RI to host SEA’s first body building championships

Indonesia will organize Southeast Asia’s first body building championship with Rp 200 million (US$22,000) to make more young competitors internationally competitive.

The “Best of the Best Body Building Championships” will be held on Feb. 26 in Jakarta, featuring athletes from several Southeast Asian countries. Indonesia will send at least 300 body builders and 200 body fitness competitors to the event.

Organizers said they had received confirmation that five athletes from Malaysia and three athletes from Brunei Darussalam would attend.

“World and Asian champion Sazali bin Samad of Malaysia has received our invitation and agreed to take part,” event spokesman Tedjo Diningrat told a news conference on Tuesday, adding that organizers were still waiting to confirm athletes from Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam

“Hopefully, we can hold the championships annually,” Tedjo said.

The tournament will features competitions in the men’s beginners under 65 kilograms, 65.1-75 kilograms, above 75 kilograms, overall sports events, as well as body fitness beginners and women’s fitness.

Guest athlete Syafrizaldi, a gold medalist at the recent Asian Beach Games in Oman, said that he was excited to be involved in the event, and hoped it would promote the sport to public.

“I personally hope the champions of our national games [PON] will participate,” Syafrizaldi said. “It will be a good chance for our athletes to make good. I’m looking forward for Indonesian body builders to get a chance to succeed in the championships.”

The 40-year-old body builder said that Indonesia needed more such tournaments to develop local athletes’ skills and promote the sport.

Most Indonesian body builders did not know how to keep fit outside national training programs, he said.

“We need such event to, among other things, keep them exercising and thus preserve their body work,” the 2006 Asian Games silver medalist added.