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UTPA Theatre’s last season Fall 2014 productions

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After the Broncs’ tie against Texas A&M International Sept. 2 they are now the fourth National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I women’s soccer team out of 22 in the history of Texas to be undefeated through five matches. They join Baylor who started 5-0-0 in 1996, Incarnate Word, 5-0-0 in 2013, and Abilene Christian, 3-0-1 in 2013. The team moved to 3-0-2 and jumped the 1965-66 men’s tennis team for the best start in school history through five games.

The team began the season Aug. 22 with a 2-0 victory over Southern University in Baton Rouge, La. They became the first

team in program history to start the season undefeated since the men’s tennis team in 1965-66.

The first goal of the season came

Broncs continued to apply pressure to the Jaguars with nine shots in the second half and eventually scored again in minute 74. Fresh-

It is an exciting time for the Valley and the University to have a Division I women’s soccer team in what is a soccer area.

-Glad Bugariu Head women’s soccer coach from freshman Audreya Barrera.

After a scoreless first half of action against Southern she found the back of the net on her first shot on target at the 52-minute mark. The

man Zinnia Hannig broke loose from defenders and was able to draw out the goalkeeper. Hannig then crossed to fellow freshman Aimie Inthou-

lay, who scored the second goal.

However, despite their victories thus far, Barrera believes that some work still needs to be done for this team to be successful.

“I think we still need to help each other,” the El Paso native said. “We need to place ourselves in the right area and give each other opportunities and not put ourselves in bad spots.”

In that first game of the season freshman goalkeeper Aubrie Coley of Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. made six saves and the Broncs as a team had five corner kicks and four fewer fouls.

Head Coach Glad Bugariu is pleased with his team’s perfor-

mance this early in the season.

“It is an exciting time for the Valley and the University to have a Division I women’s soccer team in what is a soccer area,” he said.

“We are very happy to come here and being able to win.”

The team’s first victory was followed by a trip from Louisiana to Jackson, Miss. where they faced NCAA Tournament participant Jackson State, drawing 1-1.

All action in the matchup was in the first half as sophomore Sheridan Becanic, a transfer student from Eastern Washington University, beat the goalkeeper in the 23rd minute to give the Broncs an early 1-0 lead.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

2

opinion

September 4, 2014

#UTPA #UTPA Tweet at and follow us @ThePanAmerican Waiting for the day @UTPA bookstore puts everything on sale #byebyebucky #vintage #UTRGV -@TheDamaso

Melinda Garza News Editor

This is an age where the

I am thankful for the free majority of conversations are food @UTPA steered by what was watched on television the previous evening

-@charlie__ivan or what the big film was at the

box office that weekend. I love going to the movies as much as the next person, but at what point will Hollywood finally understand that not all books can be great films?

-@Meaganneee It seems like movie studios are increasingly searching for popular young adult novels to Letters to turn into the next big film. Exthe Editor amples include Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars and, in theThe Pan American accepts letters of 300 aters later this month, The Maze words or less from Runner. To some, having their students, staff and faculty favorite book series brought regarding recent newspaper to life in film can be great, but content, campus concerns aren’t the pictures the reader creor current events. We cannot publish anonymous ates in their head better? letters or submissions Books have the power to containing hate speech or gratuitous personal attacks.

Please send all letters to:

finding parking at utpa is just as impossible as it snowing in the valley

send your imagination to places like Hogwarts, the Shire, the Capitol and Narnia and films have the ability to visually place someone in a distant land.

Whether they do it correctly is the question. A poorly executed adaptation will change the plot, in addition to the mental image the reader has created for the character and forever change the way the book is read. This is true with classic novel turned film The Great Gatsby and, more recently, The Giver.

Since its publication in 1925, The Great Gatsby has had six adaptations on the big screen, but in spite of the novel’s success, the films all failed to accurately follow the book, according to The Daily Beast. The novel version of The Giver revolves around 12-year-old Jonas trying

to figure out his new position as the Receiver of Memories.

This character was replaced by a 25-year-old actor and a romantic plot that did not exist in the book. The movie industry loves an established fan base and au-

poor adaptation.

