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RYAN?BREWSTER?is a man for all seasons.
Two decades ago, he was winning double bronze in the 800 and 1 500 at the Carifta Games. A few years ago, he was wearing dreadlocks. On Saturday night, he was shaven skull, showcasing six-pack abs, strutting the stage in razor-sharp condition and walking away with an impressive capture of the Men’s Physique Cup at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.
Brewster, carrying the torch for the Kracken Gym, won the class for competitors up to 175 centimetres and easily lifted the overall title after winning a showdown with Duaine Lucas, the winner of the 175 centimetres and over class.
The bikini category was the other showpiece of the season opening and the stylish Janesia Pitt, to the screams of adoring fans from the Strike Force Gym, reigned supreme before an audience that included pro athletes Roslyn Vanterpool and Saskia Griffith.
The 20-year-old Pitt wowed the fans and led a 1-2 sweep of the bikini show for Strike Force Gym, but the story of the night was clearly the renaissance effort from the charismatic Brewster, the son of radio personality Vic “Buddy Boy”?Brewster.
“This is an amazing feeling. Early last year, I had a medical condition that had me on bed rest for a couple of weeks. Came back, got back into the gym, said I had to take better care of myself and seeing guys around me like Omar Benn, Deono James, working and constantly improving, served as encouragement.
“I used that perseverance and determination that I had from previous experiences as an athlete, put it to use and it worked. It’s a personal achievement at age 39 and great to be on stage and doing well against much younger guys,” said Brewster, a schoolteacher at Wilkie Cumberbatch Primary.
Benn took second in the short class with Kevin Edwards and Jamil Jones, fourth. The surprise result here was the fifth place given to 36-year-old personal trainer Kirk Bovell of Body Shapers Gym. Bovell, a professional kick-boxer, had one of the best conditoned physiques on stage and should have placed much higher.
There were a few howlers in the over 175 centimetres class, where Ryan Haynes of Flawless Concepts and Kirk Yarde of Bodyshapers Gym, deserved better than third and fourth place respectively. Both were in good shape and could feel hard done by.
Yarde, who gave a delightful posing routine to the theme music from the Fresh Prince of Belair, was very disappointed with the result.
“I need some time to think because right now I am not sure if I will be back. I am really disappointed. I can’t hide it,” said Yarde, a representative at Nature’s Discount.
There wasn’t much debate about the bikini results. Pitt was an emphatic winner over gym mate Kela Knight with Janelle Butcher of Training Edge completing the top three.
“It’s been a lot of hard work. Coming down close to the contest, I was on the treadmill, getting in the cardio, eating right. My trainers stuck with me from day one and that made a lot of difference,” she added.
