THREE LOCAL bodybuilders are hoping to proudly fly the Golden Arrowhead in Barbados this weekend, when they compete in the Darcy Beckles Invitational Classic, scheduled to be held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre and will have as its guest poser, Dexter ‘The Blade’ Jackson.

He is a late replacement for ten-time Miss Olympia Iris Kyle.
Godfrey Stoby, Careus Cipriani and Marlon Bennett are the athletes being accompanied by bodybuilding executives Videsh Sookram, who will function as coach, Stacey McKinnon General secretary and Moressa Sookram, treasurer.
It will be the second outing for Stoby and Bennett at the event, having first participated in 2010, but did not finish on the podium and when they do tomorrow, they will be competing in the International Classic which will feature the regional competitors including the top three Barbadian bodybuilders.
Cipriani is the ‘newbie’ on the team and will compete in the Men’s Physique competition – a first at the event, after he copped second place to Sylvester Adams in the welterweight class at the Mr Guyana competition in August.
The Men’s Physique class features athletes, who prefer to develop a less muscular yet, athletic and aesthetically pleasing physique, and Bennett won the Lightweight class, while Stoby finished second to reigning Mr Guyana Kerwin Clarke.
The team, which left from the Ogle International Airport, are all confident of doing well and they believe they are better prepared to take the stage.
The Barbados Nation reports that 40 male and female athletes from St Lucia, Guyana, Antigua, St Maarten, Bermuda and Barbados, will compete in body fitness, open classic, bikini fitness, men’s physique and the Invitational Classic.
Jackson, a former Mr Olympia (2008) is fresh from winning the Dubai Bodybuilding Classic three weeks ago.
The Darcy Beckles Invitational Classic is organised by former Barbados champion Roger Boyce in honour of the celebrated Darcy Beckles, who won every major local and Caribbean contest during his heyday and was the spearhead of Barbados’ assault on the Mr Universe stage from 1976-79.

(Leeron Brumell)