Understandably, it’s difficult to use every single original detail from a 200-page book, but when the storyline is altered, it creates a great injustice to the novel.

So do film adaptations ruin the

Understandably, it’s difficult to use every single original detail from a 200-page book, but when the storyline is altered, it creates a great injustice to the novel. dience, but instead of trying to please them by sticking to an already successful text, the idea of making the next top grossing film clouds judgment which results in inadequate casting and a

books? Not so much ruin, as affect the way the book is seen by a reader. The character Harry Potter will always look like Daniel Radcliffe and District 12 can now be pictured as it was shown

in the film.

The majority of people probably know what it’s like to see a film based on a favorite book and feel like the novel wasn’t treated as it should have been. And while it’s true that not all films ruin their book counterparts - the Harry Potter series and The Lord Of The Rings are some of the best book-to-film adaptations to date - the movie industry needs to stop using books as a creativity source and start creating its own source material.

Transforming written words into the cinematic universe needs to be executed properly.

While it’s understood that a movie is an interpretation of a novel and that the two cannot be identical, the film industry can at least attempt to be faithful for the sake of the readers.

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Editors-in-Chief:

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Marco Torres

Arts & Life Editor: May Ortega

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Verónica Rodríguez The Pan American is the official student newspaper of The University of Texas-Pan American. Views presented are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the paper or university.

Itzel Lopez/ The Pan American

September 2014 January 31, 4, 2013

By Melinda Garza The Pan American Upon the announcement of the 10 student-selected finalists for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley mascot Aug. 20, members of the UTPA and University of Texas at Brownsville communities are not holding back when it comes to sharing their thoughts on the choices. Alex Del Barrio, a Mission native and UTPA alumnus started a campaign in August to save Bucky the Bronc and more than 2,600 people have signed the online petition as of the end of August.

UTRGV is set to open in fall 2015 and with the new institution comes a new identity, which includes a different mascot and set of colors. A committee of 30 students from UTPA and UTB released a list of 10 recommended mascots for the new institution and neither the UTPA Bronc nor UTB’s Ocelot were on the list.

“I just felt because of the history of the name, the fact that it dates back to the ‘30s, the fact that it has a national championship in basketball tied to it, the fact that we’ve had major league players in the NBA tied to the fact that they went to Pan American there’s so much history there,” said Del Barrio, who graduated from UTPA in 2008.

“I just don’t think a name change just for the sake of name change was appropriate and when I learned of the top 10 that the combined SGAs had announced, I didn’t think they were imaginative and I didn’t think that they did their due diligence.”

The proposed choices released by the Student Government Association student leaders includ-

By Andrew Vera The Pan American As UTPA doctoral student Abdelhamid Riani reminisced about his native country of Tunisia, he talked about how the Rio Grande Valley is similar to his home. While comparing his family-oriented culture to that of the Valley’s, he also noted the lack of environmental awareness in both places.

He said his passion for entrepreneurship combined with passion for environmental awareness helped him create a website that can help RGV residents gain knowledge about recycling while using a rewards system.

Riani launched Recy-

ed the Aztecs, barracudas, bears, sharks, bullsnakes, tortoises, phoenix, red wolves, foxes and mockingbirds. The list was created Aug. 18 at a meeting by the UTRGV Athletics Branding, Mascot and Color Selection Student Committee using the student recommendations. Students on the committee from both universities had the opportunity to share their ideas for branding the new university.

The options proposed by the student-led committee were gleaned from a survey administered by the SGA; students at both universities had the opportunity to vote for their preferred choice of mascot and color scheme.

UTRGV President Guy Bailey is scheduled to appoint a steering committee that will include faculty, staff, alumni and students from both universities to make a final recommendation.

UTPA SGA President Alberto Adame and UTB SGA President Erendira Santillana co-chaired the student-led committee, which consisted of 15 students from each school. Also discussed at the meeting was an assortment of color palettes for potential UTRGV colors. A total of 12 color combinations are up for deliberation.

According to The Brownsville Herald, the concept of blue or green as the school colors is not ideal because UTRGV will be a new university. Orange, however, will remain a color to show the new institution is a part of the

University of Texas System.

