Mr. and Ms. Penn competition turns Annenberg into a flex zone

Some Penn students do not have to choose between brains and brawn.

The 22nd Annual Mr. and Ms. Penn competition, a gleaming night of oiled calves, washboard stomachs and ripped arms, was held Monday night at the Annenberg Center. The 29 contestants across four categories — tall and short class men and women — were shaking with exertion as they flexed for a screaming audience. Track and field coach Tony Tenisci hosted the competition.

Wharton junior Sam Mattis took the title of Mr. Penn, while Ms. Penn went to College senior Veronica Jones .

Each also won first place in their tall class categories.

The true muscular show began with the short class men. The bodybuilders stood in a straight line and contorted their bodies into impressive poses ranging from “front double bi,” in which they raise their fists above their heads while flexing their biceps, to “abdominal thigh,” in which they place their hands behind their heads and thrust their pelvic areas to the audience.

“I never thought Penn students could be so ripped,” College freshman Lawrence Chan said. “How do they have the time to get their bodies like that?”

The audience spewed catcalls as Wharton senior Peter Bin flexed to 50 Cents’ Candy Shop, but College senior Omari Maxwell ultimately took first place in the short men’s class.

Out of the short class women, it was College freshman Molly Minnig who took the first place trophy. Molly began her routine in a cowgirl hat, only to throw it to the side as she launched into an upbeat routine of dance moves and flexing. The audience responded positively to each routine, with repeated shouts of “Oh yeah there’s the work,” and “That’s what I’m talking about.”

The competition opened with a choreographed dance routine by The Fly Girls, a group of Penn’s female track and field team members who perform at the competition every year.

Tenisci kept the crowd engaged. After the show, he expressed his pride in the contestants, saying that “no other Ivy could put on a show like this.” Contestants worked for eight weeks to prepare for the Mr. and Ms. Penn competition, surviving midterms, strict health plans and an excess of body oil.

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