Of the many thousands of people who toured Ground Zero this past weekend, several hundred of them took a side tour into the Tribeca Performing Arts Center for the Team Universe, a contest that would determine who will represent the USA this October at the World Amateur Championships.

Fitness short
The women's fitness two-piece round was held on Friday night following the men's prejudging. Melissa Maffioli continued her dominance of the short class physique rounds and was out to an early lead after day one. But as great as her physique is, Melissa still struggles in the fitness routine rounds and that left her unable to hold onto that lead and by Saturday night, she'd fallen to second place.

Tracie Traskos, who has always scored brownie points for having such a cool name, came through with a big win in the routine round, which was enough to propel her to the victory in the short class. She had scrapped her "Pink Panther" routine from the Junior Nationals which, while cute, just didn't have enough pro-level sharpness to help her accomplish what she had intended. That was not the case this time around, though, as she came with a degree of polish that exceeded all her previous performances and as a result, she took home the IFBB pro card for the short class.

In third was newcomer Margaret Blanchard, who actually finished second in the two-piece round. Like Melissa, a sluggish routine also cost her a spot in the final placings, but her physique was still good enough to get her into the picture at the national level. Jennifer Devine, who owns perhaps the brightest smile in fitness, finished fourth this time out. Her routine with the fluffy pink outfit was entertaining, and will a little more conditioning, she can expect to place well at Nationals. Carla Freda was fifth.

Fitness medium
Just when you think she was one of the many who'd taken other paths in life which led them away from competitive fitness, Peggy Sue Crawford returned with more pizzazz than ever this year, and now she has joined the ranks of the IFBB pros. Peggy Sue never had a bad physique - in fact, she always looked fantastic back in 1999-2000, but the timing just wasn't right. Well, after getting a bit of a break in 2001, it seems she is finally getting her due and she was easily the most deserving class winner of the entire night.

Finishing second was Kristy Robbins, the Junior National champion from 2001. She has a very good physique, but aside from exceptional symmetry, it's hard to say there's anything spectacular about it, primarily because she does not appear to be nearly as well-conditioned as some of the other women in the class. She has a great smile, though, and there's something very nice about the way she photographs, so all that has to be taken into consideration as well. Kristy has definite star quality in the world of fitness modeling.

A lot of members of the audience felt that Lisa Uzzle was victim of the biggest robbery of the day. Several observers had her first and certainly no less than second, so there was quite the chorus of boos for the judges when she was announced in third place. Lisa has a phenomenal physique and her routine is always a joy to watch - she's not at all discouraged by this placing and is riding a wave of confidence going into Nationals.

Finishing fourth was newcomer Amy Johnston, appearing in a national-level show in just her first year of competition. Amy has one of the purest great physiques in the country. She trains hard, yes, but she trains very smart as well, and the results were evident as she earned a second-place finish in the one-piece round…and many were of the opinion that she'd actually won the round. No matter, though - she walks away with a fourth-place award in a field that was stacked with lots of talent and experience.

Teri Mooney finished a disappointing fifth this time around, but will be a force once Nationals roll around. She'll tone down her lower body a bit and that will make all the difference in the world.

Fitness tall
In a move that shocked many long-time followers, Adria Montgomery-Kline opted not to go pro after placing second at the USAs two weeks ago. Rumor has it that she wanted to win the trip to the IFBB World Amateur Championships this October in the Czech Republic, so that prompted her to forego her pro eligibility from Las Vegas in an effort to win in New York.

Her routine has style and she looks extremely poised on stage, but she managed to win both physique rounds with a third- or fourth-place physique. She looked nice from the waist up, and received judges' praise for her excellent V-taper, but from the waist down was a completely different story, a story that made the final scores a little hard to reconcile.

Grabbing the runner-up spot was 20-year old Kristin Rosen, for whom the sun just keeps on shining. Although she probably could've used a competitive break following the USAs, a bunch of local supporters there in Olympia, Washington urged her to do the Team Universe and even put together some funding to help defray the cost of her trip. There's no explanation for why Kristin placed second to Adria in both the two-piece and one-piece - sometimes you just have to shrug your shoulders and say, "Don't sweat it, kid - your day will come."

Elizabeth Maurice looked even better than she did in Vegas and came away in third place once again. She'll be looking forward to another top-three finish in Dallas. Christine "the New American Muscle" Kovacs was fourth on the strength of a victory in the routine round which featured a variety of strength moves and Carla Walburn rounded out the top five.

Overall There was a small amount of controversy as Adria won a decision over Peggy Sue.

Bodybuilding lightweights
In the lightweight division, Tracie "TNT" Tucker showed once again why she is one of the greats in the world of natural bodybuilding. The thickness and definition of her back told the story of the day, as she beat two very game competitors - Kristen Sallo (2nd), who had a smaller waist, and Meghan King (3rd), who possessed thicker muscle bellies in her arms and quads, but who didn't have quite the symmetry of the other two women. If Meghan can get a little tighter for next year's show, she might very well win this class.

Marion Gregory placed fourth and Angela Sales, owner of the best abs in the class, placed fifth.

Middleweights
Toni Norman is just one of those women who leaves fans wanting more, more, more. She is always in great shape, always presents a beautiful physique package, and she always reminds everyone why they became bodybuilding fans in the first place. A consummate professional in the way she carries herself at a show, Toni is a true ambassador for women's bodybuilding and it's good to see her rewarded for her dedication at a show of this level.

In second was bodybuilding/fitness crossover competitor, Catherine McKee. Her muscular definition is readily apparent when she steps on stage, but it's her exceptionally full muscle bellies - for such a lean athlete - that sneak up and surprise onlookers. On any other day, she probably would have walked away with the overall title, but Toni was just that good. Cat has had an incredible year already and things can only get better for her in 2003.

Third was Laurie Wallace - another of the bright smile group - followed by Karen Taylor and Roxanne Edwards.

Heavyweights
After an eighth-place finish at the USAs, an inspired Carolyn Bryant came to New York to do battle with whomever was willing to enter the fray. She was hard, she was in shape, and she owned the heavyweight class.

Elizabeth Phillips took second with a powerfully thick torso, but did not have quite the level of symmetry to be able to unseat Carolyn for the top spot. Finishing third was Karen Gatto, who got into the best shape of her competitive career. She looked a lot like former star, Kathy Unger, and if she continues improving at this pace, she will definitely challenge for multiple titles in the coming years.

Mercedes Bazemore, always incredibly sharp, placed fourth this time, with Pamela Brown finishing fifth. Other notables in the heavyweight class included Christine Vaillancourt, who was first featured in FemSport a year ago, and Jill Kolivoski, who was making her first trip to the national stage since her victory at the NPC Collegiate Nationals way back in 1999.

Overall
Toni Norman used an exceptional physique and a million-watt smile to score the biggest win of life in bodybuilding.