A resolution urging the UT System to keep the Bronc as the mascot for UTRGV was proposed by City Manager Ramiro Garza Jr. in an Edinburg City Council meeting Sept. 2. The approved resolution will be given to Bailey and the committee in addition to the UT System so they can consider u s i n g

community feedback when selecting the mascot.

While the University has had the Bronc as the mascot since it opened in 1927, UTB is no stranger to going through a mascot change. In April 2012, after ending a 20-year partnership with Texas Southmost College, UTB’s mascot search committee narrowed it down to five finalists. Their choices were the

Chancellor for External Relations Randa Safady, the mascot and color change discussion for UTRGV first began in a public forum July 17 at the UTPA Student Union Theater. The discussion was led by national experts on university brand and mascot development including Chuck Reed, vice president of creative services for STAMATS, and founder and owner of Rickabaugh Graphics

Eric Rickabaugh.

Safady opened the discussion by stating that there had never been a meeting about mascots prior to that forum and that student involvement in everything that happens with UTRGV is not only welcome, but essential.

“This is your university as students and it will be your university as alumni,” Safady said in the forum. “We want you to be proud of everything whether it’s the colors, the mascot, the logos or the word mark. Anything that’s going to be on your degree, we want you to be able to look up at your wall with pride and honor and know that you were part of the ground floor in knowing that you participated in everything that happens with this new university.”

Jessica Orta, a senior studio art major, thinks that when deliberating about a new school mascot, people should consider something that encompasses school spirit, adding that by choosing a strong mascot students will be unified as a whole through athletics.

“The mascot should represent the South Texas region in an ideal way,” Orta said. “We have to consider that the Rio Grande Valley offers a mix of culture that you can rarely find in any area. Being so close to the border, this area is enriched with Mexican culture (and) that should be considered when choosing a mascot.”

The Bronc statue in front of the Visitors Center is one of the reasons Del Barrio wants to keep the current mascot. The statue was created in November 2002 by renowned Santa Fe sculptor Veryl Goodnight. The 2,000-pound “Bronze Bronc” was placed there to welcome visitors to the University. In 2009, the Bronc statue was named one of 10 famous western

clerSpotter.com in August and has received more than 10,000 site visits in the last two weeks.

Website visitors earn points by registering, sharing the page on social media and inviting friends to join in. Most points, however, are earned by performing “eco-friendly actions” such as recycling. Valley residents can turn in receipts for points at locations that accept recyclable materials for cash in exchange for points.

Once participants have earned enough points they can purchase coupons to businesses near campus such as Yumi Sushi and La Jaiba Taco Grill.

Riani believes that using the rewards system can help

spread environmental awareness throughout the RGV. “We need to increase awareness here in the Valley,” said the finance major, who moved to UTPA from Tunisia in 2008.

“The Valley residents, most of them, don’t really know that they can actually benefit from (recycling), not only the environmental (benefits), but (they) can get money out of it.”

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency website, Americans throw away 28 billion bottles and jars every year and put nearly 36 billion aluminum cans in landfills last year.

Unlike McAllen, most area cities, including Edinburg, can per-

petuate this product waste by not offering curbside recycling. One of Riani’s goals for the website is to make Valley residents aware of their recycling options when curbside is not an offered.

Visiting local recycling facilities that collect recyclable items for cash is an alternative that Riani suggests on his website. One of the five facilities available to website participants is Tesoro Metals, located in south McAllen. Residents earn points needed to obtain coupons through the website by taking advantage of these facilities located across the Valley.

“The way we are trying to achieve this goal is by rewarding those who take (eco-friend-

ly) actions,” said Riani, who earned his bachelor’s degree in finance in 2012. “(You can receive points) by sharing the recycling (facilities) that you find on the website so that others can see that they exist. Many people don’t know that they exist.

They don’t really know that if they take their papers that they always throw away, that they can get cash from that company.”

Riani plans to hold a contest on the website in October that will further reward participants who recycle the largest amount of items. The winner of this month-long contest will receive a cash prize and possibly gift cards to local businesses.

