Bodybuilders primed their tans to flex their muscles in the latest instalment of the UKBFF Channel Islands competition, held last Sunday at the Jersey Opera House.
Among a range of events from bodybuilding to physique and wellness across both men’s and women’s categories, the Channel Islands athletes brought their ‘A game’.
Lisa Tierney, President of the UKBFF, said: “All the athletes are in really amazing shape. The posing routines were excellent.
“We’ve given loads of invites to the British finals and international shows.”
First up was the junior bodybuilding category, which saw 16-year-old Macauley Guy go ‘pec to pec’ with 22-year-old Luc Langlois.
While the defending men’s overall champion always seemed like the likely winner, Guy should be commended for his confidence.
Guy said: “I’m really happy. It wasn’t quite the kind of placings I hoped for, but I’m still happy with the package I brought to the stage nonetheless.”
He hopes that this is the start of a long career, adding: “It’s hard, but I love it. The hardest thing is the diet and the mindset and having to push your way through, especially as it gets to the last six weeks, you start to feel tired.”
Following that, Adam Nash, who was competing for the first time, took two successive wins in the Classic Physique and Classic Bodybuilding categories.
Having just started university, he had to make a quick stop home to compete.
Nash said: “It was so cool being back there with all the guys, and not a bad result either. So much has gone into this, like months and months. Going out with my mates, it’s been a lot of saying ‘no’.”
Langlois went on to compete in the over 90kg men’s bodybuilding, where he went up against local legend Miguel de Freitas, who he eventually overcame. His showing there allowed Langlois to retain the overall men’s Channel Islands title for the second year in a row.
Despite his decision to compete being a “last minute decision,” only signing up eight weeks out, he was “happy” he retained his crown.
In the women’s categories Paulina Malotto swept all three of her categories.
In the women’s wellness category, defending overall women’s champion Hayley Burrows took on first-timer Victoria Green from Sark, who trains in her home gym.
Burrows took the win, and went on to claim the overall women’s title.
She said she was “actually very surprised” to come home with the win, because she felt “less ready this time.”
“I just went in with no expectations, but the aim was to have fun with it, and I definitely did,” Burrows added.
The most highly competed event was the Open Men’s Physique with a whopping 11 athletes. After whittling it down to a final six, the judges settled on Meshac ‘Shac’ Enriques.
Enriques’ display there landed him the coveted overall men’s champion – which included competitors not from the Channel Islands.
He said he “didn’t know what to expect,” because it was his first time competing, adding it is the “first of many. I might take it more seriously now, even though I do take it seriously anyway, but I might actually start doing it in other places and other countries.”
There is a whole team of people who help put the event together, namely Richard O’Connor and Anita Othman at Bodyrox Gym continue to put in a titan effort to ensure everything runs smoothly.
A number of the competitors were given invitations to international finals and the British finals, which is taking place in Bedford on 18 October.
Martin Kelly, Executive Committee Member at the UKBFF and the event’s head judge, said the day “went smoothly,” and he was impressed by the standard of athletes, who he said would do well at the British finals.
