Success at provincials for local gym
Four bodybuilders from the News Dimensions Gym took on the IFBB Provincial Championships this year with great success.
Bodybuilding is a tough sport to get into. Yes, anyone can go to the gym or find alternative ways of building muscle, but it takes an extraordinary amount of gumption and tenacity to eat right every single day, make time to work out more than you usually would, and actually focus on perfecting your technique for months on end.
Considering the times we’re in, with lockdowns and the pandemic making everything difficult, it is even more impressive when bodybuilders take on their first professional, national bodybuilding competition.
Mark van Biljon, owner of the New Dimensions Gym in Krugersdorp, is a venerable veteran in the bodybuilding world and has been training others for some years to compete as well.
On September 18, first-timers Jaco Smith, 49, Sifiso Masango, 19, and Zandré Thesner, 19, followed Mark to the 2021 IFBB Provincial Championships held in the Walter Sisulu Sports Hall in Randburg. This event served as a qualifier and team selection opportunity for the IFBB National Championship in bodybuilding.
Jaco explained that he worked out a bit in his youth before falling from a building and hurting his back. “After 19 years, I ran into Mark again and he convinced me to join him at the gym. I had quite a stomach at the time and went from 108kg to 93kg,” Jaco said, explaining that it took him just a year and a half of careful training, as not to hurt his back, to get to the level where he could compete in the provincial round. He finally placed sixth in the Masters Bodybuilding Over 40 category.
Sifiso started working out three years ago while at HTS N Diederichs THS. “When I went to high school I was the smallest guy in the rugby team. Mark asked me to join them and I quickly fell in love with the sport of bodybuilding. At the provincials, I just wanted to get that feeling of being on stage so that next time I could come with a different mindset.” Sifiso placed sixth in the Junior Bodybuilding U/23 division.
Zandré also competed in the Athletic Physique Under 174cm division for the first time and placed sixth.
Mark placed third in the Masters Bodybuilding Over 40 category during the provincial round, which meant that he could go on to the IFBB National Championships on October 1 to 3 where he competed in the Over 50 category and placed third.
Next up for the New Dimensions team, and many other bodybuilders and gyms in the area is the Mr and Miss West Rand DGN Classic at Silverstar on Saturday, October 30 which will also be a qualifier for the upcoming Arnold Classic Africa 2021.