Although the project is in

ocelot, jaguarundi, bull shark, parrots, and the vaquero. Almost 4,000 students and faculty members voted and the ocelot became their new mascot, replacing the Scorpions. Texas Southmost College, originally a junior college in Brownsville dating to 1926, was the Scorpions for decades.

According to UT System V i c e

The mascot should represent the South Texas region in an ideal way...

Being so close to the border, this area is enriched with Mexican culture (and) that should be considered when choosing a mascot.

- Jessica Orta

Senior, studio art major

3

horse sculptures by Cowboys and Indians magazine. “(It’s) a beautiful statue. I think it’s majestic and I think it’s strong,” said Del Barrio, who is now a sportscaster for SportsRadio 610 in Houston. “There are people who have come to me that never graduated UTPA, they’re either residents of Edinburg or residents of the Valley, that are coming to me and saying they want to see the Bronc stay…There’s just so many different things that a mascot does because it’s a rallying symbol for your university and the only people who will get a chance to decide this rallying symbol is the current one student body.”

According to The Collegian, UTB’s student newspaper, Adame and Santillana narrowed down some of the mascots after evaluating some of the ones proposed by students from both universities through a survey by the UT System Aug. 11. The Collegian also stated that Aztecs was the most favored option.

UTPA and UTB’s SGAs conducted an identical survey for both universities on the first week of the fall semester where students had the chance to vote for their preferred choice of color and mascot. The results have not been posted, but for Orta, if the Bronc is no longer an option, she said she would go with the phoenix because of what it can symbolize for the Valley.

“In a way, the phoenix can represent the rebirth of the University and the founding of a new vibrant beginning for the Rio Grande Valley,” Orta said. “As the RGV progresses, the phoenix can symbolize the beauty that has been developed overtime in the Valley and enhance its overall qualities. In a way, I believe this change of mascot can be seen as a step forward and the phoenix would make a great mascot for UTRGV.”

the beginning stages, Riani feels confident RecyclerSpotter.com will help educate locals on environmental awareness and recycling options. By joining forces with UTPA’s Environmental Awareness Club and the Office for Sustainability, Riani hopes his hard work will pay off.

“I’m really enjoying (making the website), even though it’s taking a lot of time I am having a lot of fun with it,” he said. “I really look forward to the future because I think there are going to be a lot of things coming up that are really going to make a difference in the Valley.”

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arts & life

September 4, 2014

Curtain call

edy by UTPA Professor Eric Wiley follows the owner of a Winter Texan RV park who is desperately trying to sell it. His biggest obstacle in getting rid of the park is the fact that visitors keep disappearing, turning off potential buyers.

“Part of the fun in watching the play is the performance of the students as they’ll all be acting as Winter Texans,” said Wiley, who received his doctorate in theatre from Louisiana State University in 1999. “They’ll be dressed in old-people makeup

University Theatre previews new fall season, final year

By Jose S. De Leon III The Pan American The University Theatre Productions is getting ready for its fall season that begins next month. Theater Director Thomas Grabowski discussed how the start of the 2014 fall semester marks the beginning of the end for the University’s Theatre Program. This is due to the upcoming merger with the University of Texas at Brownsville that will open UTRGV next fall.

“When we started picking performances for this school year, we didn’t even realize that it actually was our last year,” said the University of Illinois alumnus who has been at UTPA for 33 years. “We’re assuming that we’re going to continue doing the same thing we’ve been doing and prepare for our spring season. We haven’t heard anything saying otherwise.”

THE PRODUCTIONS The season starts off with Richard III, a historical play by William Shakespeare that depicts the rise of King Richard III of England and his two-year reign from 1483 to 1485. In the play, the king is portrayed as a villainous hero who schemes his way to the top. It is set to run Oct. 8–12 at the Albert L. Jeffers Theatre in the Arts and Humanities Building.

Zebastian Duchene, a junior who has the role of Richard III’s co-conspirator, the Duke of Buckingham, noted the changes the adaptation makes from Shakespeare’s drama. According to the finance major, changes include the condensing of several storylines to focus exclusively on Richard III as well as a completely different setting.

