LET’S GO: Wahap hits the gong to launch the competition, while Wee (left), Steve (second right) and Nolan (right) look on.
SHOW TIME: The contestants being introduced to the audience.
KUCHING: 2013 marks the Golden Jubilee of of Malaysia, but it is also the 50th anniversary of Sarawak Body Building Association (SBBA) which was formed two weeks prior to the country’s independence.
“We are just as historical as the modern nation of Sarawak, and Malaysia. Our strong sense of survival and sustainability are things all of us here should take pride of,” SBBA president Dato Wee Hong Seng said at the Mr Sarawak Jubilee Emas 2013 competition held yesterday at Plaza Merdeka.
Wee, who is also deputy president of Malaysia BodyBuilding Federation, added that body building is not just a sport.
“It is an all-encompassing lifestyle that includes fitness, art, beauty, strength, power, growth, determination, perseverance, persistency and strong will-power.
“These are values that are imperative not only for body building, but also to serve as guiding principles in our lives,” Wee stressed.
He continued to say that this very perseverance and strong will power of Sarawakians has been the driving force that led the nation to where it stands now.
Wee also mentioned the various achievements that the SBBA has garnered in recent years, among them representing Sarawak in the Mr Malaysia competition in 2011.
Another great achievement for SBBA was the championship title of Mr Hong Kong and Natural BodyBuilding Australia for organising chairman for the Mr Sarawak Jubilee Emas 2013 competition, Nolan Chee.
Twenty-seven participants contested for the titles of Mr Fitness and Mr Sarawak Jubilee Emas.
Some veteran body builders with roots steeped in the early years of SBBA judged the show, including Andrew Grimsam and Sylvester Goh Thian Yong.
Kuching North City Commission Mayor Datuk Abang Wahap Abang Julai officiated at the event.
Also present were managing director of Plaza Merdeka and 360 Hotel Steve Ng, Miri Bodybuilding Association president Ms Jamilah, Kapitan Desmond Thian and advisors of SBBA.