By Avenash Ramzan
It will be a case of fit of the fittest on November 11-12 when Guyana Fitness Games stages the annual GTM Health and Fitness Expo, which is set to attract another large group of fitness fanatics battling for supremacy.
On November 11, there will be the fitness session, Cancer Awareness Glow Walk, Zumba Glow Party, three-point shootout and Slam Dunk competition, while the following day, the fitness exhibition will be followed by the Squat and Fitness Challenges and the highly-anticipated Strongman competition.
At the official launch of the activity at the Giftland Mall on Thursday evening, Jamie McDonald of Guyana Fitness Games detailed what to expect at the two-day event.
“We’re going to have our usual Scaled competition, which is basically a Novice competition where we’ll have new Crossfitters. Novice Crossfitters are those who are just on the cusp of getting to that higher level of Crossfit- that’s going to be a competition for them. It’s going to be very interesting to see them competing alongside our RX athletes, who are going to be taking part in the Pairs competition- that’s going to be new this year,” McDonald explained.
According to McDonald, the Pairs competition, is expected to very competitive, and six teams have already been confirmed. “We’re putting men and women together and they’re going to be vying against each other, and the particular set-up for all of the events is going to be very interesting for people to watch. Just to give a bit of an overview of what Crossfit is; it’s a mixture of athletics, powerlifting, weightlifting and endurance running. You’re going to see athletes lifting very heavy loads, running very long distances, jumping on boxes [and] swinging kettle bells, so it’s a very interesting thing to watch…there is no other competition like this in Guyana,” McDonald highlighted.
Another new addition- the Strongman competition- which will feature close to one dozen athletes from Guyana and Suriname is touted as the showpiece of the event.
“We’re going to have four different events for the Strongman competition. First one, they’re going to have to lift a ball like about 200 to 300 pounds, then they have to push press stuff over their head. They have to also flip a very, very large tyre; I’m not even sure how many times they’re going to be able to flip it. Undoubtedly, some of the competitors won’t be able to flip it- that’s how heavy it is. I’m told it’s about 600-plus pounds,” McDonald divulged.
He continued, “To cap off the night and to cap off the weekend, the Strongman competitors will attempt to pull for a certain distance and for a certain time, a Backhoe Loader that we’re getting from MACORP. We’ve already done testing and I have to say it’s going to be interesting to see how it would play out.”
Meanwhile, reigning Crossfit champions Dillon Mahadeo and Semonica Duke will team up, with the hope of being the best of the six pairs on show. Both expressed confidence of doing well, since they have been training over the last couple of week, fine tuning their body for the event.
Sponsors representatives present at the launch all expressed delight to be part of the activity, underscoring the importance of the event in helping to promote a healthy lifestyle.
The event is sponsored by GTM, Banks DIH Limited, Fitness Express, DeSinco Trading, Genesis Fitness Express, St. Joseph’s Mercy Hospital, Republic Bank, Giftland Mall and MACORP.