“The production is set in an post-apocalyptic world where society is trying to rebuild itself after a nuclear fallout,” the McAllen native said. “Even though it’s

a different place, the play manages to recreate the political climate of the story that personifies several human faults.”

UTPA Professor Brian Warren, the play’s writer and director, managed to slash as much as half of the original four-hour run-time while keeping Shakespeare’s original dialogue. This was to make Richard III accessible for students while ensuring the adaptation will satisfy Shakespeare purists. He noted that this is the first time that the theatre department has performed one of Shakespeare’s historical plays, which covered English history from the 12th to the 16th centuries.

Despite the fact that the original play was written more than four centuries ago, the Iowa native believes that audiences would still be interested in the story due to the themes in Richard III he sees as “relevant,” and the popularity of the awardwinning series House of Cards.

The blockbuster series from Netflix depicts a congressman who schemes and backstabs his way to the top, much like Richard III. “The play is a behind-thescenes look at politically ambitious people who do things in the name of power,” Warren said.

“Even though the events depicted took place in the

15th century, the behavior of these characters and the question the play asks, ‘how much power can these people have before they start to lose themselves?’ makes for a compelling drama.”

DRAMA The second production from

the theatre department is the original drama Locked. It depicts an African-American family that discovers an ancestor of theirs was a slave - a realization that shocks them. Locked was inspired by a family heirloom that UTPA Art Professor Lorenzo Pace, a co-writer of the production, is in possession

It’s a bittersweet year, but it’s helping our new season stand out more, marking the beginning of great things for the community.

- Gina Marie Theater performance student

of: the metal lock that bound his great-grandfather in chains when the latter was a slave.

English Professor Philip Zwerling, the other writer of the production, commented on the difficulty of casting the play, which featured a dominant African-American cast. This caused him and Pace to go out into the community into places, such as Edinburg’s Rising Star Baptist Church, to recruit actors.

“In the seven years I’ve been teaching here, I’ve never seen an African-American-themed production. This may be a first for the department,” the New York native said. “[Pace] and I were interested in seeing how a family would react to discover something as shocking as slavery about an ancestor.

Even though the characters are fictional, it tells a story that is real and important.”

Locked is scheduled to run Oct. 23–26 in the UTPA Studio Theatre, adjacent to the Albert L. Jeffers Theatre in the Arts and Humanities Building.

COMEDY Following a slavethemed drama, the tone for the department’s next play is wildly different. The Mystery of the Shady Palms RV Park, an original com-

having fun, and that enthusiasm will hopefully translate in the audiences enjoying the play as much as the actors are enjoying acting in it.”

The Mystery of the Shady Palms RV Park will run Nov. 19-23 in the UTPA Studio Theatre.

CHRISTMAS The final production of the season will be Pastorela, otherwise known as A Shepherd’s Play, which is part of the department’s Theatre for Young Audiences Program. The program produces plays aimed at young audiences and features child actors working with student actors.

Pastorela tells the story of a group of shepherds who follow the Star of Bethlehem to meet the newborn Christ. It is directed by University Theatre alumna Martha Angelica Chavez de Palmerin and will run Dec. 4-7 in the Albert L. Jeffers Theatre.

LOOKING AHEAD Gina Marie, a veteran student actress for the last two years, is unfazed by the coming changes to the programs. The 28-year-old Pharr native pointed out that more students will have a chance to major in theatre, as UTB never had a theater program nor did they offer a degree in the field. Because of this, she looks forward to what the UTRGV theater program will offer.

“It’s a bittersweet year, but it’s helping our new season stand out more, marking the beginning of great things for the

community,” said Marie, a theatre performance major. “I see (UTRGV) as not only something that will unite the community, but the entire Rio Grande Valley.”

Warren is also interested in what the new university will bring and hopes some of the accomplishments from UTPA’s theater program will become UTRGV’s program.

“Our purpose is to educate the community and our students through our productions,” he said. “We’re going to continue with that mission and keep the quality of our plays.

We’ll see where this collaboration with UTRGV takes us.”

More information about the University Theatre Productions, including their spring lineup, can be found at their website.

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September 4, 2014

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The Tigers responded 17 minutes later as Coley was unable to stop the ball from finding the net. Coley totaled nearly 150 minutes before allowing the first goal. She responded by making sure the Tigers were scoreless for the following 71 minutes.

