In her first year in the sport, Donna Williams won the overall women’s bodybuilding title at the 59th Bahamas Bodybuilding and Fitness Federation’s (BBFF) National Championships this past Saturday night, and for the sixth time in the past seven years, Jaymes ‘Jay’ Darling emerged as the overall winner in the men’s division. Tishell McPhee won the overall fitness title while Charnice Bain took the overall body fitness honor.
The overall women’s bodybuilding champion from last year, Faye Rolle, won the women’s masters title while Ray Whylly was victorious in the men’s masters 50 and over division. Raymond Tucker won the men’s masters 40-49 division, and Stephen Robinson and Rolle were the mixed pairs champs just to name a few of the winners. All of the athletes were supported well, as the site for the championships, the National Center for the Performing Arts, was filled to capacity.
The showdown at the end of the evening between bodybuilders who won their respective categories climaxed the event. Williams, a first-year national competitor, won the women’s heavyweight division. She then went on to capture the overall title against the women’s lightweight champ and seasoned bodybuilder, Tammy Stubbs, who was the crowd favorite. Williams, 2009 Novice Champion, appeared even more encouraged after the show about her aspirations in the sport.
"I am usually shy when I get on stage but before performing I said a little prayer and that gave me strength. This is something that I really want to do well in. I persevered and gave it my best," said the mother of three.
Meanwhile, 15-year veteran Darling, won over a top notch field of divisional winners which included Teddy Gray (super heavyweight), Raymond Tucker (welterweight), Paul Wilson (bantamweight), Charles Johnson (heavyweight), and Grand Bahamians Desmond Bain (light heavyweight) and Ray Whylly (light middleweight). Darling dedicated the win to his brother, Norman Darling, who died in Iraq in 2004.
"The competition was really good. Desmond appeared more fresher this year and if Teddy was a little bit more tighter it probably would have been a different result, so in order to seal the win I had to pull one out of my back pocket," said Darling.
Another highlight of the evening was the recognition of Dr. Norman Gay for his contribution to the sport. Minister of State for Culture Charles Maynard presented him with the accolades, including an honorary judge’s award. BBFF President Danny Sumner was greatly impressed with the amount of contestants who performed.
"The judging was good, the talent was high and I would give this event a grade ‘A’," summed up Sumner, an International Federation for Bodybuilding (IFBB) Grade ‘A’ certified judge. Cash prizes, donated by corporate entities such as Better Bodies Gym, Iron Man Gym, Door 2 Door Import and Export Services, Proactive Wellness (Dr. Dwight Marshall) and Security Systems International, were given to the overall winners.
Now that the nationals are completed, the BBFF officers will select a team to represent the country at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Championships set to be held in Grenada, the first week of October. Other BBFF events on tap include the Antilles Championships, from August 1-2 in the Dominican Republic where the overall male and female champions from the recent novice championships will represent the country. Countries aside from The Bahamas expected to compete at the Antilles Championships include Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Haiti, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
