to stay away from the pro events citing the fact that the professional female bodybuilders carry more muscle than what she wants to have and also does not want to discourage women from weight training.
Outside of the competitive stage Elena has a college degree from the Siberia-Aero Academy and worked as economist and lived for some time in Zheleznogorsk
, Siberia
until she moved to Germany after marrying her husband Klaus Willamer, a freelance photographer. During her free time she enjoys writing poems, painting, and works as a make-up artist and costume designer.
with a free barbells due to avoid developing a thicker waist and focuses on Hack Squats, Leg Presses, and Lunges for her legs. Elena believes that proper form is very important and often avoids extreme heavy weights. During the off-season she avoided any form of aerobic exercise to preserve her energy levels. When it came to contest season she would do at least one or two cardio sessions for four to five days due to her high metabolism.
Female bodybuilding
Female bodybuilding is the female component of competitive bodybuilding. It began in the late 1970s when women began to take part in bodybuilding competitions.-Beginnings:...
who mainly competes in European bodybuilding competitions. She is known in the bodybuilding world for her artistic style of posing which involves modern
Modern dance
Modern dance is a dance form developed in the early 20th century. Although the term Modern dance has also been applied to a category of 20th Century ballroom dances, Modern dance as a term usually refers to 20th century concert dance.-Intro:...
and belly dancing, classic lines and symmetry which are often compared with those from the female bodybuilders from the late 1970s
1970s
File:1970s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: US President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office after the Watergate scandal in 1974; Refugees aboard a US naval boat after the Fall of Saigon, leading to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975; The 1973 oil...
and early 1980s
1980s
File:1980s decade montage.png|thumb|400px|From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, Columbia, lifted off in 1981; American President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev eased tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the end of the Cold War; The Fall of the Berlin Wall in...
such as Cory Everson
Cory Everson
Corinna Kneuer , best known by her stage name Cory Everson, is an American female bodybuilding champion and actress. She won the Ms. Olympia contest six years in a row from 1984 to 1989.-Education:...
and Anja Langer
Anja Langer
Anja Langer is a former professional female bodybuilder of the late 1980s. Her career peaked in 1988 when she placed second at the 1988 Ms. Olympia.- Biography :...
. Although Shportun has had the opportunity to compete at the pro level she has opted to remain competitive as an amateur level and recently won the 2009 Arnold Amateur International Bodybuilding Championship.
Biography
Shportun was born in a city near Krasnoyarsk, Russia. At an early age she began to play a different types of sports. When she was seven, she started doing Artistic GymnasticsArtistic gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines on different apparatus, with less time for vaulting . The sport is governed by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique , which designs the Code of Points and regulates all aspects of international elite...
, and stopped after two years. Afterwards, her mother became her mentor and coached Shportun in swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
and cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
.
Later on at the age of 17 she continued her athletic lifestyle by doing karate. In 1995, at the age of nineteen, Shportun began weight training when she visited a bodybuilding studio for the first time. Four years later she competed at an amateur bodybulding competition for the first time; after her first experience competing in bodybuilding she decided that she needed to improve her performance on stage and began to take choreography and lessons in modern and belly dancing. This would later help her improve her posing routines on stage.
During the late 90s and early 2000s, Elena has had a very successful amateur career in her native Russia as well as Europe. She has won the All-Russian Championships (2002–03) and World Amateur Championships twice (2005 and 2007), and the European Championships (2005).
Recently 2009, proved to be a very good year for Shpoturn, having won the 2009 Arnold Amateur Classic Championships, Oslo Grand Prix, and the Loaded Cup. Despite having had the opportunity to turn pro after winning the 2007 World Amateur Championships, Shpoturn has opted to stay away from the pro events citing the fact that the professional female bodybuilders carry more muscle than what she wants to have and also does not want to discourage women from weight training.