Coley’s performance earned her the Western Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week. In her first two games she had a total of 11 saves, posted 0.45 goals against average and a .917 save percentage.

After two road games the Broncs made a home debut for their third game of the season.

The Broncs’ third game was in front of 1,743 home fans at the Edinburg Baseball Stadium against Huston-Tillotson University Aug. 27. They defeated the Rams 2-1 in the first of seven games at home.

“I think we put on a good show in the first half and made the second half very excited by allowing the opposition to get back in the game,” Bugariu said.

“So overall it’s a start and we are making progress in what will be a long project.”

Barrera and Allyson Smith of Orange, Calif. scored against HT, both assisted by Inthoulay, who was then named the WAC Co-Offensive Player of the Week. She became the first player in program history to record two goals in a match as well as

two assists.

The Broncs wasted no time as the first home goal in program history was scored in the 11th minute by Barrera. Twelve minutes later the second goal was made as Inthoulay delivered the ball from the top of the box to Smith, who buried it in the back of the net. It was not till the second half, in the 61st minute, that the Rams’ Erica Ramos was able to cut the lead in half.

“It was a good turnout, it was real exciting. This new program is getting a lot of support and I can’t wait till the next home game,” Barrera said. “We came out with so much intensity and a no holding back approach.

Our defense is really strong and we are doing a good job of moving together.”

After the anticipated home game the Broncs prepared for six consecutive road games, starting with Grambling, and the Broncs came through with a 4-0 victory Aug. 30 at Eddie Robinson Stadium.

“We are trying to limit some minutes here and there for some players who have played a lot of minutes in the first few games because playing 20 games in three months is a lot, so we have to be mindful about minutes they play,” Bugariu said.

Harlingen South alumna Erica Gonzalez got her second straight start in front of the net

and recorded her first shutout with six saves in the match.

Inthoulay had the first goal of the match as she struck the ball and scored in the 14th minute. Two minutes later freshman Emily Ortiz of El Paso found the back of the net, making the score 2-0 before the end of the first half. The third goal came five minutes into the second half as Inthoulay got her second of the night, while the final goal happened nine minutes later as freshman Blanca Rodriguez of Biscoe, N.C. scored her first career goal and put the game out of reach for the Tigers.

In their most recent effort the Broncs took on Texas A&M International Sept. 2 and were unable to score, playing 120 minutes in a double-overtime draw.

The Broncs play Prairie View A&M University next, a team currently looking for its first win of the season. The action is set to happen Sept. 5 in Prairie View, Texas.

“Everything we do are steps ahead in the right direction,” Bugariu said. “It is going to take a couple of recruiting classes to propel us to where we want to be, but every game we play is a step ahead and we will learn from past games and future games and steadily we will make progress.”

weekly updates cro s s country Jose Juan Wells finished second and Luis Serrano finished third in the men’s 5K run at the RGV Relays.

Robin Galloso ran as unattached runner and finished first in the women’s 3K run at the RGV Relays.

Next meet is Sept. 20 in College Station for the Texas A&M Invitational.

wo m en ’ s soccer Won 4-0 against Grambling State University Aug. 29 Tied 0-0 against Texas A&M International Sept 2. at TAMIU Soccer Complex in Laredo Next game is against the Prairie View Panthers in Prairie View

volleyball Lost to University of Louisiana at Monroe in the Sam Houston State Tournament Aug. 29 Lost to Mississippi State University Aug. 30 in SHS Tournament Lost to Sam Houston State University Aug. 30 in SHS Tournament Next game is Sept. 4 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at the Field House at 6 p.m.

Female muscle

By Kristela Garza The Pan American UTPA senior Yvette Garcia is currently an International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness professional. The 23-year-old has two sides: the former Bronc cheerleader and the bikini pro-competitor.

“I’m real shy,” the rehabilitation science major said. “So I feel like I have this alter ego

al tournaments. In other words, one cannot compete in the IFBB until earning IFBB Pro, done by winning a NPC national show.

There are only seven such shows hosted annually.

