Former Ms. Women’s Physique Olympia Sarah Villegas didn’t take her loss to Natalia Coelho at the 2025 Women’s Physique Olympia very well. In fact, she’s been very active on social media over the course of the last few weeks accusing Coelho of using site enhancing oils (SEO’s) to win the title back. These accusations resulted in a media frenzy with a tremendous amount of attention on the second most muscular women’s division.
Women’s Physique, or WPD, was a division initially intended to replace Women’s Bodybuilding, or female bodybuilding (FBB). This point may be argued by bodybuilding historians, but I would argue that that’s exactly why the division came about. The fans lobbied and the Federation answered. The 20% Rule of 2005 failed to address the issues of extreme muscularity in FBB and WPD had an opening. Thanks in large part to the name-recognition and larger-than-life presence of inaugural WPD Ms. Olympia Dana LInn Bailey and the dominance of Julia Malacarne (afterwards), the division earned a strong foothold on physique-based sports. This held true even after FBB’s future was safe again and even after FBB began to blossom with the involvement of Jake Wood’s Wings Of Strength. That said, WPD has endured some hits, like being pulled from the Arnold Classic. Nonetheless, it’s an active division with continued interest from competitors and fans, alike. This issue between Sarah and Natalia isn’t going to help matters though.
Some might argue that there’s no such thing as bad press. Press is press, right? Well, not so fast! This kind of press is very much akin to the shit hitting the fan. You’d have to be awfully optimistic to think that one Olympia champion accusing another Olympia champion, especially the current title-holder, of filling in muscles with oil as being anything but detrimental. It affects the integrity of the Olympia title, it raises doubts in the judging, and it further casts a black cloud over the Federation, so much so that Bob Cicherillo went on to state that Villegas is very much “on the chopping block.”
The outspoken, self-proclaimed Athletes Rep made the comment when asked if Villegas could compete in 2026 or beyond. The inference being that Sarah’s accusations will make it impossible for her to get a fair look in the future. Cicherillo went on to say that if Villegas was so unhappy – seemingly with the status quo – that she should look to going to another federation. That also sounds like her days in the IFBB Pro League are pretty much over. That said, actual Federation officials have long asserted that anyone who thinks Cicherillo speaks for them is pretty much stupid. But is Chick spouting nonsense or could he be addressing the 10,000lb elephant in the room?
Anytime the issue of politics comes up, there’s at least a couple of camps that speak up. One camp says politics play a key role in all aspects of the sport. Another camp, quick to speak up, is the one that says politics play no role. As with anything, there’s two sides of the coin, and the truth is usually somewhere in the middle. The optics don’t look good for Sarah, I’m afraid to say. She’s basically forced herself into a corner and that may be the basis of Cicherillo’s position. But has Sarah actually taken shots at the Olympia as a contest, at the judges, or the Federation? Perhaps not directly, but the fallout has been anything but ambiguous. Her supporters are taking to social media and they’re sounding off. She’s by no means alone, but the question is, was this the desired outcome?
If we were talking about natural bodybuilding, I think Sarah’s position would be far stronger. I’m not suggesting that SEO’s should be in bodybuilding, but they most certainly are. I don’t know if Natalia uses them or has used them. The only real, definitive way to tell would be if she underwent an MRI and the results were shared. That’s really the only way to “test” for SEO use. Aside from the fact that such “testing” would cost a fortune, it’s extremely invasive, and utterly inappropriate to publish medical findings with the media and/or the public. Plus, most physique-based athletes have experimented with site enhancing oils. I don’t think there’s any controversy when it comes to that. That said, the use is usually very subtle and even the most skilled judges and fans can’t tell.
There’s a stark difference between discreet SEO use by top physique-based athletes and the clowns we see on YouTube who inject home brews and look like cartoon characters. Those people would get laughed off a level 1 amateur stage. They would never win a national qualifier, much less get a pro card, or even come close to an Olympia stage.
I totally understand Sarah is upset she lost and perhaps is looking for a rational explanation as to why, but bodybuilding is an extremely subjective sport. I’m not using that as an out. If her gripe is that Coelho MAY have used site enhancing oils, then she could raise her voice. But does raising her voice come with a price? Only time will tell. I don’t think she’s on the chopping block because that would suggest that politics in our sport are blatant. That said, she might not get any favors in a close match. That as much I could see as being a thing.
But I also have some misgivings about Sarah’s whole position because we’re talking about enhanced bodybuilding – not natural bodybuilding. So site enhancing oils are immoral, but a woman having higher test levels than a 20yr old man is ok? Performance enhancing drugs make people superhuman. They give them super human strength. They allow them to break down protein better, recover faster, and put on tons of size. And what about diuretics? Are those immoral? What about insulin, growth hormone, and SARM’s? Are those immoral or are those ok to take? I find it very difficult to draw lines in the sand when professional physique-based athletes are taking pretty much everything under the sun to bring the best look to the stage. To be totally real and no disrespect to Sarah, but there’s a temptation to dismiss her entire position as nothing more than sour grapes.
At the end of the day, she’s making herself heard, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It might not make the most career sense and she may never know – definitively – one way or another if Coelho used SEO’s at the 2025 Olympia, but she can fight on. In my estimation, it seems like an awful lot to give for not a lot of return. Natalia is still the reigning Ms. WPD Olympia and Sarah is not. While there’s a good chance Natalia will win again in 2026, I get what Bob is saying about Villegas chances in the future. When shit hits the fans, it gets on everyone.
Do you agree with Sarah? Do you think she is on the chopping block? As always, thank you for reading my article, here, at IronMag. I look forward to reading your feedback in the comments. Please be sure to copy and paste a link to this article on all your social media feeds. It’s bound to generate lively conversation.
Author Bio:
Christian I. Duque is the owner StrengthAddicts.com, a physique and strength website founded in 2008. He has worked for a number of bodybuilding websites, including RX Muscle and Muscular Development. Christian has written nearly 1,000 published articles for Iron Magazine, as well as articles for StrengthAddicts, RX Muscle, and others. By day, he is also a licensed attorney practicing in the areas of family law, immigration, and criminal defense.