Outside of the competitive stage Elena has a college degree from the Siberia-Aero Academy and worked as economist and lived for some time in Zheleznogorsk
Zheleznogorsk
Zheleznogorsk is the name of several urban localities in Russia:*Zheleznogorsk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, a town in Krasnoyarsk Krai*Zheleznogorsk, Kursk Oblast, a town in Kursk Oblast-See also:*Zheleznogorsk...
, Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
until she moved to Germany after marrying her husband Klaus Willamer, a freelance photographer. During her free time she enjoys writing poems, painting, and works as a make-up artist and costume designer.
Vital stats
- Current residence: Germany
- Occupation: bodybuilding competitor, personal trainer, fitness model.
- Marital Status: Married to Klaus Willamer
- Height: 5 ft 5 in
- Weight (in season): 136–140 lb; (off-season): 150–160 lb
- Eye color: green
- Hair color: red
Bodybuilding philosophy
Shportun's training mainly consisted of a combination compound, and isolation exercises (mostly done with free weights and a small amount of machines and cables). She trains with traditional philosophy focusing on the major muscle groups of her body and avoiding heavy weight training for her traps and forearms. She rarely does heavy Regular SquatsSquat (exercise)
In strength training, the squat is a compound, full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks, quads , hamstrings, as well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body...
with a free barbells due to avoid developing a thicker waist and focuses on Hack Squats, Leg Presses, and Lunges for her legs. Elena believes that proper form is very important and often avoids extreme heavy weights. During the off-season she avoided any form of aerobic exercise to preserve her energy levels. When it came to contest season she would do at least one or two cardio sessions for four to five days due to her high metabolism.
Contest history
- 1997 FBFR Regional Fitness Championship of Krasnoyarsk
- 1999 FBFR Regional Bodybuilding and Fitness Championship of Krasnoyarsk 1st
- 1999 FBFR Siberian Bodybuilding Championship; 3rd
- 2000 FBFR Regional Bodybuilding Championship of Krasnoyarsk; 1st
- 2001 FBFR Regional Bodybuilding Championship of Krasnoyarsk; 1st
- 2001 FBFR International Russian Championship; 2nd (MW)
- 2001 FBFR Siberian Bodybuilding Championship; 3rd
- 2002 FBFR Regional Bodybuilding Championship of Krasnoyarsk; 1st (MW and Overall)
- 2002 FBFR Russian Bodybuilding Cup; 1 (MW)
- 2002 FBFR International Russian Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2003 FBFR Russian Bodybuilding Cup; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2003 IFBBInternational Federation of BodyBuildersThe International Federation of BodyBuilders is a competitive bodybuilding organization founded in 1946 by brothers Ben and Joe Weider and is the highest level of competitive bodybuilding in the world. Currently, the IFBB consists of seven different sub-divisions for different competitors ,...
European Women's Bodybuilding Championships; 6th (HW) - 2004 FBFR Russia Siberian Championship; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2004 FBFR Russian Bodybuilding Cup; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2004 FBFR International Russian Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2005 FBFR International Russian Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2005 IFBB European Women's Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2005 IFBB Spain Women's World Bodybuilding Championships; 2nd (HW)
- 2006 FBFR International Russian Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2006 IFBB Women's World Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW)
- 2007 IFBB Women's World Bodybuilding Championships; 1st (HW and Overall)
- 2009 IFBB Arnold Amateur International Bodybuilding Championship; 1st (MW and Overall)
- 2009 IFBB Oslo Grand Bodybuilding Prix; 1st (also won best poser)
- 2009 IFBB Loaded Bodybuilding Cup; 1st
- 2010 IFBB Ms. InternationalMs. InternationalMs. International is a contest of professional female bodybuilding, organized by the International Federation of BodyBuilders . "The Ms. International" is generally considered to be the second-most prestigious competition for female bodybuilders . It was first held in 1986, and has been held...
- 9th - 2011 IFBB Arnold Classic Europe Bodybuilding Championships ; 1st