The IFBB was founded in 1946 and administers the highest level of competitive bodybuilding in the world.

Mr. Olympia and Ms. Olympia are the highest titles possible in the IFBB and winners

I like the discipline; you get to know a lot about yourself.

You grow as a person and I just love that about bodybuilding.

-Yvette Garcia Former UTPA cheerleader when I get on stage. I get super confident and I just love that feeling because it is not like me. It puts me out of my comfort zone.”

The San Juan native has spent the last two years building her body and training toward earning her professional status card.

She had to join bodybuilding at the amateur level with the National Physique Committee.

From there she had to place at least fifth at a NPC national qualifying contest. After qualifying, she placed top two at the NPC Universe Fitness Championships in New Jersey; professional cards were handed out there first and second place.

As of July 4 she is a nationally recognized bikini pro bodybuilder, earning the title after competing in the NPC Universe championships in Teaneck, N.J. She took second place in her bikini class and earned professional status.

“I started crying,” Garcia said. “I couldn’t believe it and I still can’t believe it to this day. It is so hard to grasp because it is something that I worked so hard for, for two years.”

The former UTPA cheerleader was introduced to the sport by her boyfriend, Victor Davila, who is also a bodybuilder. The sport is competitive and fitnessoriented, and run by two separate bodies: the NPC, which is the largest amateur bodybuilding organization in the U.S.,and the IFBB. The NPC runs local and national competitions for amateur bodybuilders to compete but once a person turns professional they are under the IFBB, which handles the national profession-

are considered the top bodybuilders in the world.

While researching the bodybuilding world, Garcia found her inspiration.

“I started…looking at fitness magazines and there I came across Jaime Eason and I just loved her body,” Garcia said. “She looked amazing and thought ‘I want to look like that one day.’ She had these crazy abs and these nice toned arms and I thought it was beautiful.”

Garcia has always been an active individual, formally a cheerleader for six years, including one year at UTPA, but things began to change in her twenties.

She became more involved and passionate about living a healthy lifestyle. It was when Eason published a 12-week fitness and diet program in January 2012 that Garcia’s journey began.

The program jump-started Garcia’s physique and the UTPA student was hooked. The fitness and dedication only made her want to build her body further, compelling her to compete in July of that same year.

“I decided to compete in July,” Garcia said. “I didn’t place or anything. It was my first show and I didn’t complete again till a year later. I never gave up.”

She went unfazed and the camaraderie and encouragement she felt from fellow competitors kept her going. Garcia attributes her growth to Team Bombshell, a company that provides fitness plans and a support community for women looking to break into competitive bodybuilding. This national company is health and fitness oriented and focuses on promoting fit women. It was founded by Shannon Dey, an

7

IFBB Pro Athlete. Garcia has followed the group’s training and nutrition programs for most of her bodybuilding career.

According to the UTPA senior, bodybuilding has changed her life for the better. She states she is normally a shy girl that changes as soon as she hits the stage. Suddenly, she feels confident, strong and wants people to know exactly who she is.

However, the road was not always easy. When Garcia first ventured into the sport she faced opposition from friends who believed too much muscle on a woman was not attractive.

But for Garcia, muscles sculpted to a woman’s body created the perfect physique.

“My friends used to tell me, ‘Don’t lift too much weights, you will end up looking manly,’” she explained. “(So I thought) well, it is my body. You shouldn’t care what people think, so at the end of the day just do it for yourself.”

As graduation nears for Garcia, in December, she has an ultimate goal in mind. She plans to one day stand with the best female bodybuilders of her time and make it to the Ms. Olympia stage.

Ms. Olympia is the title given to the winner of the women’s bodybuilding portion of Joe Weider’s Olympia Weekend, which is an international professional bodybuilding competition held annually by the IFBB. The woman that takes home Ms. Olympia can say she is the top female bodybuilder in the world.

However, Garcia does it for more than just prizes and titles.

“Along the way you motivate people,” she said. “You inspire them to live a healthier lifestyle, (and) at the end of the day this is why I do it. I like the dedication and the discipline; you get to know a lot about yourself. You grow as a person and I just love that about bodybuilding.”

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September 4, 2014

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